WRITTEN QUESTION E-2604/00 by Carlos Ripoll y Martínez de Bedoya (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Social security.
Date: 2000-08-01
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: free movement of workers, pension scheme, self-employment, social security, social security legislation, social-security benefit, social-security harmonisation, wage earner

13.3.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 81 E/213

(2001/C 81 E/273)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2604/00

by Carlos Ripoll y Mart(cid:237)nez de Bedoya (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(1 August 2000)

Subject: Social security

1. What Community legislation applies to social security schemes in the Member States?

2. What is the hierarchy among social security agreements with respect to the rules in force?

3. What regulations govern the payment of retirement benefits for employees and self-employed
workers who have been covered by the legislation of two or more Member States?

Answer given by Ms Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(13 September 2000)

1.
There are no standardised social security provisions for the European Community. Each Member
State is, therefore, the competent authority to legislate in this field (in order to determine, for example, the
criteria for membership of schemes or the value of benefits), while respecting the principles of Community
law.

The Community provisions applicable to EU citizens, stateless people and refugees who are, or have been,
insured under the social security legislation of one or more Member State(s), and to members of their
families, come into play only in order to coordinate national social security systems. Most of these
provisions are in Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (1) and its implementing Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (2)
and they are designed to remove barriers to the free movement of the people concerned. To this end, the
provisions guarantee that these people are treated no less favourably than nationals who have not
exercised their right to free movement, that they are able to enjoy the social security benefits for which
they have qualified under the legislation of one country, even if they are moving around within other
Member States and that any insurance periods they have completed in another Member State are taken
into account in the qualifying period or in calculation of benefits. The general principle is that one social
security system should apply (usually the legislation of the country where the person is working).

Under Article 6, Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 replaces, subject

2.
to certain provisions in the
Regulation (e.g. Annex III), the provisions of any social security convention as defined in Article 1(k),
binding (cid:145)either two or more Member States exclusively(cid:146) [Article 6(a)] (cid:145)or at least two Member States and
one or more other States, where settlement of the cases concerned does not involve any institution of one
of the latter States [Article 6(b)](cid:146).

The Court of Justice has repeatedly ruled replacement to be mandatory and applicable, even in cases where
the social security conventions are more advantageous to the person covered (3).

The Court of Justice considers that replacement does (cid:145)not allow of any exceptions save for the cases
expressly referred to by the Regulations(cid:146), unless the effect of the entry into force of the Regulations would
be for a worker to lose the social security advantages s/he had previously had when exercising the right to
free movement under national
legislation (cid:129) either alone or in combination with international social
security conventions between one or more Member States (cid:129) or under bilateral social security conventions
in force (4).

However, that principle cannot apply in so far as, when the benefits were set under Regulation (EEC)
No 1408/71 for the first time, (cid:145)a comparison had already been made of the advantages resulting from the
Regulation and the convention, respectively, whose outcome was that it was more advantageous to apply
the Regulation than the convention(cid:146) (5).

C 81 E/214

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

13.3.2001

The system under Regulations (EEC) 1408/71 and (EEC) 574/72 guarantees that the rights of workers
3.
who have completed their professional careers in more than one Member State will not be affected by the
fact that they have exercised their right to free movement. If an insurance period is not sufficient for a
person to qualify for a pension under the legislation of a given Member State, insurance periods completed
in other Member States will also be taken into account. Furthermore, pension rights are calculated on the
basis of all the systems of legislation which have been applicable to the person concerned, to ensure
his/her interests are served, because each competent institution in each Member State concerned is obliged
to pay either the national pension or the pro-rata pension, depending on which amount is more
advantageous to the worker. Each of these old-age benefits is then paid wherever the person concerned
(cid:145)without being subject to any
is living or staying, within the territory of the European Economic Area,
reduction, modification or suspension(cid:146).

(1) Council Regulation of 14 June 1971, on the application of social security schemes to employed persons,
to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community (OJ L 149, 5.7.1971)
(latest consolidated version: Council Regulation (EC) No 118/97 of 2.12.1997 (OJ L 28, 30.1.1997)).

(2) Council Regulation of 21 March 1972 fixing the procedures implementing Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on the
application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their
families moving within the Community (OJ L 74, 27.3.1972).
Judgment of 7 June 1973, Walder (82/72, Rec. p. 599) and judgment of 9 November 1995, ThØvenon (C475/93,
Rec. p. I-3813).
Judgments of 7 February 1991, R(cid:246)nfeldt (C-227/89, Rec. p. I-323) and ThØvenon as above.
Judgment of 7 May 1998, Gomez Rodr(cid:237)guez (C-113/96, Rec. p. I-2461).

(4)
(5)

(3)

(2001/C 81 E/274)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2671/00

by Olivier Dupuis (TDI) to the Commission

(25 July 2000)

Subject: Macedonia

The Government and the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia are currently putting the final touches
to a law on higher education which will enable private universities recognised by the Macedonian State to
be set up. This law, which is due to be adopted before the summer recess, should in particular provide a
solution to the problem of access to quality higher education for the sizeable Albanian community by
creating the conditions for the establishment of a recognised university in Tetovo.

the
This political act (responsibility for which lies mainly with the Prime Minister, Mr Georgevski;
chairman of the Democratic Party of Albanians in Macedonia, Mr Xhaferi; and the OSCE Special Envoy,
Mr Van der Stoel) will also enable approximately 7 000 Albanian students in Macedonia to resume a
normal education (cid:129) students who would otherwise have no prospects and who would easily fall under the
influence of demagogues and of those trying to force a showdown over the issue of the relations between
the various communities in Macedonia.

Is the Commission aware of this welcome development? Is it also aware that without proper funding it will
not be possible for the potential offered by this new legal framework to be exploited? Is it willing to
provide extensive direct funding for the university in question?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(7 September 2000)

The Commission would refer the Honourable Member to the reply it gave to his oral question H-0702/00
during question time at Parliament(cid:146)s Septembre I 00 part-session (1).

(1) Debates of the European Parliament (September 2000).