EU court: Germany entitled to refuse jobless benefits to EU immigrant who didn't seek work

A European Union court has ruled that Germany was within its rights to refuse unemployment benefits to an immigrant from Romania who made no effort to seek work in Germany.

The European Court of Justice's ruling Tuesday comes amid concern in some European countries, particularly Britain, about perceived abuse of workers' freedom of movement and welfare systems by migrants from poorer EU nations.

A Romanian woman living in Germany sued a job center for refusing to grant her and her son welfare benefits intended primarily for the unemployed.

The EU court pointed to safeguards in the bloc's rules on freedom of movement which it said aim to "prevent economically inactive Union citizens from using the host member state's welfare system to fund their means of subsistence."