EU citizenship and the COVID-19 pandemic: a fundamental status under threat?

All EU citizens enjoy fundamental rights, including the right to free movement and the right to equal treatment. The COVID-19 pandemic poses a significant challenge for these rights. At the height of the lockdown, borders between EU Member States were closed and citizens were, in many instances, confined to their homes. Until this day, travel between EU Member States continues to be subject to requirements and restrictions that were unimaginable even two years ago. In addition, or rather in parallel with this development, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have put the fundamental principle of non-discrimination and equality of EU citizens under additional pressure. This is obvious from the fact that the EU Member States have applied different restrictions to EU citizens depending on their home Member State. Against this background, the time is ripe for a fresh assessment of whether the current legal framework is apt to guarantee the enjoyment of EU citizenship rights also in times of crisis. On the one hand, it will be examined whether the restrictions imposed by a number of Member States can be duly justified on grounds of public health. Should such restrictions not be subject, from a substantive point of view, to more stringent requirements, e.g. in terms of proportionality? Moreover, from a procedural point of view, are appropriate mechanisms in place to guarantee that such requirements are controlled and enforced? On the other hand, it will be analyzed how EU law can bolster the respect for the equality of EU citizens in the face of discriminatory conditions which have seen the light in current times. The underlying idea is that the COVID-19 crisis can and should act as a trigger for a more robust and ambitious interpretation of the provisions on EU citizenship.