Common Position (EC) No 4/2009 of 17 December 2008 adopted by the Council, acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, with a view to the adoption of a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council 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)
Date: 2008-12-17
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EU law, free movement of persons, proposal (EU), social security, social security legislation, social-security harmonisation

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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 Com-
munity, and in particular Articles 42 and 308 thereof,

approach, which focuses on the relevance of purely
factual information and its immediate accessibility to citi-
zens, is a valuable simplification which should be intro-
duced by this Regulation.

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

(5)

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
Article 251 of the Treaty (3),

laid down in

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

coordination of Member States'

Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 modernises the rules on
the
security
systems, specifying the measures and procedures for
implementing them and simplifying them for all
the
players
should be laid
down.

Implementing rules

involved.

social

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.

Electronic communication is a suitable means of rapid
and reliable data exchange between Member States' insti-
tutions. 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 protec-
tion of natural persons with regard to the processing and
free movement of personal data.

Availability of the details (including electronic details) of
those national bodies likely to be involved in imple-
menting Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, in a form which
allows them to be updated in real time, should facilitate
institutions. This
exchanges between Member States'

(1) OJ L 166, 30.4.2004, p. 1. Corrected version in OJ L 200, 7.6.2004,

p. 1.

(2) OJ C 324, 30.12.2006, p. 59.
(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 9 July 2008 (not yet published
in the Official Journal), Council Common Position of 17 December
2008 and Council Decision of … (not yet published in the Official
Journal).

(6)

(7)

(8)

Achieving the smoothest possible operation and the effi-
cient management of
the complex procedures imple-
menting 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 implemen-
tation should be carried out rapidly, in view of the conse-
quences of delays for citizens and administrative authori-
ties alike. The Commission should therefore be empow-
ered 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.

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

relations between insured persons

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.

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
in Regulation (EC)
No 883/2004 and in this Regulation.

and procedures

set out

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(9)

To determine the competent institution, namely the one
the
whose legislation applies or which is liable for
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 necessary communication
between institutions, provision should be made for provi-
sional membership of a social security system.

the duration of

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 authorisa-
tion should be specified, as should the institution's obli-
gations 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.

(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.

intended to ensure greater

(11) Many measures and procedures provided for in this Regu-
transparency
lation are
the
concerning the criteria which the institutions of
Member States must
apply under Regulation (EC)
No 883/2004. Such measures and procedures are the
the
result of
European Communities, the decisions of the Administra-
tive Commission and the experience of more than
30 years of application of
the coordination of social
security systems in the context of the fundamental free-
doms enshrined in the Treaty.

the case-law of

the Court of

Justice of

(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' institu-
tions 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 unemploy-
ment benefits should therefore be strengthened.

(12)

(13)

(14)

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.

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

Certain procedures should also reflect the need for a
balanced sharing of costs between Member States. In par-
ticular 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.

(18)

(19)

(20)

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 provi-
sions in Council Directive 2008/55/EC of 26 May 2008
on mutual assistance for the recovery of claims relating
taxes and other measures (1).
to certain levies, duties,
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.

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 juris-
diction of
the requested Member State is limited to
regarding enforcement measures. Any other
actions
action falls under
the applicant
Member State.

the jurisdiction of

enforcement measures

The
Member State do not
Member State of the substance or basis of the claim.

requested
imply the recognition by that

taken in the

(15)

In the specific context of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004,
it is necessary to clarify the conditions for meeting the

(1) OJ L 150, 10.6.2008, p. 28.

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(21)

(22)

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'
institu-
tions.

Since the objective of this Regulation, namely the adop-
tion 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
to employed
application of
the
and
persons
Community (1),

security schemes
families moving within

social
their

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

(including digital compression) of data and employing wires,
radio transmission, optical technologies or any other electro-
magnetic means;

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

the basic Regulation.

CHAPTER I

Definitions

Article 1

Definitions

1.

For the purposes of this Regulation:

CHAPTER II

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

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

Provisions concerning cooperation and exchanges of data

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

Article 2

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 auto-
matic 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 imple-
menting Regulation;

(c) ‘document’ means a set of data, irrespective of the medium
used, structured in such a way that it can be exchanged elec-
tronically and which must be communicated in order to
enable the operation of the basic Regulation and the imple-
menting 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
the processing

of data using electronic equipment

for

Scope and rules for exchanges between institutions

the

For

the purposes of

1.
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 par-
ticular for the disabled and the elderly.

The institutions shall without delay provide or exchange
2.
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 desig-
nated in accordance with the implementing Regulation is situ-
ated, the information, documents or claims shall be resubmitted
without delay by the former institution to the institution desig-
nated in accordance with the implementing Regulation,
indi-
cating the date on which they were initially submitted. That date
shall be binding on the latter institution. Member State institu-
tions 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.

(1) OJ L 74, 27.3.1972, p. 1.

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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 legisla-
tion 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 Com-
munity provisions on the protection of individuals with regard
to the processing of personal data and the free movement of
such data.

To the extent necessary for the application of the basic
3.
Regulation and the implementing Regulation, the relevant insti-
tutions 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 5

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

Documents issued by the institution of a Member State
1.
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 institu-
tions 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 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.

the institution of

Pursuant to paragraph 2, where there is doubt about the
3.
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 institu-
tion 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
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.

submitted its

Article 4

Format and method of exchanging data

Article 6

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

Provisional

application of

legislation and provisional

granting of benefits

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.

1.
Unless otherwise provided for in the implementing Regu-
lation, where there is a difference of views between the institu-
tions or authorities of two or more Member States concerning
the determination of
the person
concerned shall be made provisionally subject to the legislation
of one of those Member States, the order of priority being deter-
mined as follows:

the applicable legislation,

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

if

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(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 institu-
tions 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 Administra-
tive 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 provi-
sional granting of the benefits concerned.

If necessary, the institution identified as being competent
5.
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 accord-
ance with Title IV, Chapter III, of the implementing Regulation.

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 recalcu-
lated 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

The provisions of

1.
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 Regu-
lation, 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 arrange-
ments are included in Annex I of the implementing Regulation.

if
2. Member States may conclude between themselves,
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

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

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

the rights or obligations of

Article 7

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

Provisional calculation of benefits and contributions

1.
Unless otherwise provided for in the implementing Regu-
lation, where a person is eligible for a benefit, or is liable to pay
a contribution in accordance with the basic Regulation, and the
competent
the information
concerning the situation in another Member State which is

institution does not have all

contained

Provisions

implementing

agreements
in
3.
concluded between two or more Member States with the same
purpose as, or which are similar to, those referred to in para-
graph 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 imple-
menting Regulation.

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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 applica-
tion of the rules concerning reduction, suspension or with-
drawal
the Member States
concerned shall be divided by the number of benefits subjected
to reduction, suspension or withdrawal.

laid down by the legislation of

Article 11

Elements for determining residence

1. Where there is a difference of views between the institu-
tions of two or more Member States about the determination of
the residence of a person to whom the basic Regulation applies,
the
these institutions shall establish by common agreement
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;

of

The

periods

respective

insurance,

2.
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.

insurance or

residence which is
3. Where a period of
completed in accordance with compulsory insurance under the
legislation of a Member State coincides with a period of insur-
ance 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 compul-
sorily subject to the legislation of a Member State before the
said period, the latter shall be taken into account by the institu-
tion 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
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.

residence completed under

(vi) the Member State in which the person is deemed to

Article 13

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 agree-
ment 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 Regu-
lation, 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.

Rules for conversion of periods

the legislation of a
1. Where periods completed under
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:

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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

6 days

7 days

9 hours

8 hours

6 hours

5 days

6 days

7 days

22 days

26 days

30 days

66 days

78 days

90 days

264 days

312 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
the
for
in accordance with the conversion rules
schemes based on six days in the table in point (b);

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 indi-
cated 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.

(d) in the case of periods expressed in fractions, those figures
integer unit
shall be converted into the next
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;

smaller

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 communi-
cated on a year-by-year basis.

(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.

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.

For the purposes of the application of Article 12(1) of the
2.
basic Regulation, the words ‘which normally carries out its activ-
ities 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 activ-
ities 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.

