Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1997:507
Date: 1997-10-23
Language of the case: German
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Social security for migrant workers
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgmen t 
1. Social security for migrant workers — Community rules — Persons covered— Retired civil 
servant who has not himself exercised the right to freedom of movement — Where his child 
has moved with her mother within the Community 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-194/96 
2. Social security for migrant workers — Family benefits — Retired civil servant subject to Ger­
man legislation — Child residing in another Member State — Definition of employed person 
for the purpose of paying family benefits — German institution competent — Application of 
the criteria Uid down in Article 1(a) of Reguhtion No 1408/71 and in Annex I thereto — 
Effects — Refusal to award benefits under the national legislation — Whether permissible 
(Council Regulation No 1408/71, Arts l(a)(ii) and 73 and Annex I, Point I. C) 
3. Social security for migrant workers — Family benefits — Pensioners — Legislation within the 
meaning of Article 77(2)(a) of Regulation No 1408/71 — Special schemes for civil servants 
and persons treated as such — Not included 
(Council Regulation No 1408/71, Arts 1(j), 4(4) and 77(2)(a)) 
1. A retired civil servant who has worked 
only in the State of which he is a national 
is covered by Regulation N o 1408/71 
where his dependent child has moved 
within the Community with his former 
spouse, if he is, or has been, subject to the 
legislation of a Member State to which 
the regulation applies. 
2. Article 73 of Regulation N o 1408/71, 
read in conjunction with Point I. C of 
Annex I to the same regulation, is to be 
interpreted, for the purpose of payment 
of child allowance under German legisla­
tion, as not applying to a national of that 
Member State who receives, under its leg­
islation, an old-age benefit as a retired 
civil servant, where that person has 
worked only in the Member State of 
which he is a national and his dependent 
child has moved within the Community 
with his former spouse. It appears from 
the wording of that annex, to which 
Article 1(a)(ii) of the regulation refers, 
that only workers compulsorily insured 
under one of the schemes mentioned 
therein are entitled to German family 
allowances in accordance with Chapter 7 
of Title III of the regulation. Accordingly, 
to allow a retired civil servant to rely on 
Article 73 in order to receive German 
family allowances on the ground that the 
situation of civil servants must generally 
be treated in the same way as that of 
employed persons would involve disre­
garding the terms of Annex I. 
3. Article 77(2)(a) of Regulation N o 1408/71 
is to be interpreted as not covering the 
situation of a person who draws a pen­
sion only under a special scheme for civil 
servants and persons treated as such. The 
term 'legislation' used in that provision 
has the meaning stated in Article 1(j) of 
the regulation and therefore does not 
cover the statutes, regulations or other 
provisions or measures relating to the cat­
egories of benefits referred to in Article 
4(4) of the regulation which include, in 
particular, special schemes for civil ser­
vants and persons treated as such. 
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