Free movement from a low-angle shot or The good (European) citizen designed by law

This paper sketches out a “collection of portraits” (the Worker, the Consumer, the Deserving, the Offender, the Sedentary and the Profiteer) of European citizenship, ranging from individuals who meet all the conditions in order to fully benefit from their status to citizens who do not derive any right from EU law. It is submitted not only that such a variable-geometry legal regime tells us something about the expectations of its designers toward European citizens, but also – and conversely – that this citizens’ typology sheds a new light on the political orientations underpinning the free movement legal regime.