For the purposes of the application of Article 12(2) of the
4.
the criterion for determining whether the
basic Regulation,
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.

For the purposes of the application of Article 13(1) of the
5.
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:

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

lished 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.

(b) continuously pursues alternating activities, with the excep-
tion 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 alter-
nation 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 para-
graphs 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.

For

the purposes of

8.
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
employed or self-employed person pursued there, without this
necessarily being the major part of those activities.

the activities of

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 indi-
cator 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 busi-
ness is located, the habitual nature or the duration of the activ-
ities 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 estab-

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 imple-
menting 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, when-
ever 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
covered by Article 11(3)(d) of the basic Regulation.

to persons

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
is
vessel on which the employee is to perform the activity,
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
the implementing Regulation. That initial
and Article 14 of
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.

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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 institu-
tion 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 applic-
able 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 agree-
ment in accordance with the conditions set out above and
Article 6 of the implementing Regulation shall apply.

The competent institution of

5.
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 institu-
tion 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 Regu-
is concluded. The
lation when the employment contract
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 excep-
tions to Articles 11 to 15 of the basic Regulation shall be
to the competent
submitted, whenever possible in advance,
the
authority or

the body designated by the authority of

Member State, whose legislation the employee or person
concerned requests be applied.

Article 19

Provision of

information to persons concerned and

employers

The competent institution of

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

inform the

concerned

person

shall

At

the request of

the person concerned or of

2.
the
employer, the competent institution of the Member State whose
legislation is applicable pursuant to Title II of the basic Regu-
lation shall provide an attestation that such legislation is applic-
able and shall indicate, where appropriate, until what date and
under what conditions.

Article 20

Cooperation between institutions

The relevant institutions shall communicate to the compe-
1.
tent institution of the Member State whose legislation is applic-
able 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.

The competent institution of

2.
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
competent
to the institution designated by the
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
employer's underlying obligations. The
prejudice
employer shall send notice of such an arrangement
to the
competent institution of that Member State.

to the

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TITLE III

SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE VARIOUS CATEGORIES OF BENEFITS

CHAPTER I

Article 25

Sickness, maternity and equivalent paternity benefits

Stay in a Member State other than the competent Member
State

Article 22

General implementing provisions

The competent authorities or institutions shall ensure that
1.
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 Arti-
cles 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

the legislation of

If
the Member State of residence or stay
comprises more than one scheme of sickness, maternity and
insured
paternity insurance for more than one category of
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 compe-
tent institution of any registration under paragraph 1 and of
any change or cancellation of that registration.

This Article shall apply mutatis mutandis to the persons
the basic

3.
referred to in Articles 22, 24, 25 and 26 of
Regulation.

A) Procedure and scope of right

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.

That document shall

2.
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
Member State of stay.

the legislation of

The benefits in kind referred to in Article 19(1) of the
3.
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.

B) Procedure and arrangements for meeting the costs and providing

reimbursement of benefits in kind

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.

If the reimbursement of such costs has not been requested
5.
the place of stay, the costs
directly from the institution of
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 imple-
menting 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.

By way of derogation from paragraph 5, the competent
6.
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.

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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.

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

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

C) Family Members

Paragraphs 1 to 9 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the

10.
members of the family of the insured person.

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 authorisa-
tion, 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.

Article 26

Scheduled treatment

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

A) Authorisation procedure

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.

If an insured person does not reside in the competent
2.
Member State, he shall request authorisation from the institu-
tion 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 justi-
fiable, taking into account the current state of health and the
probable course of illness of the person concerned.

B) Meeting the cost of benefits in kind incurred by the insured person

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 reim-
burse 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 deliv-
ered in the competent Member State.

C) Meeting the costs of travel and stay as part of scheduled treatment

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 treat-
ment in another Member State.

The competent institution shall
place of residence of its decision.

inform the institution of the

D) Family members

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.

Paragraphs 1 to 8 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the

9.
members of the family of the insured persons.

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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

A) Procedure to be followed by the insured person

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 compe-
tent 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 legisla-
tion 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.

The forwarding of

4.
the document referred to in para-
graphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not exempt the insured person from
fulfilling the obligations provided for by the applicable legisla-
tion, in particular with regard to his employer. Where appro-
priate, 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.

B) Procedure to be followed by the institution of the Member State of

residence

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 certifi-
cate drawn up in the competent Member State.

If the competent institution refuses the cash benefits,

it
9.
shall notify its decision to the insured person and at the same
time to the institution of the place of residence.

D) Procedure in the event of a stay in a Member State other than the

competent Member State

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

A) Procedure to be followed by the insured person

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.

B) Procedure to be followed by the institution of the place of residence

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.

C) Procedure to be followed by the competent institution

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

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.

Article 27(7) of the implementing Regulation shall apply

4.
mutatis mutandis.

C) Procedure to be followed by the competent institution

D) Procedure in the event of a stay in a Member State other than the

competent Member State

The competent institution shall reserve the right to have

6.
the insured person examined by a doctor of its choice.

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

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,
the place of residence
thereof.

inform the institution of

E) Family members

Paragraphs 1 to 5 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the

6.
members of the family of the insured person.

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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
the amount of contributions deducted from all
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.

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 provi-
sions 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.

Article 31

Application of Article 34 of the basic Regulation

A) Procedure to be followed by the competent institution

CHAPTER II

Benefits in respect of accidents at work and occupational
diseases

The

competent

inform the person
institution shall
1.
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.

the place of

The competent institution shall also inform the institution
2.
of
the payment of
residence or stay about
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.

B) Procedure to be followed by the institution of the place of residence

or stay

3.
Having received the information provided for in para-
graph 2, the institution of the place of residence or stay shall
without delay inform the
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.

institution of

competent

4.
The Administrative Commission shall
menting measures for this Article where necessary.

lay down imple-

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

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 declara-
tion 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.

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2.
The institution of the Member State in the territory of
which the accident at work occurred or in which the occupa-
tional 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
institution, which shall
for that purpose by the competent
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 docu-
ments 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 stabilisa-
tion 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

The second subparagraph of Article 6(5) of the imple-

3.
menting 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

In the case referred to in Article 38 of the basic Regu-
1.
lation, the declaration or notification of the occupational disease
shall be sent
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.

to the competent

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

1. Where the competent institution disputes the application
of the legislation relating to accidents at work or occupational
it shall
diseases under Article 36(2) of the basic Regulation,
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.

the institutions shall

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

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 estab-
lished, benefits in kind shall continue to be provided as sickness
benefits if the person concerned is entitled to them.

sickness benefits

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

Article 37

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

In the event of an appeal against a decision to refuse bene-
1.
fits 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
in accordance with the procedure
or notification was sent,
provided for in Article 36(2) of the implementing Regulation,
and shall subsequently inform it when a final decision is
reached.

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2. Where a person is entitled to benefits under the legislation
applied by the institution to which the declaration or notifica-
tion 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 overpay-
ments 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.

The second subparagraph of Article 6(5) of the imple-

3.
menting Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 38

survivors residing in the territory of another Member State shall
submit, where appropriate, a claim either to the competent insti-
tution 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.

Aggravation of an occupational disease

Article 32(2) second sentence and Article 32(3) of the

2.
implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis.

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
institution may contact any other
disease in question. That
previously competent institution in order to obtain the informa-
tion it considers necessary.

Article 39

Assessment of the degree of incapacity in the event of
diseases which occurred
occupational

accidents or
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 institu-
tion 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

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
to the competent
institution.

residence, which shall send it

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

For the purposes of calculating the theoretical amount
1.
and the actual amount of
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.

the benefit

2. Where periods of voluntary or optional continued insur-
ance 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 benefit,
the legislation it applies. The actual amount of
calculated in accordance with Article 52(1)(b) of the basic Regu-
lation, shall be increased by the amount corresponding to
periods of voluntary or optional continued insurance.

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

that

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

legislation allocates different values

Article 44

Taking into account of child raising-periods

For

this Article,

the purposes of

1.
‘child-raising period’
refers to any period which is credited under the pension legisla-
tion 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.

