EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 38/26

COMMON POSITION (EC) No 4/2009

adopted by the Council on 17 December 2008

with a view to the adoption of Regulation (EC) No …/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of … laying down the procedure for implementing Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 on the coordination of social security systems

(Text with relevance for the EEA and for Switzerland)

(2009/C 38 E/02)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Articles 42 and 308 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the coordination of social security systems (1), and in particular Article 89 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (2),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (3),

Whereas:

(1) Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 modernises the rules on the coordination of Member States' social security systems, specifying the measures and procedures for implementing them and simplifying them for all the players involved. Implementing rules should be laid down.

(2) Closer and more effective cooperation between social security institutions is a key factor in allowing the persons covered by Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 to access their rights as quickly as possible and under optimum conditions.

(3) Electronic communication is a suitable means of rapid and reliable data exchange between Member States' institutions. Processing data electronically should help speed up the procedures for everyone involved. The persons concerned should also benefit from all the guarantees provided for in the Community provisions on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing and free movement of personal data.

(4) Availability of the details (including electronic details) of those national bodies likely to be involved in implementing Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, in a form which allows them to be updated in real time, should facilitate exchanges between Member States' institutions. This approach, which focuses on the relevance of purely factual information and its immediate accessibility to citizens, is a valuable simplification which should be introduced by this Regulation.

(5) Achieving the smoothest possible operation and the efficient management of the complex procedures implementing the rules on the coordination of social security systems requires a system for the immediate updating of Annex IV. The preparation and application of provisions to that effect calls for close cooperation between the Member States and the Commission, and their implementation should be carried out rapidly, in view of the consequences of delays for citizens and administrative authorities alike. The Commission should therefore be empowered to establish and manage a database and ensure that it is operational at least from the date of entry into force of this Regulation. The Commission should, in particular, take the necessary steps to integrate into that database the information listed in Annex IV.

(6) Strengthening certain procedures should ensure greater legal certainty and transparency for the users of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004. For example, setting common deadlines for fulfilling certain obligations or completing certain administrative tasks should assist in clarifying and structuring relations between insured persons and institutions.

(7) The Member States, their competent authorities and the social security institutions should have the option of agreeing among themselves on simplified procedures and administrative arrangements which they consider to be more effective and better suited to the circumstances of their respective social security systems. However, such arrangements should not affect the rights of the persons covered by Regulation (EC) No 883/2004.

(8) The inherent complexity of the field of social security requires all institutions of the Member States to make a particular effort to support insured persons in order to avoid penalising those who have not submitted their claim or certain information to the institution responsible for processing this application in accordance with the rules and procedures set out in Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 and in this Regulation.

(9) To determine the competent institution, namely the one whose legislation applies or which is liable for the payment of certain benefits, the circumstances of the insured person and those of the family members must be examined by the institutions of more than one Member State. To ensure that the person concerned is protected for the duration of the necessary communication between institutions, provision should be made for provisional membership of a social security system.

(10) Member States should cooperate in determining the place of residence of persons to whom this Regulation and Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 apply and, in the event of a dispute, should take into consideration all relevant criteria to resolve the matter. These may include criteria referred to in the appropriate Article of this Regulation.

(11) Many measures and procedures provided for in this Regulation are intended to ensure greater transparency concerning the criteria which the institutions of the Member States must apply under Regulation (EC) No 883/2004. Such measures and procedures are the result of the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Communities, the decisions of the Administrative Commission and the experience of more than 30 years of application of the coordination of social security systems in the context of the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Treaty.

(12) This Regulation provides for measures and procedures to promote the mobility of employees and unemployed persons. Frontier workers who have become wholly unemployed may make themselves available to the employment services in both their country of residence and the Member State where they were last employed. However, they should be entitled to benefits only from their Member State of residence.

(13) Certain specific rules and procedures are required in order to define the legislation applicable for taking account of periods during which an insured person has devoted time to bringing up children in the various Member States.

(14) Certain procedures should also reflect the need for a balanced sharing of costs between Member States. In particular in the area of sickness, such procedures should take account of the position of Member States which bear the costs of allowing insured persons access to their healthcare system and the position of Member States whose institutions bear the cost of benefits in kind received by their insured persons in a Member State other than that in which they are resident.

(15) In the specific context of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, it is necessary to clarify the conditions for meeting the costs of sickness benefits in kind as part of scheduled treatments, namely treatments for which an insured person goes to a Member State other than that in which he is insured or resident. The obligations of the insured person with regard to the application for prior authorisation should be specified, as should the institution's obligations towards the patient with regard to the conditions of authorisation. The consequences for the chargeability of the costs of care received in another Member State on the basis of an authorisation should also be clarified.

(16) This Regulation, and especially the provisions concerning the stay outside the competent Member State and concerning scheduled treatment, should not prevent the application of more favourable national provisions, in particular with regard to the reimbursement of costs incurred in another Member State.

(17) More binding procedures to reduce the time needed for payment of these claims between Member States' institutions are essential in order to maintain confidence in the exchanges and meet the need for sound management of Member States' social security systems. Procedures for the processing of claims relating to sickness and unemployment benefits should therefore be strengthened.

(18) Procedures between institutions for mutual assistance in recovery of social security claims should be strengthened in order to ensure more effective recovery and smooth functioning of the coordination rules. Effective recovery is also a means of preventing and tackling abuses and fraud and a way of ensuring the sustainability of social security schemes. This involves the adoption of new procedures, taking as a basis a number of existing provisions in Council Directive 2008/55/EC of 26 May 2008 on mutual assistance for the recovery of claims relating to certain levies, duties, taxes and other measures (4). Such new recovery procedures should be reviewed in the light of the experience after five years of implementation and adjusted if necessary, in particular to ensure they are fully operable.

(19) For the purposes of provisions on mutual assistance regarding the recovery of benefits provided but not due, the recovery of provisional payments and contributions and the offsetting and assistance with recovery, the jurisdiction of the requested Member State is limited to actions regarding enforcement measures. Any other action falls under the jurisdiction of the applicant Member State.

(20) The enforcement measures taken in the requested Member State do not imply the recognition by that Member State of the substance or basis of the claim.

(21) Informing insured persons of their rights and obligations is a crucial component of a relationship of trust with the competent authorities and the Member States' institutions.

(22) Since the objective of this Regulation, namely the adoption of coordination measures in order to guarantee the effective exercise of the free movement of persons, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore, by reason of its scale and effects, be better achieved at Community level, the Community may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve that objective.

(23) This Regulation should replace Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 of 21 March 1972 fixing the procedure for implementing Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons and their families moving within the Community (5),

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I

Definitions

Article 1

Definitions

1. For the purposes of this Regulation:

(a) ‘basic Regulation’ means Regulation (EC) No 883/2004;

(b) ‘implementing Regulation’ means this Regulation; and

(c) the definitions set out in the basic Regulation shall apply.

2. In addition to the definitions referred to in paragraph 1,

(a) ‘access point’ means an entity providing: (i) an electronic contact point; (ii) automatic routing based on the address; and (iii) intelligent routing based on software that enables automatic checking and routing (for example, an artificial intelligence application) and/or human intervention;

(b) ‘liaison body’ means any body designated by the competent authority of a Member State for one or more of the branches of social security referred to in Article 3 of the basic Regulation to respond to requests for information and assistance for the purposes of the application of the basic Regulation and the implementing Regulation and which has to fulfil the tasks assigned to it under Title IV of the implementing Regulation;

(c) ‘document’ means a set of data, irrespective of the medium used, structured in such a way that it can be exchanged electronically and which must be communicated in order to enable the operation of the basic Regulation and the implementing Regulation;

(d) ‘Structured Electronic Document’ means any structured document in a format designed for the electronic exchange of information between Member States;

(e) ‘transmission by electronic means’ means the transmission of data using electronic equipment for the processing (including digital compression) of data and employing wires, radio transmission, optical technologies or any other electromagnetic means;

(f) ‘Audit Board’ means the body referred to in Article 74 of the basic Regulation.

CHAPTER II

Provisions concerning cooperation and exchanges of data

Article 2

Scope and rules for exchanges between institutions

1. For the purposes of the implementing Regulation, exchanges between Member States' authorities and institutions and persons covered by the basic Regulation shall be based on the principles of public service, efficiency, active assistance, rapid delivery and accessibility, including e-accessibility, in particular for the disabled and the elderly.

2. The institutions shall without delay provide or exchange all data necessary for establishing and determining the rights and obligations of persons to whom the basic Regulation applies. Such data shall be transferred between Member States directly by the institutions themselves or indirectly via the liaison bodies.

