2008/683/EC: Decision No 208 of 11 March 2008 concerning the establishment of a common framework for the collection of data on the settlement of pension claims (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2008-03-11
Institutions: Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers, European Commission
Subjects: data collection, exchange of information, migrant worker, pension scheme, social security

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(Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is not obligatory)

II

DECISIONS

COMMISSION

ADMINISTRATIVE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ON SOCIAL SECURITY
FOR MIGRANT WORKERS

DECISION No 208

of 11 March 2008

concerning the establishment of a common framework for the collection of data on the settlement
of pension claims

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2008/683/EC)

THE ADMINISTRATIVE COMMISSION ON SOCIAL SECURITY FOR MIGRANT WORKERS,

Having regard to Article 81(d) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (1), under which the Administrative
Commission shall foster and develop cooperation between Member States by modernising procedures for
exchange of information,
in particular by adapting the information flow between institutions for the
purpose of telematic exchange, taking account of the development of data processing in each Member
State, the main aim of such modernisation shall be to expedite the award of benefits,

Having regard to Article 117 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (2), under which the Administrative
Commission shall, based on the research and proposals of the Technical Commission referred to in
Article 117c of the implementing Regulation, adapt to new data processing techniques the models of
documents as well as the routing channels and the data transmission procedures necessary for applying
the Regulation and the implementing Regulation,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

To help the Administrative Commission to assess the extent to which the work of the Technical
Commission is contributing to expediting the award of benefits it is appropriate to provide some
basic quantified, as well as qualitative, information.

The divergences between the information available in the various Member States make comparison
difficult and the collection of statistical data should not represent a heavy and unnecessary burden on
the Member States.

(1) OJ L 149, 5.7.1971, p. 2. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1992/2006 of the European Parliament

and of the Council (OJ L 392, 30.12.2006, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 74, 27.3.1972, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 101/2008 (OJ L 31,

5.2.2008, p. 15).

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(3)

(4)

(5)

The intention is therefore to collect key basic data on the processing and settlement of old-age
pension claims in order to improve knowledge concerning the situation in each Member State,
particularly regarding where the main bottlenecks lie in each Member State's system and procedures;
to share information on best practice and generate ideas on how processing times could be reduced
and to establish clear reference points against which it will be possible for each Member State to
benchmark their own performance.

It is therefore appropriate to establish a broad common framework for the collection of data on the
settlement of pension claims and precise guidelines for this purpose, should be given by the
competent authorities to the national institutions.

Competent institutions shall bear in mind the development and impending introduction of Electronic
Exchange of Social Security Information (EESSI) in the design and implementation of their internal
national systems for the capture and collection of data on the processing and settlement of pension
claims.

(6)

Decision No 182 which provided for the establishment of such a common framework expired on
1 January 2006,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

1. The competent institutions of the Member States (or designated competent institutions where there are
several within a Member State) should take the measures necessary to ensure that data identified under
point 5 can be collected and supplied.

2. This data should be supplied in January of each year, in respect of the preceding year to the Technical

Commission, provided for under Article 117c of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72.

3. The Secretariat of the Technical Commission shall be charged with coordinating the collection of this
data and, with the approval of the Technical Commission, preparing an annual summary for the
Administrative Commission.

4. The data collected should concern only old-age pensions involving a claimant resident in another

Member State and should show the following:

(a)

the reaction time of the investigating institution in the Member State of residence (that is the time
taken by the investigating institution to inform the competent institution that a claim for a pension
has been made to the latter institution). For the purposes of this Decision ‘investigating institution’
shall mean the organisation in the claimant's Member State of residence responsible for completing
form E 202 whilst ‘competent institution’ means the organisation in the Member State which receives
the completed E 202 and is responsible for processing the claim accordingly;

(b) the time taken by the competent institution to process the claim (that is the time taken for the

competent institution to issue a final decision);

(c)

the total processing time taken by the two Member States involved (that is the length of time the
claimant had to wait for the final decision to be issued counting from the date at which the claim
was first submitted to the investigating institution).

Note: The reference to ‘form E 202’ shall apply mutatis mutandis to the appropriate Structured Electronic

Document (SED) when electronic exchanges under the EESSI project commence.

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5. The actual data collected should comprise the following:

(a)

the mean, shortest and longest time taken during the preceding twelve months for old age pension
claims to be sent by the investigating institution to the competent institution;

(b) the mean, shortest and longest time taken during the preceding twelve months for the issuing of a
final decision by the competent institution on an old-age pension where the claimant is living in
another Member State;

(c) a short commentary by the competent institution to situate the data in context and clarify the factors

involved in the settlement of the shortest and longest claims;

(d) a short explanation by the competent institution of the methodology used, whether there has been a

sample or not, size of sample, period covered, total numbers of files examined, etc.

6. Where possible, data collection begins in January 2008 with a view to a first submission to the Technical

Commission in January 2009.

7. Each Member State will present their data to the Technical Commission with a view to promoting

exchange of experience and dissemination of best practice.

8. The system of collecting and using the data be reviewed at the end of every year and where necessary

recommendations made for improvements.

9. This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2008.

The Chair of the Administrative Commission
Jana LOVŠIN