European Union countries can block jobless immigrants from receiving welfare benefits, Europe's top court said today.

"Economically inactive EU citizens who go to another member state solely in order to obtain social assistance may be excluded from certain social benefits," judges of the Court of Justice of the Europe Union (ECJ) said.

They were ruling on a case involving Romanian Elisabeta Dano and her son who applied for a German welfare benefit.

German authorities rejected their request, prompting Dano to appeal to a German court which subsequently sought advice from the Luxembourg-based ECJ.

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