3. Where a person has mistakenly submitted information, documents or claims to an institution in the territory of a Member State other than that in which the institution designated in accordance with the implementing Regulation is situated, the information, documents or claims shall be resubmitted without delay by the former institution to the institution designated in accordance with the implementing Regulation, indicating the date on which they were initially submitted. That date shall be binding on the latter institution. Member State institutions shall not, however, be held liable, or be deemed to have taken a decision by virtue of their failure to act as a result of the late transmission of information, documents or claims by other Member States' institutions.

4. Where data are transferred indirectly via the liaison body of the Member State of destination, time limits for responding to claims shall start from the date when that liaison body received the claim, as if it had been received by the institution in that Member State.

Article 3

Scope and rules for exchanges between the persons concerned and institutions

1. Persons to whom the basic Regulation applies shall be required to forward to the relevant institution the information, documents or supporting evidence necessary to establish their situation or that of their families, to establish or maintain their rights and obligations and to determine the applicable legislation and their obligations under it.

2. When collecting, transmitting or processing personal data pursuant to their legislation for the purposes of implementing the basic Regulation, Member States shall ensure that the persons concerned are able to exercise fully their rights regarding personal data protection, in accordance with Community provisions on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and the free movement of such data.

3. To the extent necessary for the application of the basic Regulation and the implementing Regulation, the relevant institutions shall without delay forward the information and issue the documents to the persons concerned.

The relevant institution shall notify the claimant residing or staying in another Member State of its decision directly or through the liaison body of the Member State of residence or stay. When refusing the benefits it shall also indicate the reasons for refusal, the remedies and periods allowed for appeals. A copy of this decision shall be sent to other involved institutions.

Article 4

Format and method of exchanging data

1. The Administrative Commission shall lay down the structure, content, format and detailed arrangements for exchange of documents and structured electronic documents.

2. The transmission of data between the institutions or the liaison bodies shall be carried out by electronic means either directly or indirectly through the access points under a common secure framework that can guarantee the confidentiality and protection of exchanges of data.

3. In their communications with the persons concerned, the relevant institutions shall use the arrangements appropriate to each case, and favour the use of electronic means as far as possible. The Administrative Commission shall lay down the practical arrangements for sending information, documents or decisions by electronic means to the person concerned.

Article 5

Legal value of documents and supporting evidence issued in another Member State

1. Documents issued by the institution of a Member State and showing the position of a person for the purposes of the application of the basic Regulation and of the implementing Regulation, and supporting evidence on the basis of which the documents have been issued, shall be accepted by the institutions of the other Member States for as long as they have not been withdrawn or declared to be invalid by the Member State in which they were issued.

2. Where there is doubt about the validity of a document or the accuracy of the facts on which the particulars contained therein are based, the institution of the Member State that receives the document shall ask the issuing institution for the necessary clarification and, where appropriate, the withdrawal of that document. The issuing institution shall reconsider the grounds for issuing the document and, if necessary, withdraw it.

3. Pursuant to paragraph 2, where there is doubt about the information provided by the persons concerned, the validity of a document or supporting evidence or the accuracy of the facts on which the particulars contained therein are based, the institution of the place of stay or residence shall, insofar as this is possible, at the request of the competent institution, proceed to the necessary verification of this information or document.

4. Where no agreement is reached between the institutions concerned, the matter may be brought before the Administrative Commission by the competent authorities no earlier than one month following the date on which the institution that received the document submitted its request. The Administrative Commission shall endeavour to reconcile the points of view within six months of the date on which the matter was brought before it.

Article 6

Provisional application of legislation and provisional granting of benefits

1. Unless otherwise provided for in the implementing Regulation, where there is a difference of views between the institutions or authorities of two or more Member States concerning the determination of the applicable legislation, the person concerned shall be made provisionally subject to the legislation of one of those Member States, the order of priority being determined as follows:

(a) the legislation of the Member State where the person actually pursues his employment or self-employment, if the employment or self-employment is pursued in only one Member State;

(b) the legislation of the Member State of residence where the person concerned performs part of his activity/activities or where the person is not employed or self-employed;

(c) the legislation of the Member State the application of which was first requested where the person pursues an activity or activities in two or more Member States.

2. Where there is a difference of views between the institutions or authorities of two or more Member States about which institution should provide the benefits in cash or in kind, the person concerned who could claim benefits if there was no dispute shall be entitled, on a provisional basis, to the benefits foreseen by the legislation applied by the institution of his place of residence or, if that person does not reside on the territory of one of the Member States concerned, to the benefits foreseen by the legislation applied by the institution to which the request was first submitted;

3. Where no agreement is reached between the institutions or authorities concerned, the matter may be brought before the Administrative Commission by the competent authorities no earlier than one month after the date on which the difference of views, as referred to in paragraph 1 or 2 arose. The Administrative Commission shall seek to reconcile the points of view within six months of the date on which the matter was brought before it.

4. Where it is established either that the applicable legislation is not that of the Member State of provisional membership, or the institution which granted the benefits on a provisional basis was not the competent institution, the institution identified as being competent shall be deemed retroactively to have been so, as if that difference of views had not existed, at the latest from either the date of provisional membership or of the first provisional granting of the benefits concerned.

5. If necessary, the institution identified as being competent and the institution which provisionally paid the cash benefits or provisionally received contributions shall settle the financial situation of the person concerned as regards contributions and cash benefits paid provisionally, where appropriate, in accordance with Title IV, Chapter III, of the implementing Regulation.

Benefits in kind granted provisionally by an institution in accordance with paragraph 2 shall be reimbursed by the competent institution in accordance with Title IV of the implementing Regulation.

Article 7

Provisional calculation of benefits and contributions

1. Unless otherwise provided for in the implementing Regulation, where a person is eligible for a benefit, or is liable to pay a contribution in accordance with the basic Regulation, and the competent institution does not have all the information concerning the situation in another Member State which is necessary to calculate definitively the amount of that benefit or contribution, that institution shall, on request of the person concerned, award this benefit or calculate this contribution on a provisional basis, if such a calculation is possible on the basis of the information at the disposal of that institution.

2. The benefit or the contribution concerned shall be recalculated once all the necessary supporting evidence or documents are provided to the institution concerned.

CHAPTER III

Other general provisions for the application of the basic Regulation

Article 8

Administrative arrangements between two or more Member States

1. The provisions of the implementing Regulation shall replace those laid down in the arrangements for the application of the conventions referred to in Article 8(1) of the basic Regulation, except the provisions concerning the arrangements concerning the conventions referred to in Annex II of the basic Regulation, provided that the provisions of the said arrangements are included in Annex I of the implementing Regulation.

2. Member States may conclude between themselves, if necessary, arrangements pertaining to the application of the conventions referred to in Article 8(2) of the basic Regulation provided that these arrangements do not adversely affect the rights and obligations of the persons concerned and are included in Annex I to the implementing Regulation.

Article 9

Other procedures between authorities and institutions

1. Two or more Member States, or their competent authorities, may agree procedures other than those foreseen by the implementing Regulation, provided that such procedures do not adversely affect the rights or obligations of the persons concerned.

2. Any agreements concluded to this end shall be notified to the Administrative Commission and listed in Annex I to the implementing Regulation.

3. Provisions contained in implementing agreements concluded between two or more Member States with the same purpose as, or which are similar to, those referred to in paragraph 2, which are in force on the day preceding the entry into force of the implementing Regulation and are included in Annex V to Regulation (EEC) No 574/72, shall continue to apply, for the purposes of relations between those Member States, provided they are also included in Annex I to the implementing Regulation.

Article 10

Prevention of overlapping of benefits

Notwithstanding other provisions in the basic Regulation, when benefits due under the legislation of two or more Member States are mutually reduced, suspended or withdrawn, any amounts that would not be paid in the event of strict application of the rules concerning reduction, suspension or withdrawal laid down by the legislation of the Member States concerned shall be divided by the number of benefits subjected to reduction, suspension or withdrawal.

Article 11

Elements for determining residence

1. Where there is a difference of views between the institutions of two or more Member States about the determination of the residence of a person to whom the basic Regulation applies, these institutions shall establish by common agreement the centre of interests of the person concerned, based on an overall assessment of all available information relating to relevant facts, which may include, as appropriate:

(a) the duration and continuity of presence on the territory of the Member States concerned;

(b) the person's situation, including: (i) the nature and the specific characteristics of any activity pursued, in particular the place where such activity is habitually pursued, the stability of the activity, and the duration of any work contract; (ii) his family status and family ties; (iii) the exercise of any non-remunerated activity; (iv) in the case of students, the source of their income; (v) his housing situation, in particular how permanent it is; (vi) the Member State in which the person is deemed to reside for taxation purposes.

