The Center-of-Life Test: What Documentation Actually Works

When the 150km rule is contested, the center-of-life test decides the case. The standard that works is two or three independent documents per period, covering housing, registration, and economic activity.

What counts as evidence

• Rental contracts or property deeds with addresses and dates.
• Utility bills tied to the same address.
• Municipal or national registration certificates from the country of residence.
• Employment contracts and payslips showing where you worked.
• Tax residency certificates for the relevant years.
• School enrolment letters for children, if applicable.
• Health insurance enrolment in the country of residence.

How to present it

A simple residence timeline at the front of the annex, then the documents grouped by period and country. One PDF per period, named by date range, beats a single 80-page dump. The reviewer's job becomes scanning your timeline and confirming each entry, not reconstructing your life from raw documents.

What does not work

Self-declarations, social-media history, photos, and letters from friends carry little weight on their own. They can support a thin file but cannot replace the formal documents.

Next

If your 150km position is borderline, run the free check and consider the Expert Check for a documented opinion before you file.