Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2003:137
Date: 2003-03-06
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Social security for migrant workers
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Italy

Summary of the Judgment 
Social security for migrant workers — Old-age pension and life assurance — Benefits — 
Extinction of the right to a pension supplement granted under national legislation as a 
result of the person concerned receiving a pension awarded by the competent institution of 
another Member State — Recovery of the sums paid though not due — Application of 
national law — Limits — Observance of the principles of equivalence and effectiveness 
(Council Regulation No 1408/71, Arts 94, 95, 95a and 95b) 
I-6515 
SUMMARY — CASE C-34/02 
Since Regulation No 1408/71, as amended 
and updated by Regulation No 118/97, 
does no more than ensure coordination of 
provisions of national legislation in the 
field of social security, it is national law 
which is applicable to a situation arising 
out of the payment of sums not due, made 
to a person in receipt of more than one 
pension by virtue of his belonging to social 
security schemes in various Member States, 
in the form of a pension supplement where 
the maximum authorised income is 
exceeded. The two-year time-limit, which 
is allowed by Articles 94, 95, 95a and 95b 
of Regulation No 1408/71, as amended, to 
the persons concerned to request that the 
more favourable provisions introduced into 
the Community legislation be applied to 
them, cannot be applied by analogy to such 
a situation. 
National law must, however, observe the 
Community principle of equivalence, in 
accordance with which the detailed pro­
cedural rules governing the treatment of 
situations arising out of the exercise of a 
Community freedom must be no less 
favourable than those governing purely 
internal situations, and the Community 
principle of effectiveness, in accordance 
with which those procedural rules must 
not render virtually impossible or excess­
ively difficult the exercise of rights arising 
out of the situation of Community origin. 
Those principles apply to all the procedural 
rules governing the treatment of situations 
arising out of the exercise of a Community 
freedom, whether those rules are adminis­
trative or judicial, such as the provisions of 
national law relating to the limitation of 
actions and the recovery of sums paid 
though not due or those requiring the 
competent institutions to take account of 
the good faith of the persons concerned or­
to carry out proper checks of their situation 
with regard to pensions. 
(see paras 52-54, 56-58, 62-63, 73, 
operative part) 
I - 6516