2. Where the consideration of the various criteria based on relevant facts as set out in paragraph 1 does not lead to agreement between the institutions concerned, the person's intention, as it appears from such facts and circumstances, especially the reasons that led the person to move, shall be considered to be decisive for establishing that person's actual place of residence.

Article 12

Aggregation of periods

1. For the purposes of applying Article 6 of the basic Regulation, the competent institution shall contact the institutions of the Member States to whose legislation the person concerned has also been subject in order to determine all the periods completed under their legislation.

2. The respective periods of insurance, employment, self-employment or residence completed under the legislation of a Member State shall be added to those completed under the legislation of any other Member State, insofar as necessary for the purposes of applying Article 6 of the basic Regulation, provided that these periods do not overlap.

3. Where a period of insurance or residence which is completed in accordance with compulsory insurance under the legislation of a Member State coincides with a period of insurance completed on the basis of voluntary insurance or continued optional insurance under the legislation of another Member State, only the period completed on the basis of compulsory insurance shall be taken into account.

4. Where a period of insurance or residence other than an equivalent period completed under the legislation of a Member State coincides with an equivalent period on the basis of the legislation of another Member State, only the period other than an equivalent period shall be taken into account.

5. Any period regarded as equivalent under the legislation of two or more Member States shall be taken into account only by the institution of the Member State to whose legislation the person concerned was last compulsorily subject before the said period. In the event that the person concerned was not compulsorily subject to the legislation of a Member State before the said period, the latter shall be taken into account by the institution of the Member State to whose legislation the person concerned was compulsorily subject for the first time after the said period.

6. In the event that the time in which certain periods of insurance or residence were completed under the legislation of a Member State cannot be determined precisely, it shall be presumed that these periods do not overlap with periods of insurance or residence completed under the legislation of another Member State, and account shall be taken thereof, where advantageous to the person concerned, insofar as they can reasonably be taken into consideration.

Article 13

Rules for conversion of periods

1. Where periods completed under the legislation of a Member State are expressed in units different from those provided for by the legislation of another Member State, the conversion needed for the purpose of aggregation under Article 6 of the basic Regulation shall be carried out under the following rules:

(a) the period to be used as the basis for the conversion shall be that communicated by the institution of the Member State under whose legislation the period was completed.

(b) in the case of schemes where the periods are expressed in days the conversion from days to other units, and vice versa, as well as between different schemes based on days shall be calculated according to the following table: Scheme based on 1 day corresponds to 1 week corresponds to 1 month corresponds to 1 quarter corresponds to Maximum of days in one calendar year 5 days 9 hours 5 days 22 days 66 days 264 days 6 days 8 hours 6 days 26 days 78 days 312 days 7 days 6 hours 7 days 30 days 90 days 360 days

(c) in the case of schemes where the periods are expressed in units other than days, (i) three months or thirteen weeks shall be equivalent to one quarter, and vice versa; (ii) one year shall be equivalent to four quarters, 12 months or 52 weeks, and vice versa; (iii) for the conversion of weeks into months, and vice versa, weeks and months shall be converted into days in accordance with the conversion rules for the schemes based on six days in the table in point (b);

(d) in the case of periods expressed in fractions, those figures shall be converted into the next smaller integer unit applying the rules laid down in points (b) and (c). Fractions of years shall be converted into months unless the scheme involved is based on quarters;

(e) if the conversion under this paragraph results in a fraction of a unit, the next higher integer unit shall be taken as the result of the conversion under this paragraph.

2. The application of paragraph 1 shall not have the effect of producing, for the total sum of the periods completed during one calendar year, a total exceeding the number of days indicated in the last column in the table in paragraph 1(b), 52 weeks, 12 months or four quarters.

If the periods to be converted correspond to the maximum annual amount of periods under the legislation of the Member State in which they have been completed, the application of paragraph 1 shall not result within one calendar year in periods that are shorter than the possible maximum annual amount of periods provided under the legislation concerned.

3. The conversion shall be carried out either in one single operation covering all those periods which were communicated as an aggregate, or for each year, if the periods were communicated on a year-by-year basis.

4. Where an institution communicates periods expressed in days, it shall at the same time indicate whether the scheme it administers is based on five days, six days or seven days.

TITLE II

DETERMINATION OF THE LEGISLATION APPLICABLE

Article 14

Details relating to Articles 12 and 13 of the basic Regulation

1. For the purposes of the application of Article 12(1) of the basic Regulation, a ‘person who pursues an activity as an employed person in a Member State on behalf of an employer which normally carries out its activities there and who is posted by that employer to another Member State’ shall include a person who is recruited with a view to being posted to another Member State, provided that, immediately before the start of his employment, the person concerned is already subject to the legislation of the Member State in which his employer is established.

2. For the purposes of the application of Article 12(1) of the basic Regulation, the words ‘which normally carries out its activities there’ shall refer to an employer that ordinarily performs substantial activities, other than purely internal management activities, in the territory of the Member State in which it is established, taking account of all criteria characterising the activities carried out by the undertaking in question. The relevant criteria must be suited to the specific characteristics of each employer and the real nature of the activities carried out.

3. For the purposes of the application of Article 12(2) of the basic Regulation, the words ‘who normally pursues an activity as a self-employed person’ shall refer to a person who habitually carries out substantial activities in the territory of the Member State in which he is established. In particular, that person must have already pursued his activity for some time before the date when he wishes to take advantage of the provisions of that Article and, during any period of temporary activity in another Member State, must continue to fulfil, in the Member State where he is established, the requirements for the pursuit of his activity in order to be able to pursue it on his return.

4. For the purposes of the application of Article 12(2) of the basic Regulation, the criterion for determining whether the activity that a self-employed person goes to pursue in another Member State is ‘similar’ to the self-employed activity normally pursued shall be that of the actual nature of the activity, rather than of the designation of employed or self-employed activity that may be given to this activity by the other Member State.

5. For the purposes of the application of Article 13(1) of the basic Regulation a person who ‘normally pursues an activity as an employed person in two or more Member States’ shall refer, in particular, to a person who:

(a) while maintaining an activity in one Member State, simultaneously exercises a separate activity in one or more other Member States, irrespective of the duration or nature of that separate activity;

(b) continuously pursues alternating activities, with the exception of marginal activities, in two or more Member States, irrespective of the frequency or regularity of the alternation.

6. For the purposes of the application of Article 13(2) of the basic Regulation, a person who ‘normally pursues an activity as a self-employed person in two or more Member States’ shall refer, in particular, to a person who simultaneously or in alternation pursues one or more separate self-employed activities, irrespective of the nature of those activities, in two or more Member States.

7. For the purpose of distinguishing the activities under paragraphs 5 and 6 from the situations described in Article 12(1) and (2) of the basic Regulation, the duration of the activity in one or more other Member States (whether it is permanent or of an ad hoc or temporary nature) shall be decisive. For these purposes, an overall assessment shall be made of all the relevant facts including, in particular, in the case of an employed person, the place of work as defined in the employment contract.

8. For the purposes of the application of Article 13(1) and (2) of the basic Regulation, a ‘substantial part of employed or self-employed activity’ pursued in a Member State shall mean a quantitatively substantial part of all the activities of the employed or self-employed person pursued there, without this necessarily being the major part of those activities.

To determine whether a substantial part of the activities is pursued in a Member State, the following indicative criteria shall be taken into account:

(a) in the case of an employed activity, the working time and/or the remuneration; and

(b) in the case of a self-employed activity, the turnover, working time, number of services rendered and/or income.

In the framework of an overall assessment, a share of less than 25 % in respect of the criteria mentioned above shall be an indicator that a substantial part of the activities is not being pursued in the relevant Member State.

9. For the purposes of the application of Article 13(2)(b) of the basic Regulation, the ‘centre of interest’ of the activities of a self-employed person shall be determined by taking account of all the aspects of that person's occupational activities, notably the place where the person's fixed and permanent place of business is located, the habitual nature or the duration of the activities pursued, the number of services rendered, and the intention of the person concerned as revealed by all the circumstances.

10. For the determination of the applicable legislation under paragraphs 8 and 9, the institutions concerned shall take into account the situation projected for the following 12 calendar months.

11. If a person pursues his activity as an employed person in two or more Member States on behalf of an employer established outside the territory of the Union, and if this person resides in a Member State without pursuing substantial activity there, he shall be subject to the legislation of the Member State of residence.