II of

2. Where, under the legislation of the Member State which is
competent under Title
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,
taking into
account that period as a child-raising period under its own legis-
lation, as if such child-raising took place in its own territory.

remain responsible for

shall

3.
In the case referred to in Article 47(1) of the basic Regu-
lation, the institution with which the person concerned was last
insured shall inform the institution which initially paid the bene-
fits of the amount and the date of commencement of the bene-
fits 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.

B) Submission of other claims for benefits

In situations other than those referred to in paragraph 1,
4.
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 institu-
tion of the place of residence, that institution shall forward the
claim to the institution of the last Member State whose legisla-
tion was applicable.

The date of submission of the claim shall apply in all the

5.
institutions concerned.

By way of derogation from paragraph 5, if the claimant
6.
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 employ-
ment 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

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.

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

Article 45

Claim for benefits

A) Submission of the claim for benefits under type A legislation under

Article 44(2) of the basic Regulation

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 inva-
lidity, or to the institution of the place of residence, which shall
forward the claim to the first institution.

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

The claim shall be submitted by the claimant in accord-
1.
ance with the provisions of the legislation applied by the institu-
tion 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 docu-
ments relating to periods of insurance (institutions, identifica-
tion 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.

in accordance with Article 50(1) of

2. Where,
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 informa-
tion available to them so that he can assess the consequences of
concurrent or successive awards of benefits which he might
claim.

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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 with-
drawal of claims for benefits under the legislation of other
Member States.

Each of

6.
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 Arti-
cles 53 to 55 of the basic Regulation.

Article 47

Investigation of claims by the institutions concerned

7.
Should an institution establish, on the basis of the infor-
mation 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.

A) Contact institution

The institution to which the claim for benefits is submitted
1.
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.

institution, promote the exchange of data,

In addition to investigating the claim for benefits under the
legislation which it applies, this institution shall, in its capacity
as contact
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 rele-
vant to the Community aspects of the investigation and keep
him/her informed of its progress.

B) Investigation of claims for benefits under type A legislation under

Article 44 of the basic Regulation

the contact

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

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

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 deci-
sions. A model summary shall be drawn up by the Administra-
tive 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
shall
commence on the date of receipt of the summary. The claimant
shall be notified of the result of the review in writing.

respective national

legislation. The

limits

time

C) Investigation of other claims for benefits

Article 49

4.
In situations other than those referred to in paragraph 2,
the contact institution shall, without delay, send claims for bene-
fits 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 resi-
dence subject to its legislation. It shall also indicate which docu-
ments shall be submitted at a later date and supplement the
claim as soon as possible.

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

Determination of the degree of invalidity

institution is

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
included in
the legislation applied by that
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 deter-
mine whether the conditions for eligibility laid down in the
applicable legislation are met, taking into account, where appro-
priate, Articles 6 and 51 of
It shall
without delay notify the other institutions concerned of that
decision.

the basic Regulation.

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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 compe-
tent 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 applic-
able, 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

Notwithstanding Article 7 of

1.
the implementing Regu-
lation, any institution which establishes, while investigating a
claim for benefits, that the claimant is entitled to an indepen-
dent 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 investi-
gation 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 Regu-
lation, Article 50 of
the implementing Regulation shall be
applicable mutatis mutandis.

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

the institutions

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
failing that, provide those
retained and correspond, or,
persons with the means
identification
elements directly;

to access

their

(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 Administra-
tive Commission shall determine the elements of information to
be exchanged or made available and shall establish the appro-
priate procedures and mechanisms, taking account of the char-
acteristics, administrative and technical organisation, and the
technological means at
the disposal of national pension
schemes. The Administrative Commission shall ensure the
those pension schemes by organising a
implementation of
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 desig-
nating 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.

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2. Where national legislation includes rules for the coordina-
tion 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 calcu-
late unemployment benefits which can be obtained in the
Member State of residence, in particular the salary or profes-
sional income received.

For the purposes of applying Article 62 of the basic Regu-
3.
lation 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 resi-
dence 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

In order to be covered by Article 64 of the basic Regu-
1.
lation, 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 obliga-
tions 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 bene-
fits may be retained in accordance with Article 64(1)(c) of
the basic Regulation;

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

The unemployed person shall register as a person seeking
2.
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 para-
graph 1 to the institution of
If he has
informed the competent institution in accordance with para-
graph 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 neces-
sary information.

that Member State.

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 unem-
ployed 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 enti-
tlement 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.

relevant

At the request of the competent institution, the institution in
the Member State to which the unemployed person has gone
shall provide
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 unem-
ployed 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.

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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 obliga-
tions 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 legisla-
tion 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

CHAPTER VI

Family benefits

Article 58

Priority rules in the event of overlapping

For the purposes of applying Article 68(1)(b)(i) and (ii) of the
basic Regulation, where the order of priority cannot be estab-
lished on the basis of the children's place of residence, each
Member State concerned shall calculate the amount of benefits
including the children not resident within its own territory. In
the event of applying Article 68(1)(b)(i), the competent institu-
tion of the Member State whose legislation provides for the
highest level of benefits shall pay the full amount of such bene-
fits and be reimbursed half this sum by the competent institu-
tion of the other Member State up to the limit of the amount
provided for in the legislation of the latter Member State.

Article 59

Rules applicable where the applicable legislation and/or the
competence to grant family benefits changes

1. Where the applicable legislation and/or the competence to
grant family benefits change between Member States during a
calendar month,
irrespective of the payment dates of family
benefits under the legislation of those Member States, the insti-
tution which has paid the family benefits by virtue of the legisla-
tion under which the benefits have been granted at the begin-
ning of that month shall continue to do so until the end of the
month in progress.

2.
It shall inform the institution of the other Member State
or Member States concerned of the date on which it ceases to
pay the family benefits in question. Payment of benefits from
the other Member State or Member States concerned shall take
effect from that date.

Article 60

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

Procedure for applying Articles 67 and 68 of the basic
Regulation

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.

1.
The application for family benefits shall be addressed to
the competent institution. For the purposes of applying Arti-
cles 67 and 68 of the basic Regulation, the situation of the
whole family shall be taken into account as if all the persons
involved were subject to the legislation of the Member State
concerned and residing there, in particular as regards a person's
entitlement to claim such benefits. Where a person entitled to
claim the benefits does not exercise his right, an application for
family benefits submitted by the other parent, a person treated
as a parent, or a person or institution acting as guardian of the
child or children, shall be taken into account by the competent
institution of the Member State whose legislation is applicable.

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2.
The institution to which an application is made in accord-
ance with paragraph 1 shall examine the application on the
basis of
the detailed information supplied by the applicant,
taking into account the overall factual and legal situation of the
applicant's family.

If that institution concludes that its legislation is applicable by
priority right in accordance with Article 68(1) and (2) of the
basic Regulation, it shall provide the family benefits according
to the legislation it applies.

If it appears to that institution that there may be an entitlement
the legislation of
to a differential supplement by virtue of
another Member State in accordance with Article 68(2) of the
basic Regulation, that institution shall forward the application,
without delay, to the competent institution of the other Member
State and inform the person concerned; moreover,
it shall
inform the institution of the other Member State of its decision
on the application and the amount of family benefits paid.

3. Where the institution to which the application is made
concludes that its legislation is applicable, but not by priority
right in accordance with Article 68(1) and (2) of the basic Regu-
lation, it shall take a provisional decision, without delay, on the
priority rules to be applied and shall forward the application, in
accordance with Article 68(3) of the basic Regulation, to the
institution of the other Member State, and shall also inform the
applicant thereof. That institution shall take a position on the
provisional decision within two months.

If the institution to which the application was forwarded does
not take a position within two months of the receipt of the
application,
the provisional decision referred to above shall
apply and the institution shall pay the benefits provided for
under its legislation and inform the institution to which the
application was made of the amount of benefits paid.

4. Where there is a difference of views between the institu-
tions concerned about which legislation is applicable by priority
right, Article 6(2) to (5) of the implementing Regulation shall
apply. For this purpose the institution of the place of residence
referred to in Article 6(2) of the implementing Regulation shall
be the institution of the child's or childrens' place of residence.

If the institution which has supplied benefits on a provi-
5.
sional basis has paid more than the amount for which it is ulti-
mately responsible, it may claim reimbursement of the excess
from the institution with primary responsibility in accordance
with the procedure laid down in Article 73 of the implementing
Regulation.

