The definition of ‘worker status’ for EU migrants will be changed from March 2014, Iain Duncan Smith has announced.
EU migrants with worker status are not subject to the habitual residence test (HRT) or the changes recently announced, which tighten up the HRT rules.
Under European case law, you can only qualify for worker status if you are doing work that is genuine and effective, and not on so small a scale to as to be "marginal and ancillary".
The DWP proposes that workers must have been earning £150 a week (24 hours a week at the national minimum wage) for three months before they can claim most benefits. The reasoning behind this is that there is no adequate definition of ancillary.
Anyone with earnings below the £150 threshold will face a fuller assessment of whether their work was "genuine and effective", with the possibility of being denied worker status.
EU migrant workers who are not considered to be workers are classed as either a jobseeker or as economically inactive, which would restrict their access to the welfare system.
For more information see http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/feb/19/eu-migrants-welfare-benefits-earnings
The guidance for JSA cases is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/281034/m-1-14.pdf
See also the DWP statement at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/minimum-earnings-threshold-for-eea-migrants-introduced