Article 15

Procedures for the application of Article 11(3)(b) and (d), Article 11(4) and Article 12 of the basic Regulation

(on the provision of information to the institutions concerned)

1. Unless otherwise provided for by Article 16 of the implementing Regulation, where a person pursues his activity in a Member State other than the Member State competent under Title II of the basic Regulation, the employer or, in the case of a person who does not pursue an activity as an employed person, the person concerned shall inform the competent institution of the Member State whose legislation is applicable thereof, whenever possible in advance. That institution shall without delay make information concerning the legislation applicable to the person concerned, pursuant to Article 11(3)(b) or Article 12 of the basic Regulation, available to the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State in which the activity is pursued.

2. Paragraph 1 shall apply mutatis mutandis to persons covered by Article 11(3)(d) of the basic Regulation.

3. An employer within the meaning of Article 11(4) of the basic Regulation who has an employee on board a vessel flying the flag of another Member State shall inform the competent institution of the Member State whose legislation is applicable thereof whenever possible in advance. That institution shall, without delay, make information concerning the legislation applicable to the person concerned, pursuant to Article 11(4) of the basic Regulation, available to the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State whose flag, the vessel on which the employee is to perform the activity, is flying.

Article 16

Procedure for the application of Article 13 of the basic Regulation

1. A person who pursues activities in two or more Member States shall inform the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State of residence thereof.

2. The designated institution of the place of residence shall without delay determine the legislation applicable to the person concerned, having regard to Article 13 of the basic Regulation and Article 14 of the implementing Regulation. That initial determination shall be provisional. The institution shall inform the designated institutions of each Member State in which an activity is pursued of its provisional determination.

3. The provisional determination of the applicable legislation, as provided for in paragraph 2, shall become definitive within two months of the institutions designated by the competent authorities of the Member States concerned being informed of it, in accordance with paragraph 2, unless the legislation has already been definitively determined on the basis of paragraph 4, or at least one of the institutions concerned informs the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State of residence by the end of this two-month period that it cannot yet accept the determination or that it takes a different view on this.

4. Where uncertainty about the determination of the applicable legislation requires contacts between the institutions or authorities of two or more Member States, at the request of one or more of the institutions designated by the competent authorities of the Member States concerned or of the competent authorities themselves, the legislation applicable to the person concerned shall be determined by common agreement, having regard to Article 13 of the basic Regulation and the relevant provisions of Article 14 of the implementing Regulation.

Where there is a difference of views between the institutions or competent authorities concerned, those bodies shall seek agreement in accordance with the conditions set out above and Article 6 of the implementing Regulation shall apply.

5. The competent institution of the Member State whose legislation is determined to be applicable either provisionally or definitively shall without delay inform the person concerned.

6. If the person concerned fails to provide the information referred to in paragraph 1, this Article shall be applied at the initiative of the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State of residence as soon as it is appraised of that person's situation, possibly via another institution concerned.

Article 17

Procedure for the application of Article 15 of the basic Regulation

Contract staff of the European Communities shall exercise the right of option provided for in Article 15 of the basic Regulation when the employment contract is concluded. The authority empowered to conclude the contract shall inform the designated institution of the Member State for whose legislation the contract staff member of the European Communities has opted.

Article 18

Procedure for the application of Article 16 of the basic Regulation

A request by the employer or the person concerned for exceptions to Articles 11 to 15 of the basic Regulation shall be submitted, whenever possible in advance, to the competent authority or the body designated by the authority of the Member State, whose legislation the employee or person concerned requests be applied.

Article 19

Provision of information to persons concerned and employers

1. The competent institution of the Member State whose legislation becomes applicable pursuant to Title II of the basic Regulation shall inform the person concerned and, where appropriate, his employer(s) of the obligations laid down in that legislation. It shall provide them with the necessary assistance to complete the formalities required by that legislation.

2. At the request of the person concerned or of the employer, the competent institution of the Member State whose legislation is applicable pursuant to Title II of the basic Regulation shall provide an attestation that such legislation is applicable and shall indicate, where appropriate, until what date and under what conditions.

Article 20

Cooperation between institutions

1. The relevant institutions shall communicate to the competent institution of the Member State whose legislation is applicable to a person pursuant to Title II of the basic Regulation the necessary information required to establish the date on which that legislation becomes applicable and the contributions which that person and his employer(s) are liable to pay under that legislation.

2. The competent institution of the Member State whose legislation becomes applicable to a person pursuant to Title II of the basic Regulation shall make the information indicating the date on which the application of that legislation takes effect available to the institution designated by the competent authority of the Member State to whose legislation that person was last subject.

Article 21

Obligations of the employer

1. An employer who has his registered office or place of business outside the competent Member State shall fulfil all the obligations laid down by the legislation applicable to his employees, notably the obligation to pay the contributions provided for by that legislation, as if he had his registered office or place of business in the competent Member State.

2. An employer who does not have a place of business in the Member State whose legislation is applicable and the employee may agree that the latter may fulfil the employer's obligations on its behalf as regards the payment of contributions without prejudice to the employer's underlying obligations. The employer shall send notice of such an arrangement to the competent institution of that Member State.

TITLE III

SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE VARIOUS CATEGORIES OF BENEFITS

CHAPTER I

Sickness, maternity and equivalent paternity benefits

Article 22

General implementing provisions

1. The competent authorities or institutions shall ensure that any necessary information is made available to insured persons regarding the procedures and conditions for the granting of benefits in kind where such benefits are received in the territory of a Member State other than that of the competent institution.

2. Notwithstanding Article 5(a) of the basic Regulation, a Member State may become responsible for the cost of benefits in accordance with Article 22 of the basic Regulation only if, either the insured person has made a claim for a pension under the legislation of that Member State, or in accordance with Articles 23 to 30 of the basic Regulation, he receives a pension under the legislation of that Member State.

Article 23

Regime applicable in the event of the existence of more than one regime in the Member State of residence or stay

If the legislation of the Member State of residence or stay comprises more than one scheme of sickness, maternity and paternity insurance for more than one category of insured persons, the provisions applicable under Articles 17, 19(1), 20, 22, 24 and 26 of the basic Regulation shall be those of the legislation on the general scheme for employed persons.

Article 24

Residence in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. For the purposes of the application of Article 17 of the basic Regulation, the insured person and/or members of his family shall be obliged to register with the institution of the place of residence. Their right to benefits in kind in the Member State of residence shall be certified by a document issued by the competent institution upon request of the insured person or upon request of the institution of the place of residence.

2. The document referred to in paragraph 1 shall remain valid until the competent institution informs the institution of the place of residence of its cancellation.

The institution of the place of residence shall inform the competent institution of any registration under paragraph 1 and of any change or cancellation of that registration.

3. This Article shall apply mutatis mutandis to the persons referred to in Articles 22, 24, 25 and 26 of the basic Regulation.

Article 25

Stay in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. For the purposes of the application of Article 19 of the basic Regulation, the insured person shall present to the health care provider in the Member State of stay a document issued by the competent institution indicating his entitlement to benefits in kind. If the insured person does not have such a document, the institution of the place of stay, upon request or if otherwise necessary, shall contact the competent institution in order to obtain one.

2. That document shall indicate that the insured person is entitled to benefits in kind under the conditions laid down in Article 19 of the basic Regulation on the same terms as those applicable to persons insured under the legislation of the Member State of stay.

3. The benefits in kind referred to in Article 19(1) of the basic Regulation shall refer to the benefits in kind which are provided in the Member State of stay, in accordance with its legislation, and which become necessary on medical grounds with a view to preventing an insured person from being forced to return, before the end of the planned duration of stay, to the competent Member State to obtain the necessary treatment.

4. If the insured person has actually borne the costs of all or part of the benefits in kind provided within the framework of Article 19 of the basic Regulation and if the legislation applied by the institution of the place of stay enables reimbursement of those costs to an insured person, he may send an application for reimbursement to the institution of the place of stay. In that case, that institution shall reimburse directly to that person the amount of the costs corresponding to those benefits within the limits of and under the conditions of the reimbursement rates laid down in its legislation.

5. If the reimbursement of such costs has not been requested directly from the institution of the place of stay, the costs incurred shall be reimbursed to the person concerned by the competent institution in accordance with the reimbursement rates administered by the institution of the place of stay or the amounts which would have been subject to reimbursement to the institution of the place of stay, if Article 62 of the implementing Regulation had applied in the case concerned.