Article 61

Procedure for applying Article 69 of the basic Regulation

For the purposes of applying Article 69 of the basic Regulation,
the Administrative Commission shall draw up a list of the addi-
tional or special family benefits for orphans covered by that
Article. If there is no provision for the institution competent to
grant, by priority right, such additional or special family benefits
it shall without
for orphans under the legislation it applies,
delay forward any application for family benefits, together with
all relevant documents and information, to the institution of the
Member State to whose legislation the person concerned has
been subject, for the longest period of time and which provides
such additional or special family benefits for orphans. In some
cases, this may mean referring back, under the same conditions,
to the institution of the Member State under whose legislation
the person concerned has completed the shortest of his or her
insurance or residence periods.

TITLE IV

FINANCIAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I

Reimbursement of

the cost of benefits in application of

Article 35 and Article 41 of the basic Regulation

payment calculated from all the appropriate references obtained
from the data available. The Administrative Commission shall
assess the bases to be used for calculation of the lump-sum
payment and shall decide the amount thereof.

Section 1

Reimbursement

the

on
expenditure

basis

of

actual

3.
Higher rates than those applicable to the benefits in kind
provided to insured persons subject to the legislation applied by
the institution providing the benefits referred to in paragraph 1
may not be taken into account in the reimbursement.

Article 62

Principles

1.
For the purposes of applying Article 35 and Article 41 of
the basic Regulation, the actual amount of the expenses for
benefits in kind, as shown in the accounts of the institution that
provided them, shall be reimbursed to that institution by the
competent institution, except where Article 63 of the imple-
menting Regulation is applicable.

If any or part of the actual amount of the expenses for
2.
benefits referred to in paragraph 1 is not shown in the accounts
of
to be
refunded shall be determined on the basis of a lump-sum

the institution that provided them,

the amount

Section 2

Reimbursement on the basis of f ixed amounts

Article 63

Identification of the Member States concerned

1.
The Member States referred to in Article 35(2) of the basic
Regulation, whose legal or administrative structures are such
that the use of reimbursement on the basis of actual expenditure
is not appropriate, are listed in Annex III to the implementing
Regulation.

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In the case of the Member States listed in Annex III to the
in kind

the amount of benefits

2.
implementing Regulation,
supplied to:

(a) family members who do not reside in the same Member
State as the insured person, as provided for in Article 17 of
the basic Regulation, and to

(b) pensioners and members of their family, as provided for in
the basic

Article 24(1) and Articles 25 and 26 of
Regulation,

shall be reimbursed by the competent institutions to the institu-
tions providing the said benefits, on the basis of a fixed amount
established for each calendar year. This fixed amount shall be as
close as possible to actual expenditure.

4.
For each debtor Member State, the total fixed amount for
a calendar year shall be the sum of the products obtained by
multiplying, in each age group i, the determined monthly fixed
amounts per person by the number of months completed by
the persons concerned in the creditor Member State in that age
group.

The number of months completed by the persons concerned in
the creditor Member State shall be the sum of the calendar
months in a calendar year during which the persons concerned
were, because of their residence in the territory of the creditor
Member State, eligible to receive benefits in kind in that terri-
tory at the expense of the debtor Member State. Those months
shall be determined from an inventory kept for that purpose by
the institution of the place of residence, based on documentary
evidence of the entitlement of the beneficiaries supplied by the
competent institution.

Article 64

Calculation method of the monthly fixed amounts and the
total fixed amount

For each creditor Member State,

1.
the monthly fixed
amount per person (Fi) for a calendar year shall be determined
by dividing the annual average cost per person (Yi), broken
down by age group (i), by 12 and by applying a reduction (X) to
the result in accordance with the following formula:

5.
No later than … (*), the Administrative Commission shall
present a specific report on the application of this Article and
in particular on the reductions referred to in paragraph 3. On
the basis of that report, the Administrative Commission may
present a proposal containing any amendments which may
prove necessary in order to ensure that the calculation of fixed
amounts comes as close as possible to the actual expenditure
incurred and the reductions referred to in paragraph 3 do not
result
in unbalanced payments or double payments for the
Member States.

Fi = Yi*1/12*(1-X)

Where:

— the index (i = 1, 2 and 3) represents the three age groups

used for calculating the fixed amounts:

i = 1: persons aged under 20,

i = 2: persons aged from 20 to 64,

i = 3: persons aged 65 and over,

— Yi represents the annual average cost per person in age

group i, as defined in paragraph 2,

— the coefficient X (0,20 or 0,15) represents the reduction as

defined in paragraph 3.

2.
The annual average cost per person (Yi) in age group i
shall be obtained by dividing the annual expenditure on all
benefits in kind provided by the institutions of the creditor
Member State to all persons in the age group concerned subject
to its legislation and residing within its territory by the average
number of persons concerned in that age group in the calendar
year in question. The calculation shall be based on the expendi-
ture under the schemes referred to in Article 23 of the imple-
menting Regulation.

The Administrative Commission shall

6.
establish the
methods for determining the elements for calculating the fixed
amounts referred to in paragraphs 1 to 5.

7.
Notwithstanding paragraphs 1 to 4, Member States may
continue to apply Articles 94 and 95 of Regulation (EEC)
No 574/72 for the calculation of the fixed amount until … (*),
provided that the reduction set out in paragraph 3 is applied.

Article 65

Notification of annual average costs

The annual average cost per person in each age group for
1.
a specific year shall be notified to the Audit Board at the latest
by the end of the second year following the year in question. If
the notification is not made by this deadline, the annual average
cost per person which the Administrative Commission has last
determined for a previous year will be taken.

3.
The reduction to be applied to the monthly fixed amount
shall, in principle, be equal to 20 % (X = 0,20). It shall be equal
to 15 % (X = 0,15) for pensioners and members of their family
where the competent Member State is not listed in Annex IV to
the basic Regulation.

2.
The annual average costs determined in accordance with
paragraph 1 shall be published each year in the Official Journal
of the European Union.

(*) Five years after the entry into force of this Regulation.

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Section 3

Common provisions

Article 66

The Audit Board shall

7.
facilitate the final closing of
accounts in cases where a settlement cannot be reached within
the period set out in paragraph 6, and, upon a reasoned request
by one of the parties, shall give its opinion on a dispute within
six months following the month in which the matter was
referred to it.

Procedure for reimbursement between institutions

The

between

the Member

reimbursements

1.
States
concerned shall be made as promptly as possible. Every institu-
tion concerned shall be obliged to reimburse claims before the
deadlines mentioned in this Section, as soon as it is in a posi-
tion to do so. A dispute concerning a particular claim shall not
hinder the reimbursement of another claim or other claims.

2.
the
The reimbursements between the institutions of
Member States, provided for in Articles 35 and 41 of the basic
Regulation, shall be made via the liaison body. There may be a
separate liaison body for reimbursements under Article 35 and
Article 41 of the basic Regulation.

Article 67

Deadlines for the introduction and settlement of claims

1.
Claims based on actual expenditure shall be introduced to
the liaison body of the debtor Member State within 12 months
of the end of the calendar half-year during which those claims
were recorded in the accounts of the creditor institution.

2.
Claims of fixed amounts for a calendar year shall be intro-
duced to the liaison body of the debtor Member State within
the 12-month period following the month during which the
average costs for the year concerned were published in the
Official Journal of the European Union. The inventories referred to
Article 64(4) of the implementing Regulation shall be presented
by the end of the year following the reference year.

3.
In the case referred to in Article 6(5) second subparagraph
of the implementing Regulation, the deadline set out in para-
graphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall not start before the compe-
tent institution has been identified.

Claims introduced after the deadlines specified in para-

4.
graphs 1 and 2 shall not be considered.

5.
The claims shall be paid to the liaison body of the creditor
Member State referred to in Article 66 of the implementing
Regulation by the debtor institution within 18 months of the
end of the month during which they were introduced to the
liaison body of the debtor Member State. This does not apply to
the claims which the debtor institution has rejected for a rele-
vant reason within that period.

6.
Any disputes concerning a claim shall be settled, at the
latest, within 36 months following the month in which the
claim was introduced.

