Age Limits for Admission to Police and Security Forces, Non-discriminatory Only When Proportional and Subjected to Periodical Revision?

Abstract

[EN]This short article includes a commentary of the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in the case Ferrero Quintana v. Spain. In this case,the ECtHR addresses the maximum age limit of 35 years for police candidates of lowest rank in the Basque Country region in Spain. According to the authorities, that limit was necessary to ensure and maintain the functional capacity of the police force. In this ruling, the ECtHR provides a detailed review of the relevant Council of Europe provisions and EU legislation. The main provisions are Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Article 21.1 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, and Articles 4.1 and 6.1 of Directive 2000/78/ec of the Council of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. The key jurisprudence on age limits for entry into various security forces (local, regional, and national) and the armed forces is analysed in this article. In this ruling, the ECtHR considered important the need for full operational capacity in the policy and security corps and physical strength and fitness requirements were considered relevant to fulfill the objective justification test in this case.