The institution of the place of stay shall provide the competent institution, upon request, with all necessary information about these rates or amounts.

6. By way of derogation from paragraph 5, the competent institution may undertake the reimbursement of the costs incurred within the limits of and under the conditions of the reimbursement rates laid down in its legislation, provided that the insured person has agreed to this provision being applied to him/her.

7. If the legislation of the Member State of stay does not provide for reimbursement pursuant to paragraphs 4 and 5 in the case concerned, the competent institution may reimburse the costs within the limits of and under the conditions of the reimbursement rates laid down in its legislation, without the agreement of the insured person.

8. The reimbursement to the insured person shall not, in any event, exceed the amount of costs actually incurred by him/her.

9. In the case of substantial expenditure, the competent institution may pay the insured person an appropriate advance as soon as that person submits the application for reimbursement to it.

10. Paragraphs 1 to 9 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the members of the family of the insured person.

Article 26

Scheduled treatment

1. For the purposes of the application of Article 20(1) of the basic Regulation, the insured person shall present a document issued by the competent institution to the institution of the place of stay. For the purposes of this Article, the competent institution shall mean the institution which bears the cost of the scheduled treatment; in the cases referred to in Article 20(4) and 27(5) of the basic Regulation, in which the benefits in kind provided in the Member State of residence are reimbursed on the basis of fixed amounts, the competent institution shall mean the institution of the place of residence.

2. If an insured person does not reside in the competent Member State, he shall request authorisation from the institution of the place of residence, which shall forward it to the competent institution without delay.

In that event, the institution of the place of residence shall certify in a statement whether the conditions set out in the second sentence of Article 20(2) of the basic Regulation are met in the Member State of residence.

The competent institution may refuse to grant the requested authorisation only if, in accordance with the assessment of the institution of the place of residence, the conditions set out in the second sentence of Article 20(2) of the basic Regulation are not met in the Member State of residence of the insured person, or if the same treatment can be provided in the competent Member State itself, within a time-limit which is medically justifiable, taking into account the current state of health and the probable course of illness of the person concerned.

The competent institution shall inform the institution of the place of residence of its decision.

In the absence of a reply within the deadlines set by its national legislation, the authorisation shall be considered to have been granted by the competent institution.

3. If an insured person who does not reside in the competent Member State is in need of urgent vitally necessary treatment, and the authorisation cannot be refused in accordance with the second sentence of Article 20(2) of the basic Regulation, the authorisation shall be granted by the institution of the place of residence on behalf of the competent institution, which shall be immediately informed by the institution of the place of residence.

The competent institution shall accept the findings and the treatment options of the doctors approved by the institution of the place of residence that issues the authorisation, concerning the need for urgent vitally necessary treatment.

4. At any time during the procedure granting the authorisation, the competent institution shall retain the right to have the insured person examined by a doctor of its own choice in the Member State of stay or residence.

5. The institution of the place of stay shall, without prejudice to any decision regarding authorisation, inform the competent institution if it appears medically appropriate to supplement the treatment covered by the existing authorisation.

6. Without prejudice to paragraph 7, Article 25(4) and (5) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

7. If the insured person has actually borne all or part of the costs for the authorised medical treatment him or herself and the costs which the competent institution is obliged to reimburse to the institution of the place of stay or to the insured person according to paragraph 6 (actual cost) are lower than the costs which it would have had to assume for the same treatment in the competent Member State (notional cost), the competent institution shall reimburse, upon request, the cost of treatment incurred by the insured person up to the amount by which the notional cost exceeds the actual cost. The reimbursed sum may not, however, exceed the costs actually incurred by the insured person and may take account of the amount which the insured person would have had to pay if the treatment had been delivered in the competent Member State.

8. Where the national legislation of the competent institution provides for the reimbursement of the costs of travel and stay which are inseparable from the treatment of the insured person, such costs for the person concerned and, if necessary, for a person who must accompany him/her, shall be assumed by this institution when an authorisation is granted in the case of treatment in another Member State.

9. Paragraphs 1 to 8 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the members of the family of the insured persons.

Article 27

Cash benefits relating to incapacity for work in the event of stay or residence in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. If the legislation of the competent Member State requires that the insured person presents a certificate in order to be entitled to cash benefits relating to incapacity for work pursuant to Article 21(1) of the basic Regulation, the insured person shall ask the doctor of the Member State of residence who established his state of health to certify his incapacity for work and its probable duration.

2. The insured person shall send the certificate to the competent institution within the time limit laid down by the legislation of the competent Member State.

3. Where the doctors providing treatment in the Member State of residence do not issue certificates of incapacity for work, and where such certificates are required under the legislation of the competent Member State, the person concerned shall apply directly to the institution of the place of residence. That institution shall immediately arrange for a medical assessment of the person's incapacity for work and for the certificate referred to in paragraph 1 to be drawn up. The certificate shall be forwarded to the competent institution forthwith.

4. The forwarding of the document referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not exempt the insured person from fulfilling the obligations provided for by the applicable legislation, in particular with regard to his employer. Where appropriate, the employer and/or the competent institution may call upon the employee to participate in activities designed to promote and assist his return to employment.

5. At the request of the competent institution, the institution of the place of residence shall carry out any necessary administrative checks or medical examinations of the person concerned in accordance with the legislation applied by this latter institution. The report of the examining doctor concerning, in particular, the probable duration of the incapacity for work, shall be forwarded without delay by the institution of the place of residence to the competent institution.

6. The competent institution shall reserve the right to have the insured person examined by a doctor of its choice.

7. Without prejudice to the second sentence of Article 21(1) of the basic Regulation, the competent institution shall pay the cash benefits directly to the person concerned and shall, where necessary, inform the institution of the place of residence thereof.

8. For the purposes of the application of Article 21(1) of the basic Regulation, the particulars of the certificate of incapacity for work of an insured person drawn up in another Member State on the basis of the medical findings of the examining doctor or institution shall have the same legal value as a certificate drawn up in the competent Member State.

9. If the competent institution refuses the cash benefits, it shall notify its decision to the insured person and at the same time to the institution of the place of residence.

10. Paragraphs 1 to 9 shall apply mutatis mutandis when the insured person stays in a Member State other than the competent Member State.

Article 28

Long-term care benefits in cash in the event of stay or residence in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. In order to be entitled to long-term care benefits in cash pursuant to Article 21(1) of the basic Regulation, the insured person shall apply to the competent institution. The competent institution shall, where necessary, inform the institution of the place of residence thereof.

2. At the request of the competent institution, the institution of the place of residence shall examine the condition of the insured person with respect to his need for long-term care. The competent institution shall give the institution of the place of residence all the information necessary for such an examination.

3. In order to determine the degree of need for long-term care, the competent institution shall have the right to have the insured person examined by a doctor or any other expert of its choice.

4. Article 27(7) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

5. Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall apply mutatis mutandis when the insured person stays in a Member State other than the competent Member State.

6. Paragraphs 1 to 5 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the members of the family of the insured person.

Article 29

Application of Article 28 of the basic Regulation

If the Member State where the former frontier worker last pursued his activity is no longer the competent Member State, and the former frontier worker or a member of his family travels there with the purpose of receiving benefits in kind pursuant to Article 28 of the basic Regulation, he shall submit to the institution of the place of stay a document issued by the competent institution.

Article 30

Contributions by pensioners

If a person receives a pension from more than one Member State, the amount of contributions deducted from all the pensions paid shall under no circumstances be greater than the amount deducted in respect of a person who receives the same amount of pension from the competent Member State.

Article 31

Application of Article 34 of the basic Regulation

1. The competent institution shall inform the person concerned of the provision contained in Article 34 of the basic Regulation regarding the prevention of overlapping of benefits. The application of such rules shall ensure that the person not residing in the competent Member State is entitled to benefits of at least the same total amount or value as those to which he would be entitled if he resided in that Member State.

2. The competent institution shall also inform the institution of the place of residence or stay about the payment of long-term care cash benefits where the legislation applied by the latter institution provides for the long-term care benefits in kind included in the list referred to in Article 34(2) of the basic Regulation.

3. Having received the information provided for in paragraph 2, the institution of the place of residence or stay shall without delay inform the competent institution of any long-term care benefit in kind intended for the same purpose granted under its legislation to the person concerned and of the rate of reimbursement applicable thereto.

4. The Administrative Commission shall lay down implementing measures for this Article where necessary.

Article 32

Special implementing measures

1. When a person or a group of persons are exempted upon request from compulsory sickness insurance and such persons are thus not covered by a sickness insurance scheme to which the basic Regulation applies, the institution of another Member State shall not, solely because of this exemption, become responsible for bearing the costs of benefits in kind or in cash provided to such persons or to a member of their family under Title III, Chapter I, of the basic Regulation.