Article 68

Interest on late payments and down payments

From the end of

the 18-month period set out

in
1.
Article 67(5) of the implementing Regulation, interest can be
charged by the creditor institution on outstanding claims, unless
the debtor institution has made, within six months of the end
of the month during which the claim was introduced, a down
payment of at least 90 % of the total claim introduced pursuant
to Article 67(1) or (2) of the implementing Regulation. For
those parts of the claim not covered by the down payment,
interest may be charged only from the end of the 36-month
period set out in Article 67(6) of the implementing Regulation.

2.
The interest shall be calculated on the basis of the refer-
ence rate applied by the European Central Bank to its main refi-
nancing operations. The reference rate applicable shall be that in
force on the first day of the month on which the payment is
due.

No liaison body shall be obliged to accept a down
3.
payment as provided for in paragraph 1. If however, a liaison
body declines such an offer, the creditor institution shall no
longer be entitled to charge interest on late payments related to
the claims in question other than under the second sentence of
paragraph 1.

Article 69

Statement of annual accounts

the basic Regulation, on the basis of

1.
The Administrative Commission shall establish the claims
situation for each calendar year in accordance with Article 72(g)
the Audit Board's
of
report. To this end, the liaison bodies shall notify the Audit
Board, by the deadlines and according to the procedures laid
down by the latter, of the amount of the claims introduced,
settled or contested (creditor position) and the amount of claims
received, settled or contested (debtor position).

2.
The Administrative Commission may perform any appro-
priate checks on the statistical and accounting data used as the
basis for drawing up the annual statement of claims provided
for in paragraph 1 in order, in particular, to ensure that they
comply with the rules laid down under this Title.

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CHAPTER II

Reimbursement

of unemployment benefits pursuant

to

Article 65 of the basic Regulation

Article 70

Reimbursement of unemployment benefits

claims shall, wherever possible, be by way of offsetting either
between the institutions of Member States concerned, or
vis-à-vis the natural or legal person concerned in accordance
with Articles 72 to 74 of the implementing Regulation. If it is
not possible to recover all or any of the claim via this offsetting
procedure, the remainder of the amount due shall be recovered
in accordance with Articles 75 to 85 of
the implementing
Regulation.

If there is no agreement in accordance with Article 65(8) of the
basic Regulation, the institution of the place of residence shall
request reimbursement of unemployment benefits pursuant to
Article 65(6) and (7) of the basic Regulation from the institution
of the Member State to whose legislation the beneficiary was
last subject. The request shall be made within six months of the
end of the calendar half-year during which the last payment of
unemployment benefit, for which reimbursement is requested,
was made. The request shall indicate the amount of benefit paid
during
five month-period referred to in
Article 65(6) and (7) of the basic Regulation, the period for
which the benefits were paid and the identification data of the
unemployed person. The claims shall be introduced and paid via
the liaison bodies of the Member States concerned.

three or

the

Section 2

Offs etting

Article 72

Benefits received unduly

There is no requirement to consider requests introduced after
the time-limit referred to in the first paragraph.

Articles 66(1) and 67(5) to (7) of the implementing Regulation
shall apply mutatis mutandis.

end of

From the
the 18-month period referred to in
Article 67(5) of the implementing Regulation, interest may be
charged by the creditor institution on outstanding claims. The
interest shall be calculated in accordance with Article 68(2) of
the implementing Regulation.

The maximum amount of the reimbursement referred to in the
third sentence of Article 65(6) of the basic Regulation is in each
individual case the amount of the benefit to which a person
concerned would be entitled according to the legislation of the
Member State to which he was last subject if registered with the
employment services of that Member State. However, in rela-
tions between the Member States listed in Annex V to the
implementing Regulation, the competent institutions of one of
those Member States to whose legislation the person concerned
was last subject shall determine the maximum amount in each
individual case on the basis of the average amount of unemploy-
ment benefits provided under the legislation of that Member
State in the preceding calendar year.

CHAPTER III

Recovery of benefits provided but not due,
provisional payments and contributions,

recovery of
offsetting and

assistance with recovery

Section 1

Pr inciples

Article 71

Common provisions

For the purposes of applying Article 84 of the basic Regulation
the recovery of
and within the framework defined therein,

1.
If the institution of a Member State has paid undue bene-
fits to a person, that institution may, within the terms and limits
laid down in the legislation it applies, request the institution of
any other Member State responsible for paying benefits to the
person concerned to deduct the undue amount from arrears or
on-going payments owed to the person concerned regardless of
the social security branch under which the benefit is paid. The
institution of the latter Member State shall deduct the amount
concerned subject to the conditions and limits applying to this
kind of offsetting procedure in accordance with the legislation it
applies in the same way as if it had made the overpayments
itself, and shall transfer the amount deducted to the institution
that has paid undue benefits.

2.
By way of derogation to paragraph 1, if, when awarding
or reviewing benefits in respect of invalidity benefits, old-age
and survivors' pensions pursuant to Chapter 4 and 5 of Title III
of the basic Regulation, the institution of a Member State has
paid to a person benefits of undue sum, that institution may
request the institution of any other Member State responsible
for
the payment of corresponding benefits to the person
concerned to deduct the amount overpaid from the arrears
payable to the person concerned. After the latter institution has
informed the institution that has paid an undue sum of these
arrears, the institution which has paid the undue sum shall
within two months communicate the amount of the undue
sum. If the institution which is due to pay arrears receives that
communication within the deadline it shall transfer the amount
deducted to the institution which has paid undue sums. If the
deadline expires, that institution shall without delay pay out the
arrears to the person concerned.

If a person has received social welfare assistance in one
3.
Member State during a period in which he was entitled to bene-
fits under the legislation of another Member State, the body
which provided the assistance may,
if it is legally entitled to
reclaim the benefits due to the person concerned, request the
institution of any other Member State responsible for paying
benefits in favour of
the
amount of assistance paid from the amounts which that
Member State pays to the person concerned.

the person concerned to deduct

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This provision shall apply mutatis mutandis
to any family
member of a person concerned who has received assistance in
the territory of a Member State during a period in which the
insured person was entitled to benefits under the legislation of
another Member State in respect of that family member.

If the amount of provisionally paid contributions exceeds the
amount the legal and/or natural person owes to the institution
identified as being competent, the institution which provision-
ally received contributions shall reimburse the amount in excess
to the legal and/or natural person concerned.

The institution of a Member State which has paid an undue
amount of assistance shall send a statement of the amount due
to the institution of the other Member State, which shall then
deduct the amount, subject to the conditions and limits laid
down for this kind of offsetting procedure in accordance with
the legislation it applies, and transfer the amount without delay
to the institution that has paid the undue amount.

Article 74

Costs related to offsetting

No costs are payable where the debt is recovered via the offset-
ting procedure provided for in Articles 72 and 73 of the imple-
menting Regulation.

Article 73

Provisionally paid benefits in cash or contributions

For the purposes of applying Article 6 of

1.
the imple-
menting Regulation, at the latest three months after the applic-
able legislation has been determined or the institution respon-
sible for paying the benefits has been identified, the institution
which provisionally paid the cash benefits shall draw up a state-
ment of the amount provisionally paid and shall send it to the
institution identified as being competent.

The institution identified as being competent for paying the
benefits shall deduct the amount due in respect of the provi-
sional payment from the arrears of the corresponding benefits it
owes to the person concerned and shall without delay transfer
the amount deducted to the institution which provisionally paid
the cash benefits.

If the amount of provisionally paid benefits exceeds the amount
of arrears, or if arrears do not exist, the institution identified as
being competent
from ongoing
payments subject to the conditions and limits applying to this
kind of offsetting procedure under the legislation it applies, and
without delay transfer the amount deducted to the institution
which provisionally paid the cash benefits.

this amount

shall deduct

2.
The institution which has provisionally received contribu-
tions from a legal and/or natural person shall not reimburse the
amounts in question to the person who paid them until it has
ascertained from the institution identified as being competent
the sums due to it under Article 6(4) of the implementing
Regulation.

Section 3

Recover y

Article 75

Definitions and common provisions

1.

