Petition No 0539/2020 by N.P. (Indian) on refusing entry to third country nationals possessing long term residence permits in Hungary 

The petitioner complains that third country nationals with permanent residence permit will not be allowed entry to Hungary due to COVID-19. He claims that according to the Government Decree 81/2020 only EU nationals having a permanent residence card benefit from the same rights as Hungarian nationals with regard to re-entry during COVID-19 crisis. He alleges that this measure unfairly imposed by the Hungarian government ignores the rights of foreign nationals who have long-term residence status rights in Hungary. Allegedly, third-country nationals will have to appeal for re-entry. He stresses that this is not in line with the directive 2003/109/EC. He complains that the directive provides room for interpretation and distortion of the clauses and thus does not protect third country nationals. He also alleges that Hungary does not respect the Guidelines for border management measures, issued on 16 March 2020, which state that when applying temporary travel restrictions, Member States have to comply with the safeguards laid down in EU law, in particular the principles of proportionality and non-discrimination and facilitate entry and transit of EU citizens and residents that are returning home.