2. For the Member States referred to in Annex II, the provisions of Title III, Chapter I, of the basic Regulation relating to benefits in kind shall apply to persons entitled to benefits in kind solely on the basis of a special scheme for civil servants only to the extent specified therein.

The institution of another Member State shall not, on those grounds alone, become responsible for bearing the costs of benefits in kind or in cash provided to those persons or to members of their family.

3. When the persons referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 and the members of their families reside in a Member State where the right to receive benefits in kind is not subject to conditions of insurance, or of activity as an employed or self-employed person, they shall be liable to pay the full costs of benefits in kind provided in their country of residence.

CHAPTER II

Benefits in respect of accidents at work and occupational diseases

Article 33

Right to benefits in kind and in cash in the event of residence or stay in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. For the purposes of the application of Article 36 of the basic Regulation, the procedures laid down in Articles 24 to 27 of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

2. When providing special benefits in kind in connection with accidents at work and occupational diseases under the national legislation of the Member State of stay or residence, the institution of that Member State shall without delay inform the competent institution.

Article 34

Procedure in the event of an accident at work or occupational disease which occurs in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. If an accident at work occurs or an occupational disease is diagnosed for the first time in a Member State other than the competent Member State, the declaration or notification of the accident at work or the occupational disease, where the declaration or notification exists under national legislation, shall be carried out in accordance with the legislation of the competent Member State, without prejudice, where appropriate, to any other applicable legal provisions in force in the Member State in which the accident at work occurred or in which the first medical diagnosis of the occupational disease was made, which remain applicable in such cases. The declaration or notification shall be addressed to the competent institution.

2. The institution of the Member State in the territory of which the accident at work occurred or in which the occupational disease was first diagnosed, shall notify the competent institution of medical certificates drawn up in the territory of that Member State.

3. Where, as a result of an accident while travelling to or from work which occurs in the territory of a Member State other than the competent Member State, an inquiry is necessary in the territory of the first Member State in order to determine any entitlement to relevant benefits, a person may be appointed for that purpose by the competent institution, which shall inform the authorities of that Member State. The institutions shall cooperate with each other in order to assess all relevant information and to consult the reports and any other documents relating to the accident.

4. Following treatment, a detailed report accompanied by medical certificates relating to the permanent consequences of the accident or disease, in particular the injured person's present state and the recovery or stabilisation of injuries, shall be sent upon request of the competent institution. The relevant fees shall be paid by the institution of the place of residence or of stay, where appropriate, at the rate applied by that institution to the charge of the competent institution.

5. At the request of the institution of the place of residence or stay, where appropriate, the competent institution shall notify it of the decision setting the date for the recovery or stabilisation of injuries and, where appropriate, the decision concerning the granting of a pension.

Article 35

Disputes concerning the occupational nature of the accident or disease

1. Where the competent institution disputes the application of the legislation relating to accidents at work or occupational diseases under Article 36(2) of the basic Regulation, it shall without delay inform the institution of the place of residence or stay which provided the benefits in kind, which will then be considered as sickness insurance benefits.

2. When a final decision has been taken on that subject, the competent institution shall without delay inform the institution of the place of residence or stay which provided the benefits in kind.

Where an accident at work or occupational disease is not established, benefits in kind shall continue to be provided as sickness benefits if the person concerned is entitled to them.

Where an accident at work or occupational disease is established, sickness benefits in kind provided to the person concerned shall be considered as accident at work or occupational disease benefits from the date on which the accident at work occurred or the occupational disease was first medically diagnosed.

3. The second subparagraph of Article 6(5) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 36

Procedure in the event of exposure to the risk of an occupational disease in more than one Member State

1. In the case referred to in Article 38 of the basic Regulation, the declaration or notification of the occupational disease shall be sent to the competent institution for occupational diseases of the last Member State under the legislation of which the person concerned pursued an activity likely to cause the said disease.

When the institution to which the declaration or notification was sent establishes that an activity likely to cause the occupational disease in question was last pursued under the legislation of another Member State, it shall send the declaration or notification and all accompanying certificates to the equivalent institution in that Member State.

2. Where the institution of the last Member State under the legislation of which the person concerned pursued an activity likely to cause the occupational disease in question establishes that the person concerned or his survivors do not meet the requirements of that legislation, inter alia because the person concerned had never pursued in that Member State an activity which caused the occupational disease or because that Member State does not recognise the occupational nature of the disease, that institution shall forward without delay the declaration or notification and all accompanying certificates, including the findings and reports of medical examinations performed by the first institution to the institution of the previous Member State under the legislation of which the person concerned pursued an activity likely to cause the occupational disease in question.

3. Where appropriate, the institutions shall reiterate the procedure set out in paragraph 2 going back as far as the equivalent institution in the Member State under whose legislation the person concerned first pursued an activity likely to cause the occupational disease in question.

Article 37

Exchange of information between institutions and advance payments in the event of an appeal against rejection

1. In the event of an appeal against a decision to refuse benefits taken by the institution of one of the Member States under the legislation of which the person concerned pursued an activity likely to cause the occupational disease in question, that institution shall inform the institution to which the declaration or notification was sent, in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 36(2) of the implementing Regulation, and shall subsequently inform it when a final decision is reached.

2. Where a person is entitled to benefits under the legislation applied by the institution to which the declaration or notification was sent, that institution shall make the advance payments, the amount of which shall be determined, where appropriate, after consulting the institution which made the decision against which the appeal was lodged, and in such a way that overpayments are avoided. The latter institution shall reimburse the advance payments made if, as a result of the appeal, it is obliged to provide those benefits. That amount will then be deducted from the benefits due to the person concerned, in accordance with the procedure provided for in Articles 73 and 74 of the implementing Regulation.

3. The second subparagraph of Article 6(5) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 38

Aggravation of an occupational disease

In the cases covered by Article 39 of the basic Regulation, the claimant must provide the institution in the Member State from which he is claiming entitlement to benefits with details concerning benefits previously granted for the occupational disease in question. That institution may contact any other previously competent institution in order to obtain the information it considers necessary.

Article 39

Assessment of the degree of incapacity in the event of occupational accidents or diseases which occurred previously or subsequently

Where a previous or subsequent incapacity for work was caused by an accident which occurred when the person concerned was subject to the legislation of a Member State which makes no distinction according to the origin of the incapacity to work, the competent institution or the body designated by the competent authority of the Member State in question shall:

(a) upon request by the competent institution of another Member State, provide information concerning the degree of the previous or subsequent incapacity for work, and where possible, information making it possible to determine whether the incapacity is the result of an accident at work within the meaning of the legislation applied by the institution in the other Member State;

(b) take into account the degree of incapacity caused by these previous or subsequent cases when determining the right to benefits and the amount, in accordance with the applicable legislation.

Article 40

Submission and investigation of claims for pensions or supplementary allowances

In order to receive a pension or supplementary allowance under the legislation of a Member State, the person concerned or his survivors residing in the territory of another Member State shall submit, where appropriate, a claim either to the competent institution or to the institution of the place of residence, which shall send it to the competent institution.

The claim shall contain the information required under the legislation applied by the competent institution.

Article 41

Special implementing measures

1. In relation to the Member States referred to in Annex II, the provisions of Title III, Chapter 2 of the basic Regulation relating to benefits in kind shall apply to persons entitled to benefits in kind solely on the basis of a special scheme for civil servants, and only to the extent specified therein.

2. Article 32(2) second sentence and Article 32(3) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

CHAPTER III

Death grants

Article 42

Claim for death grants

For the purposes of applying Articles 42 and 43 of the basic Regulation, the claim for death grants shall be sent either to the competent institution or to the institution of the claimant's place of residence, which shall send it to the competent institution.

The claim shall contain the information required under the legislation applied by the competent institution.

CHAPTER IV

Invalidity benefits and old-age and survivors' pensions

Article 43

Additional provisions for the calculation of benefit

1. For the purposes of calculating the theoretical amount and the actual amount of the benefit in accordance with Article 52(1)(b) of the basic Regulation, the rules provided for in Article 12(3), (4), (5) and (6) of the implementing Regulation shall apply.

2. Where periods of voluntary or optional continued insurance have not been taken into account under Article 12(3) of the implementing Regulation, the institution of the Member State under whose legislation those periods were completed shall calculate the amount corresponding to those periods under the legislation it applies. The actual amount of the benefit, calculated in accordance with Article 52(1)(b) of the basic Regulation, shall be increased by the amount corresponding to periods of voluntary or optional continued insurance.