For the purposes of this Section:

— ‘claim’ means all claims relating to contributions or to bene-
fits paid or provided unduly, including interest, fines, admin-
istrative penalties and all other charges and costs connected
with the claim in accordance with the legislation of the
Member State making the claim;

— ‘applicant party’ means,

in respect of each Member State,
any institution which makes a request for information, noti-
fication or recovery concerning a claim as defined above;

— ‘requested party’ means,

in respect of each Member State,
any institution to which a request for information, notifica-
tion or recovery can be made.

Requests and any related communications between the
in general, be addressed via designated

2.
Member States shall,
institutions.

Practical

implementation measures,

3.
among
others, those related to Article 4 of the implementing Regu-
lation and to setting a minimum threshold for the amounts for
which a request for recovery can be made, shall be taken by the
Administrative Commission.

including,

Article 76

Requests for information

Upon request of the institution identified as being competent,
which shall be made at the latest three months after the applic-
able legislation has been determined, the institution that has
provisionally received contributions shall transfer them to the
institution identified as being competent for that period for the
purpose of settling the situation concerning the contributions
owed by the legal and/or natural person to it. The contributions
transferred shall be retroactively deemed as having been paid to
the institution identified as being competent.

At the request of the applicant party, the requested party
1.
shall provide any information which would be useful to the
applicant party in the recovery of its claim.

In order to obtain that information, the requested party shall
make use of the powers provided for under the laws, regulations
or administrative provisions applying to the recovery of similar
claims arising in its own Member State.

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2.
The request for information shall indicate the name, last
known address, and any other relevant information relating to
the identification of the legal or natural person concerned to
whom the information to be provided relates and the nature
and amount of the claim in respect of which the request is
made.

The requested party shall not be obliged to supply infor-

3.
mation:

(a) which it would not be able to obtain for the purpose of
recovering similar claims arising in its own Member State;

The applicant party may only make a request for recovery

2.
if:

(a) the claim and/or the instrument permitting its enforcement
are not contested in its own Member State, except in cases
where the second subparagraph of Article 81(2) of
the
implementing Regulation is applied;

(b) it has,

in its own Member State, applied appropriate
recovery procedures available to it on the basis of the instru-
ment referred to in paragraph 1, and the measures taken
will not result in the payment in full of the claim;

(b) which would disclose any commercial, industrial or profes-

sional secrets; or

(c) the period of limitation according to its own legislation has

not expired.

(c) the disclosure of which would be liable to prejudice the
security of or be contrary to the public policy of
the
Member State.

The requested party shall inform the applicant party of the

4.
grounds for refusing a request for information.

Article 77

Notification

The requested party shall, at the request of the applicant
1.
party, and in accordance with the rules in force for the notifica-
tion of similar instruments or decisions in its own Member
State, notify the addressee of all
instruments and decisions,
including those of a judicial nature, which come from the
Member State of the applicant party and which relate to a claim
and/or to its recovery.

The request

2.
indicate the name,
for notification shall
address and any other relevant information relating to the iden-
tification of the addressee concerned to which the applicant
party normally has access, the nature and the subject of the
instrument or decision to be notified and,
if necessary the
name, address and any other relevant information relating to
the identification of the debtor and the claim to which the
instrument or decision relates, and any other useful information.

3.

The request for recovery shall indicate:

(a) the name, address and any other

information
relating to the identification of the natural or legal person
concerned and/or to the third party holding his or her
assets;

relevant

(b) the name, address and any other

relevant

information

relating to the identification of the applicant party;

(c) a reference to the instrument permitting its enforcement,

issued in the Member State of the applicant party;

(d) the nature and amount of the claim, including the principal,
fines, administrative penalties and all other
the interest,
charges and costs due indicated in the currencies of the
Member States of the applicant and requested parties;

(e) the date of notification of the instrument to the addressee

by the applicant party and/or by the requested party;

(f) the date from which and the period during which enforce-
ment is possible under the laws in force in the Member
State of the applicant party;

(g) any other relevant information.

The request for recovery shall also contain a declaration
4.
by the applicant party confirming that the conditions laid down
in paragraph 2 have been fulfilled.

The requested party shall without delay inform the appli-
3.
cant party of the action taken on its request for notification
and, particularly, of the date on which the decision or instru-
ment was forwarded to the addressee.

The applicant party shall forward to the requesting party
5.
any relevant information relating to the matter which gave rise
to the request
for recovery, as soon as this comes to its
knowledge.

Article 78

Request for recovery

Article 79

Instrument permitting enforcement of the recovery

1.
The request for recovery of a claim, addressed by the
applicant party to the requested party, shall be accompanied by
an official or certified copy of the instrument permitting its
enforcement, issued in the Member State of the applicant party
and, if appropriate, by the original or a certified copy of other
documents necessary for recovery.

1.
In accordance with Article 84(2) of the basic Regulation,
the instrument permitting enforcement of the claim shall be
directly recognised and treated automatically as an instrument
permitting the enforcement of a claim of the Member State of
the requested party.

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2.
Notwithstanding paragraph 1, the instrument permitting
enforcement of the claim may, where appropriate and in accord-
ance with the provisions in force in the Member State of the
requested party, be accepted as, recognised as, supplemented
with, or replaced by an instrument authorising enforcement in
the territory of that Member State.

Within three months of the date of receipt of the request for
recovery, Member States shall endeavour to complete the accep-
tance, recognition, supplementing or replacement, except
in
cases where the third subparagraph of this paragraph applies.
Member States may not refuse to complete these actions where
the instrument permitting enforcement is properly drawn up.
The requested party shall
inform the applicant party of the
grounds for exceeding the three-month period.

If any of these actions should give rise to a dispute in connec-
tion with the claim and/or the instrument permitting enforce-
ment issued by the applicant party, Article 81 of the imple-
menting Regulation shall apply.

Article 80

Payment arrangements and deadlines

Claims shall be recovered in the currency of the Member
1.
State of the requested party. The entire amount of the claim that
is recovered by the requested party shall be remitted by the
requested party to the applicant party.

The requested party may, where the laws, regulations or
2.
administrative provisions in force in its own Member State so
permit, and after consulting the applicant party, allow the
debtor time to pay or authorise payment by instalment. Any
interest charged by the requested party in respect of such extra
time to pay shall also be remitted to the applicant party.

From the date on which the instrument permitting enforcement
of the recovery of the claim has been directly recognised in
accordance with Article 79(1) of the implementing Regulation,
or accepted, recognised, supplemented or replaced in accordance
with Article 79(2) of the implementing Regulation, interest shall
be charged for late payment under the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions in force in the Member State of the
requested party and shall also be remitted to the applicant party.

Article 81

Contestation concerning the claim or
the instrument
permitting enforcement of its recovery and contestation
concerning enforcement measures

If,

in the course of

the recovery procedure, the claim
1.
and/or the instrument permitting its enforcement issued in the
Member State of the applicant party are contested by an inter-
ested party, the action shall be brought by this party before the
appropriate authorities of the Member State of the applicant
party,
in accordance with the laws in force in that Member
State. The applicant party shall without delay notify the
requested party of this action. The interested party may also
inform the requested party of the action.

2.
As soon as the requested party has received the notifica-
tion or information referred to in paragraph 1 either from the
applicant party or from the interested party, it shall suspend the

enforcement procedure pending the decision of the appropriate
authority in the matter, unless the applicant party requests
otherwise in accordance with the second subparagraph of this
paragraph. Should the requested party deem it necessary, and
without prejudice to Article 84 of the implementing Regulation,
it may take precautionary measures to guarantee recovery
insofar as the laws or regulations in force in its own Member
State allow such action for similar claims.

Notwithstanding the first subparagraph,
the applicant party
may, in accordance with the laws, regulations and administrative
practices in force in its own Member State, request the requested
party to recover a contested claim, in so far as the relevant laws,
regulations and administrative practices in force in the requested
party's Member State allow such action. If the result of the
contestation is subsequently favourable to the debtor, the appli-
cant party shall be liable for the reimbursement of any sums
recovered, together with any compensation due, in accordance
with the legislation in force in the requested party's Member
State.

3. Where the contestation concerns enforcement measures
taken in the Member State of the requested party, the action
shall be brought before the appropriate authority of
that
Member State in accordance with its laws and regulations.

