A long-standing call and one of the disability movement’s flagship issues, the European Disability Card would enable people with disabilities to exercise their fundamental right to freedom of movement within the EU on an equal footing with non-disabled people.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) welcomed the European Commission’s initiative to introduce a European Disability Card to help people with disabilities move and live freely in the European Union, but warned that the card’s success depends on mutual recognition of disability status between EU countries, which is not currently the case.
In an opinion adopted at its April Assembly, the EESC expressed concern that the lack of mutual recognition of disabilities between Member States means that people with disabilities are unable to access assistance when travelling to other countries, which the EESC said is a fundamental violation of freedom of movement, a core EU value.
Mutual recognition of disabilities is a prerequisite for an effective European Disability Card, said Ioannis Vardakastanis, rapporteur for the opinion.
Currently, there are first and second class European citizens – first class are those who can move between Member States to travel, work, study or set up residence, and second class are those who cannot. The European Disability Card will break down these barriers and create an open space in Europe where people with disabilities can exercise their right to free movement, he stressed.
In its opinion, the EESC noted that a European Disability Card is a priority for the disability movement and something they have been calling for for a long time. The EESC recommended establishing the card through a regulation as this is the more appropriate means to ensure consistency and universality and avoid differences in implementation at national level.
Complementary measures must also be taken to ensure that transport, services and buildings are accessible to all, and the personal data contained in the card must be protected by data protection regulations. In this way, the card will act as a European disability passport, eliminating barriers for people with disabilities.
In the EESC’s view, the card would force Member States to improve the current system, which is based primarily on a medical approach to disability, and align it with a model that complies with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).
To ensure the success of the card, the EESC called for the full involvement of people with disabilities and their organisations at all stages of the card’s implementation and monitoring process.
Another demand is the physical separation of the EU Disability Card and the EU Parking Card, which would make it easier for disabled people to use the transport system and access public services.
According to the EESC, the card must be issued in a physical standard ID-sized format with digital capabilities. The card must be fully accessible and contain information about the cardholder’s personal assistant and companions.
This should be accompanied by an EU-level website that is fully accessible in all EU languages, with easy-to-read versions and sign language support, and should also contain practical information on all countries.
The card has already proven its value in pilot projects carried out in eight Member States between 2016 and 2019, which demonstrated the card’s feasibility and clear benefits for users: it facilitated mobility, promoted participation in the cultural and leisure sector and enhanced the tourist experience abroad.