3. The institution of each Member State shall calculate, under the legislation it applies, the amount due corresponding to periods of voluntary or optional continued insurance which, under Article 53(3)(c) of the basic Regulation, shall not be subject to another Member State's rules relating to withdrawal, reduction or suspension.

Where the legislation applied by the competent institution does not allow it to determine this amount directly, on the grounds that that legislation allocates different values to insurance periods, a notional amount may be established. The Administrative Commission shall lay down the detailed arrangements for the determination of that notional amount.

Article 44

Taking into account of child raising-periods

1. For the purposes of this Article, ‘child-raising period’ refers to any period which is credited under the pension legislation of a Member State or which provides a supplement to a pension explicitly for the reason that a person has raised a child, irrespective of the method used to calculate those periods and whether they accrue during the time of child-raising or are acknowledged retroactively.

2. Where, under the legislation of the Member State which is competent under Title II of the basic Regulation, no child-raising period is taken into account, the institution of the Member State whose legislation, according to Title II of the basic Regulation, was applicable to the person concerned on the grounds that he or she was pursuing an activity as an employed or self-employed person at the date when, under that legislation, the child-raising period started to be taken into account for the child concerned, shall remain responsible for taking into account that period as a child-raising period under its own legislation, as if such child-raising took place in its own territory.

3. Paragraph 2 shall not apply if the person concerned is, or becomes, subject to the legislation of another Member State due to the pursuit of an employed or self-employed activity.

Article 45

Claim for benefits

1. In order to receive benefits under type A legislation under Article 44(2) of the basic Regulation, the claimant shall submit a claim to the institution of the Member State, whose legislation was applicable at the time when the incapacity for work occurred followed by invalidity or the aggravation of such invalidity, or to the institution of the place of residence, which shall forward the claim to the first institution.

2. If sickness benefits in cash have been awarded, the expiry date of the period for awarding these benefits shall, where appropriate, be considered as the date of submission of the pension claim.

3. In the case referred to in Article 47(1) of the basic Regulation, the institution with which the person concerned was last insured shall inform the institution which initially paid the benefits of the amount and the date of commencement of the benefits under the applicable legislation. From that date benefits due before aggravation of the invalidity shall be withdrawn or reduced to the supplement referred to in Article 47(2) of the basic Regulation.

4. In situations other than those referred to in paragraph 1, the claimant shall submit a claim to the institution of his place of residence or to the institution of the last Member State whose legislation was applicable. If the person concerned was not, at any time, subject to the legislation applied by the institution of the place of residence, that institution shall forward the claim to the institution of the last Member State whose legislation was applicable.

5. The date of submission of the claim shall apply in all the institutions concerned.

6. By way of derogation from paragraph 5, if the claimant does not, despite having been asked to do so, notify the fact that that he has been employed or has resided in other Member States, the date on which the claimant completes his initial claim or submits a new claim for his missing periods of employment or/and residence in a Member State shall be considered as the date of submission of the claim to the institution applying the legislation in question, subject to more favourable provisions of that legislation.

Article 46

Certificates and information to be submitted with the claim by the claimant

1. The claim shall be submitted by the claimant in accordance with the provisions of the legislation applied by the institution referred to in Article 45(1) or (4) of the implementing Regulation and be accompanied by the supporting documents required by that legislation. In particular, the claimant shall supply all available relevant information and supporting documents relating to periods of insurance (institutions, identification numbers), employment (employers) or self-employment (nature and place of activity) and residence (addresses) which may have been completed under other legislation, as well as the length of those periods.

2. Where, in accordance with Article 50(1) of the basic Regulation, the claimant requests deferment of the award of old-age benefits under the legislation of one or more Member States, he shall state that in his claim and specify under which legislation the deferment is requested. In order to enable the claimant to exercise that right, the institutions concerned shall, upon the request of the claimant, notify him of all the information available to them so that he can assess the consequences of concurrent or successive awards of benefits which he might claim.

3. Should the claimant withdraw a claim for benefits provided for under the legislation of a particular Member State, that withdrawal shall not be considered as a concurrent withdrawal of claims for benefits under the legislation of other Member States.

Article 47

Investigation of claims by the institutions concerned

1. The institution to which the claim for benefits is submitted or forwarded in accordance with Article 45(1) or (4) of the implementing Regulation shall be referred to hereinafter as the ‘contact institution’. The institution of the place of residence shall not be referred to as the contact institution if the person concerned has not, at any time, been subject to the legislation which that institution applies.

In addition to investigating the claim for benefits under the legislation which it applies, this institution shall, in its capacity as contact institution, promote the exchange of data, the communication of decisions and the operations necessary for the investigation of the claim by the institutions concerned, and supply the claimant, upon request, with any information relevant to the Community aspects of the investigation and keep him/her informed of its progress.

2. In the case referred to in Article 44(3) of the basic Regulation, the contact institution shall send all the documents relating to the person concerned to the institution with which he was previously insured, which shall in turn examine the case.

3. Articles 48 to 52 of the implementing Regulation shall not be applicable to the investigation of claims referred to in Article 44 of the basic Regulation.

4. In situations other than those referred to in paragraph 2, the contact institution shall, without delay, send claims for benefits and all the documents which it has available and, where appropriate, the relevant documents supplied by the claimant to all the institutions in question so that they can all start the investigation of the claim concurrently. The contact institution shall notify the other institutions of periods of insurance or residence subject to its legislation. It shall also indicate which documents shall be submitted at a later date and supplement the claim as soon as possible.

5. Each of the institutions in question shall notify the contact institution and the other institutions in question, as soon as possible, of the periods of insurance or residence subject to their legislation.

6. Each of the institutions in question shall calculate the amount of benefits in accordance with Article 52 of the basic Regulation and shall notify the contact institution and the other institutions concerned of its decision, of the amount of benefits due and of any information required for the purposes of Articles 53 to 55 of the basic Regulation.

7. Should an institution establish, on the basis of the information referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this Article, that Article 46(2) or Article 57(2) or (3) of the basic Regulation is applicable, it shall inform the contact institution and the other institutions concerned.

Article 48

Notification of decisions to the claimant

1. Each institution shall notify the claimant of the decision it has taken in accordance with the applicable legislation. Each decision shall specify the remedies and periods allowed for appeals. Once the contact institution has been notified of all decisions taken by each institution, it shall send the claimant and the other institutions concerned a summary of those decisions. A model summary shall be drawn up by the Administrative Commission. The summary shall be sent to the claimant in the language of the institution or, at the request of the claimant, in any language of his choice recognised as an official language of the Community institutions in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty.

2. Where it appears to the claimant following receipt of the summary that his rights may have been adversely affected by the interaction of decisions taken by two or more institutions, the claimant shall have the right to a review of the decisions by the institutions concerned within the time limits laid down in the respective national legislation. The time limits shall commence on the date of receipt of the summary. The claimant shall be notified of the result of the review in writing.

Article 49

Determination of the degree of invalidity

1. Where Article 46(3) of the basic Regulation is applicable, the only institution authorised to take a decision concerning the claimant's degree of invalidity shall be the contact institution, if the legislation applied by that institution is included in Annex VII, or failing that, the institution whose legislation is included in Annex VII and to whose legislation the claimant was last subject. It shall take that decision as soon as it can determine whether the conditions for eligibility laid down in the applicable legislation are met, taking into account, where appropriate, Articles 6 and 51 of the basic Regulation. It shall without delay notify the other institutions concerned of that decision.

Where the eligibility criteria, other than those relating to the degree of invalidity, laid down in the applicable legislation are not met, taking into account Articles 6 and 51 of the basic Regulation, the contact institution shall without delay inform the competent institution of the last Member State to whose legislation the claimant was subject. The latter institution shall be authorised to take the decision concerning the degree of invalidity of the claimant if the conditions for eligibility laid down in the applicable legislation are met. It shall without delay notify the other institutions concerned of that decision.

When determining eligibility, the matter may, if necessary have to be referred back, under the same conditions, to the competent institution in respect of invalidity of the Member State to whose legislation the claimant was first subject.

2. Where Article 46(3) of the basic Regulation is not applicable, each institution shall, in accordance with its legislation, have the possibility of having the claimant examined by a medical doctor or other expert of its choice to determine the degree of invalidity. However, the institution of a Member State shall take into consideration documents, medical reports and administrative information collected by the institution of any other Member State as if they had been drawn up in its own Member State.