4. Where the appropriate authority before which the action
is brought
in accordance with paragraph 1 is a judicial or
administrative tribunal, the decision of that tribunal, in so far as
it is favourable to the applicant party and permits recovery of
the claim in the Member State of the applicant party, shall
constitute the ‘instrument permitting enforcement’ within the
meaning of Articles 78 and 79 of the implementing Regulation
and the recovery of the claim shall proceed on the basis of that
decision.

Article 82

Limits applying to assistance

1.

The requested party shall not be obliged:

the situation of

(a) to grant the assistance provided for in Articles 78 to 81 of
the implementing Regulation if recovery of the claim would,
because of
the debtor, create serious
economic or social difficulties in the Member State of the
requested party, insofar as the laws, regulations or adminis-
trative practices in force in the Member State of
the
requested party allow such action for
similar national
claims;

(b) to grant the assistance provided for in Articles 76 to 81 of
the implementing Regulation,
if the initial request under
Articles 76 to 78 of the implementing Regulation applies to
claims more than five years old, dating from the moment
the instrument permitting the recovery was established in
accordance with the laws, regulations or administrative prac-
tices in force in the Member State of the applicant party at
the date of the request. However, if the claim or instrument
is contested, the time limit begins from the moment that
the Member State of the applicant party establishes that the
claim or the enforcement order permitting recovery may no
longer be contested.

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The requested party shall inform the applicant party of the

2.
grounds for refusing a request for assistance.

Article 85

Costs related to recovery

Article 83

Periods of limitation

Questions concerning periods of

1.
governed as follows:

limitation shall be

(a) by the laws in force in the Member State of the applicant
party, insofar as they concern the claim and/or the instru-
ment permitting its enforcement; and

(b) by the laws in force in the Member State of the requested
party, insofar as they concern enforcement measures in the
requested Member State.

limitation according to the laws in force in the
Periods of
Member State of the requested party shall start from the date of
direct recognition or from the date of acceptance, recognition,
supplementing or replacement in accordance with Article 79 of
the implementing Regulation.

2.
Steps taken in the recovery of claims by the requested
party in pursuance of a request for assistance, which, if they had
been carried out by the applicant party, would have had the
effect of suspending or interrupting the period of
limitation
according to the laws in force in the Member State of the appli-
cant party, shall be deemed to have been taken in the latter
State, in so far as that effect is concerned.

Article 84

Precautionary measures

Upon reasoned request by the applicant party, the requested
party shall take precautionary measures to ensure recovery of a
claim in so far as the laws and regulations in force in the
Member State of the requested party so permit.

For the purposes of implementing the above paragraph, the
provisions and procedures laid down in Articles 78, 79, 81
and 82 of
the implementing Regulation shall apply mutatis
mutandis.

The requested party shall recover from the natural or legal
1.
person concerned and retain any costs linked to recovery which
in accordance with the laws and regulations of the
it incurs,
Member State of
the requested party that apply to similar
claims.

2. Mutual assistance afforded under this Section shall, as a
rule, be free of charge. However, where recovery poses a specific
problem or concerns a very large amount in costs, the applicant
and the requested parties may agree on reimbursement arrange-
ments specific to the cases in question.

The Member State of

3.
the applicant party shall remain
liable to the Member State of the requested party for any costs
and any losses incurred as a result of actions held to be
unfounded, as far as either the substance of the claim or the
validity of
issued by the applicant party is
concerned.

the instrument

Article 86

Review clause

1.
No later than the fourth full calendar year after the entry
into force of the implementing Regulation, the Administrative
Commission shall present a report on the time limits set out in
Article 67(2), (5) and (6) of the implementing Regulation.

On the basis of this report, the European Commission may, as
appropriate, submit proposals to review these time limits with
the aim of reducing them in a significant way.

No later than … (*), the Administrative Commission shall
2.
present a report
specifically assessing the application of
Chapters I and III of Title IV of the implementing Regulation, in
particular with regard to the procedures and time limits referred
to in Article 67(2), (5) and (6) of the implementing regulation
and to the recovery procedures referred to in Articles 75 to 85
of the implementing Regulation.

In the light of this report, the European Commission may, if
necessary, submit appropriate proposals to make these proce-
dures more efficient and balanced.

MISCELLANEOUS, TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

TITLE V

Article 87

followed and points

be
examination.

to be

covered by the medical

Medical examination and administrative checks

1. Without prejudice to other provisions, where a recipient
or a claimant of benefits, or a member of his family, is staying
or residing within the territory of a Member State other than
that in which the debtor institution is located, the medical
examination shall be carried out, at the request of that institu-
tion, by the institution of the beneficiary's place of stay or resi-
dence in accordance with the procedures laid down by the legis-
lation applied by that institution.

The institution of

2.
the place of stay or residence shall
forward a report to the debtor institution that requested the
medical examination. This institution shall be bound by the
findings of the institution of the place of stay or residence.

The debtor institution shall reserve the right to have the benefi-
ciary examined by a doctor of its choice. However, the benefi-
ciary may be asked to return to the Member State of the debtor
institution only if he or she is able to make the journey without
prejudice to his health and the cost of travel and accommoda-
tion is paid for by the debtor institution.

The debtor institution shall inform the institution of the place
of stay or residence of any special requirements, if necessary, to

(*) Five years after the entry into force of this Regulation.

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3. Where a recipient or a claimant of benefits, or a member
of his family, is staying or residing in the territory of a Member
State other than that in which the debtor institution is located,
the administrative check shall, at the request of the debtor insti-
tution, be performed by the institution of the beneficiary's place
of stay or residence.

Paragraph 2 shall also apply in this case.

4.
Paragraphs 2 and 3 shall also apply in determining or
checking the state of dependence of a recipient or a claimant of
the long-term care benefits mentioned in Article 34 of the basic
Regulation.

5.
The competent authorities or competent institutions of
two or more Member States may agree specific provisions and
procedures to improve fully or partly the labour-market readi-
ness of claimants and recipients and their participation in any
schemes or programmes available in the Member State of stay
or residence for that purpose.

the effective amount of

6.
As an exception to the principle of free-of-charge mutual
administrative cooperation in Article 76(2) of the basic Regu-
the checks
lation,
referred to in paragraphs 1 to 5 shall be refunded to the institu-
tion which was requested to carry them out by the debtor insti-
tution which requested them.

the expenses of

Article 88

Notifications

1.
The Member States shall notify the European Commission
of the details of the bodies defined in Article 1(m), (q) and (r) of
the basic Regulation and Article 1(2)(a) and (b) of the imple-
menting Regulation, and of
the institutions designated in
accordance with the implementing Regulation.

2.
The bodies specified in paragraph 1 shall be provided with
an electronic identity in the form of an identification code and
electronic address.

3.
The Administrative Commission shall establish the struc-
ture, content and detailed arrangements, including the common
format and model, for notification of the details specified in
paragraph 1.

4.
Annex IV to the implementing Regulation gives details of
the public database containing the information specified in para-
graph 1. The database shall be established and managed by the
European Commission. The Member States shall, however, be
responsible for the input of their own national contact informa-
tion into this database. Moreover,
the Member States shall
ensure the accuracy of the input of the national contact infor-
mation required under paragraph 1.

The Member States shall be responsible for keeping the

5.
information specified in paragraph 1 up to date.

Article 89

Information

1.
The Administrative Commission shall prepare the informa-
tion needed to ensure that the parties concerned are aware of
their rights and the administrative formalities required in order
to assert them. This information shall, where possible, be disse-
minated electronically via publication on line on sites accessible
to the public. The Administrative Commission shall ensure that
the information is regularly updated and monitor the quality of
services provided to customers.

2.
The Advisory Committee referred to in Article 75 of the
basic Regulation may issue opinions and recommendations on
improving the information and its dissemination.

3.
The Member States shall ensure that the necessary infor-
mation is made available to the persons covered by the basic
Regulation in order to inform them of the changes introduced
by the basic Regulation and by the implementing Regulation to
their rights. They shall also provide
enable them to assert
user-friendly services.

4.
The competent authorities shall ensure that their institu-
tions are aware of and apply all the Community provisions,
legislative or otherwise, including the decisions of the Adminis-
trative Commission,
in the areas covered by and within the
terms of the basic Regulation and the implementing Regulation.