Article 50

Provisional instalments and advance payment of benefit

1. Notwithstanding Article 7 of the implementing Regulation, any institution which establishes, while investigating a claim for benefits, that the claimant is entitled to an independent benefit under the applicable legislation, in accordance with Article 52(1)(a) of the basic Regulation, shall pay that benefit without delay. That payment shall be considered provisional if the amount might be affected by the result of the claim investigation procedure.

2. Whenever it is evident from the information availablee that the claimant is entitled to a payment from an institution under Article 52(1)(b) of the basic Regulation, that institution shall make an advance payment, the amount of which shall be as close as possible to the amount which will probably be paid under Article 52(1)(b) of the basic Regulation.

3. Each institution which is obliged to pay the provisional benefits or advance payment under paragraphs 1 or 2 shall inform the claimant without delay, specifically drawing his attention to the provisional nature of the measure and any rights of appeal in accordance with its legislation.

Article 51

New calculation of benefits

1. Where there is a new calculation of benefits in accordance with Articles 48(3) and (4), 50(4) and 59(1) of the basic Regulation, Article 50 of the implementing Regulation shall be applicable mutatis mutandis.

2. Where there is a new calculation, withdrawal or suspension of the benefit, the institution which took the decision shall inform the person concerned without delay and shall inform each of the institutions in respect of which the person concerned has an entitlement.

Article 52

Measures intended to accelerate the pension calculation process

1. In order to facilitate and accelerate the investigation of claims and the payment of benefits, the institutions to whose legislation a person has been subject shall:

(a) exchange with or make available to institutions of other Member States the elements for identifying persons who change from one applicable national legislation to another, and together ensure that those identification elements are retained and correspond, or, failing that, provide those persons with the means to access their identification elements directly;

(b) sufficiently in advance of the minimum age for commencing pension rights or before an age to be determined by national legislation, exchange with or make available to the person concerned and to institutions of other Member States information (periods completed or other important elements) on the pension entitlements of persons who have changed from one applicable legislation to another or, failing that, inform those persons of, or provide them with, the means of familiarising themselves with their prospective benefit entitlement.

2. For the purposes of applying paragraph 1, the Administrative Commission shall determine the elements of information to be exchanged or made available and shall establish the appropriate procedures and mechanisms, taking account of the characteristics, administrative and technical organisation, and the technological means at the disposal of national pension schemes. The Administrative Commission shall ensure the implementation of those pension schemes by organising a follow-up to the measures taken and their application.

3. For the purposes of applying paragraph 1, the institution in the first Member State where a person is allocated a Personal Identification Number (PIN) for the purposes of social security administration should be provided with the information mentioned above.

Article 53

Coordination measures in Member States

1. Without prejudice to Article 51 of the basic Regulation, where national legislation includes rules for determining the institution responsible or the scheme applicable or for designating periods of insurance to a specific scheme, those rules shall be applied, taking into account only periods of insurance completed under the legislation of the Member State concerned.

2. Where national legislation includes rules for the coordination of special schemes for civil servants and the general scheme for employed persons, those rules shall not be affected by the provisions of the basic Regulation and of the implementing Regulation.

CHAPTER V

Unemployment benefits

Article 54

Aggregation of periods and calculation of benefits

1. Article 12(1) of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis to Article 61 of the basic Regulation. Without prejudice to the underlying obligations of the institutions involved, the person concerned may submit to the competent institution a document issued by the institution of the Member State to whose legislation he was subject in respect of his last activity as an employed or self-employed person specifying the periods completed under that legislation.

2. For the purposes of applying Article 62(3) of the basic Regulation, the competent institution of the Member State to whose legislation the person concerned was subject in respect of his last activity as an employed or self-employed person shall, without delay, at the request of the institution of the place of residence, provide it with all the information necessary to calculate unemployment benefits which can be obtained in the Member State of residence, in particular the salary or professional income received.

3. For the purposes of applying Article 62 of the basic Regulation and notwithstanding Article 63 thereof, the competent institution of a Member State whose legislation provides that the calculation of benefits varies with the number of members of the family shall also take into account the members of the family of the person concerned residing in another Member State as if they resided in the competent Member State. This provision shall not apply where, in the Member State of residence of members of the family, another person is entitled to unemployment benefits calculated on the basis of the number of members of the family.

Article 55

Conditions and restrictions on the retention of the entitlement to benefits for unemployed persons going to another Member State

1. In order to be covered by Article 64 of the basic Regulation, the unemployed person going to another Member State shall inform the competent institution prior to his departure and request a document certifying that he retains entitlement to benefits under the conditions laid down in Article 64(1)(b) of the basic Regulation.

That institution shall inform the person concerned of his obligations and shall provide the abovementioned document which shall include the following information:

(a) the date on which the unemployed person ceased to be available to the employment services of the competent State;

(b) the period granted in accordance with Article 64(1)(b) of the basic Regulation in order to register as a person seeking work in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone;

(c) the maximum period during which the entitlement to benefits may be retained in accordance with Article 64(1)(c) of the basic Regulation;

(d) circumstances likely to affect the entitlement to benefits.

2. The unemployed person shall register as a person seeking work with the employment services of the Member State to which he goes in accordance with Article 64(1)(b) of the basic Regulation and shall provide the document referred to in paragraph 1 to the institution of that Member State. If he has informed the competent institution in accordance with paragraph 1 but fails to provide this document, the institution in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone shall contact the competent institution in order to obtain the necessary information.

3. The employment services in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone to seek employment shall inform the unemployed person of his obligations.

4. The institution in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone shall immediately send a document to the competent institution containing the date on which the unemployed person registered with the employment services and his new address.

If, in the period during which the unemployed person retains entitlement to benefits, any circumstance likely to affect the entitlement to benefits arises, the institution in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone shall send immediately to the competent institution and to the person concerned a document containing the relevant information.

At the request of the competent institution, the institution in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone shall provide relevant information on a monthly basis concerning the follow-up of the unemployed person's situation, in particular whether the latter is still registered with the employment services and is complying with organised checking procedures.

5. The institution in the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone shall carry out or arrange for checks to be carried out, as if the person concerned were an unemployed person obtaining benefits under its own legislation. Where necessary, it shall immediately inform the competent institution if any circumstances referred to in paragraph 1(d) arise.

6. The competent authorities or competent institutions of two or more Member States may agree amongst themselves specific procedures and time-limits concerning the follow-up of the unemployed person's situation as well as other measures to facilitate the job-seeking activities of unemployed persons who go to one of those Member States under Article 64 of the basic Regulation.

Article 56

Unemployed persons who resided in a Member State other than the competent Member State

1. Where the unemployed person decides, in accordance with Article 65(2) of the basic Regulation, to make him/herself also available to the employment services in the Member State in which he pursued his last activity as an employed or self-employed person by registering there as a person seeking work, he shall inform the institution and employment services of the Member State of his place of residence.

At the request of the employment services of the Member State in which the person concerned pursued his last activity as an employed or self-employed person, the employment services in the place of residence shall send the relevant information concerning the unemployed person's registration and search for employment.

2. Where the legislation applicable in the Member States concerned requires the fulfilment of certain obligations and/or job-seeking activities by the unemployed person, the obligations and/or job-seeking activities by the unemployed person in the Member State of residence shall have priority.

The non-fulfilment by the unemployed person of all the obligations and/or job-seeking activities in the Member State in which he pursued his last activity shall not affect the benefits awarded in the Member State of residence.

3. For the purposes of applying Article 65(5)(b) of the basic Regulation, the institution of the Member State to whose legislation the worker was last subject shall inform the institution of the place of residence, when requested to do so by the latter, whether the worker is entitled to benefits under Article 64 of the basic Regulation.

Article 57

Provisions for the application of Articles 61, 62, 64 and 65 of the basic Regulation regarding persons covered by a special scheme for civil servants

1. Articles 54 and 55 of the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis to persons covered by a special unemployment scheme for civil servants.

2. Article 56 of the implementing Regulation shall not apply to persons covered by a special unemployment scheme for civil servants. An unemployed person who is covered by a special unemployment scheme for civil servants, who is partially or wholly unemployed, and who, during his last employment, was residing in the territory of a Member State other than the competent State, shall receive the benefits under the special unemployment scheme for civil servants in accordance with the provisions of the legislation of the competent Member State as if he were residing in the territory of that Member State. Those benefits shall be provided by the competent institution, at its expense.

CHAPTER VI

Family benefits

Article 58

Priority rules in the event of overlapping

For the purposes of applying Ar