Article 90

Currency conversion

For the purposes of applying the basic Regulation and the
implementing Regulation,
the exchange rate between two
currencies shall be the reference rate published by the European
Central Bank. The date to be taken into account for determining
the
fixed by the Administrative
exchange
Commission.

shall be

rate

Article 91

Statistics

The competent authorities shall compile statistics on the appli-
cation of the basic Regulation and the implementing Regulation
and forward them to the secretariat of
the Administrative
Commission. Those data shall be collected and organised
according to the plan and method defined by the Administrative
Commission. The European Commission shall be responsible
for disseminating the information.

Article 92

Amendment of the Annexes

Annexes I, II, III, IV and V of the implementing Regulation and
Annexes VI, VII, VIII and IX of the basic Regulation may be
amended by Commission Regulation at
the
Administrative Commission.

the request of

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Article 93

Transitional provisions

Article 87 of the basic Regulation shall apply to the situations
covered by the implementing Regulation.

Article 94

Transitional provisions relating to pensions

1. Where the contingency arises before the date of entry into
force of the implementing Regulation in the territory of the
Member State concerned and the claim for pension has not
been awarded before that date, such claim shall give rise to a
double award, in as much as benefits must be granted, pursuant
to such contingency, for a period prior to that date:

(a) for the period prior to the date of entry into force of the
implementing Regulation in the territory of the Member
State concerned,
in accordance with Regulation (EEC)
No 1408/71, or with agreements in force between the
Member States concerned;

(b) for the period commencing on the date of entry into force
the
in accordance with the basic

the implementing Regulation in the territory of

of
Member State concerned,
Regulation.

However, if the amount calculated pursuant to the provisions
than that calculated
referred to under point
pursuant
the
to the provisions referred to under point
person concerned shall continue to be entitled to the amount
calculated pursuant to the provisions referred to under point (a).

is greater

(b),

(a)

A claim for

2.
invalidity, old age or survivors' benefits
submitted to an institution of a Member State from the date of
entry into force of the implementing Regulation in the territory
of the Member State concerned shall automatically necessitate
the reassessment of the benefits which have been awarded for
the same contingency prior to that date by the institution or
institutions of one or more Member States, in accordance with
the basic Regulation; such reassessment may not give rise to any
reduction in the amount of the benefit awarded.

Article 95

Transitional period for electronic data exchanges

1.
Each Member State may benefit from a transitional period
for exchanging data by electronic means as provided for by
Article 4(2) of the implementing Regulation.

These transitional periods shall not exceed 24 months from the
date of entry into force of the implementing Regulation.

However, if the delivery of the necessary Community infrastruc-
ture (Electronic Exchange of Social Security information —
EESSI) is significantly delayed with regard to the entry into force
of the implementing Regulation, the Administrative Commis-
sion may agree on any appropriate extension of these periods.

2.
The practical arrangements for any necessary transitional
periods referred to in paragraph 1 shall be laid down by the
Administrative Commission with a view to ensuring the neces-
sary data exchange for the application of the basic Regulation
and the implementing Regulation.

Article 96

Repeal

Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 is

1.
from … (*).

repealed with effect

However, Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 shall remain in force and
continue to have legal effect for the purposes of:

(a) Council Regulation (EC) No 859/2003 of 14 May 2003
extending the provisions of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71
and Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 to nationals of third coun-
tries who are not already covered by those provisions solely
on the grounds of their nationality (1), until such time as the
said Regulation is repealed or amended;

(b) Council Regulation (EEC) No 1661/85 of 13 June 1985
laying down the technical adaptations to the Community
rules on social security for migrant workers with regard to
Greenland (2), until such time as the said Regulation is
repealed or amended;

(c) the Agreement on the European Economic Area (3),

the
Agreement between the European Community and its
Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation,
of the other, on the free movement of persons (4) and other
agreements containing a reference to Regulation (EEC)
No 574/72, until such time as the said agreements are
amended on the basis of the implementing Regulation.

2.
In Council Directive 98/49/EC of 29 June 1998 on safe-
guarding the supplementary pension rights of employed and
self-employed persons moving within the Community (5), and
more generally in all other Community acts, the references to
Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 shall be understood as referring to
the implementing Regulation.

Article 97

Publication and entry into force

This Regulation shall be published in the Official Journal of the
European Union. It shall enter into force on … (**).

(*) The date of entry into force of this Regulation.
(1) OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 160, 20.6.1985, p. 7.
(3) OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 114, 30.4.2002, p. 6.
(5) OJ L 209, 25.7.1998, p. 46.
(**) The first day of the month which follows the period of 6 months from
the date of publication and in any case not earlier than 1 January
2010.

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This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at, …

For the European Parliament

The President

…

For the Council

The President

…

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ANNEX I

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS FOR BILATERAL AGREEMENTS REMAINING IN FORCE AND NEW
BILATERAL IMPLEMENTING AGREEMENTS

(referred to in Article 8(1) and Article 9(2) of the implementing Regulation)

BELGIUM — DENMARK

The Exchange of Letters of 8 May 2006 and 21 June 2006 on the Agreement of reimbursement with the actual amount
of the benefit provided to members of the family of an employed or self-employed person insured in Belgium, where the
family member resides in Denmark and to pensioners and/or members of their family insured in Belgium but residing in
Denmark

BELGIUM — GERMANY

The Agreement of 29 January 1969 on the collection and recovery of social security contributions

BELGIUM — IRELAND

The Exchange of Letters of 19 May and 28 July 1981 concerning Articles 36(3) and 70(3) of Regulation (EEC)
No 1408/71 (reciprocal waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind and of unemployment benefits under
Chapters 1 and 6 of Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71) and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (reci-
procal waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

BELGIUM — SPAIN

The Agreement of 25 May 1999 on the reimbursement of benefits in kind according to the provisions of Regulations
(EEC) No 1408/71 and 574/72

BELGIUM — FRANCE

(a) The Agreement of 4 July 1984 relating to medical examinations of frontier workers resident in one country and

working in another

(b) The Agreement of 14 May 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical

examinations, adopted pursuant to Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(c) The Agreement of 3 October 1977 implementing Article 92 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (recovery of social

security contributions)

(d) The Agreement of 29 June 1979 concerning the reciprocal waiving of reimbursement provided for in Article 70(3) of

Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (costs of unemployment benefit)

(e) The Administrative Arrangement of 6 March 1979 on the procedures for the implementation of the Additional
Convention of 12 October 1978 on social security between Belgium and France in respect of its provisions relating to
self-employed persons

(f) The Exchange of Letters of 21 November 1994 and 8 February 1995 concerning the procedures for the settlement of

reciprocal claims pursuant to Articles 93, 94, 95 and 96 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

BELGIUM — ITALY

(a) The Agreement of 12 January 1974 implementing Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(b) The Agreement of 31 October 1979 implementing Article 18(9) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(c) The Exchange of Letters of 10 December 1991 and 10 February 1992 concerning the reimbursement of reciprocal

claims under Article 93 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(d) The Agreement of 21 November 2003 on the terms for settling reciprocal claims under Articles 94 and 95 of

Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

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BELGIUM — LUXEMBOURG

(a) The Agreement of 28 January 1961 on the recovery of social security contributions

(b) The Agreement of 16 April 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical

examinations, as provided for in Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

BELGIUM — UNITED KINGDOM

(a) The Exchange of Letters of 4 May and 14 June 1976 regarding Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

(b) The Exchange of Letters of 18 January and 14 March 1977 regarding Article 36(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71
(arrangement for reimbursement or waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under the
terms of Chapter 1 of Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71) as amended by the Exchange of Letters of 4 May and
23 July 1982 (agreement for reimbursement of costs incurred under Article 22(1)(a) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71)

BULGARIA — CZECH REPUBLIC

Article 29(1) and (3) of the Agreement of 25 November 1998 and Article 5(4) of the Administrative Arrangement of
30 November 1999 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examination

BULGARIA — GERMANY

Articles 8 to 9 of the Administrative Agreement on implementing the Convention on social security of 17 December
1997 in the pension field

CZECH REPUBLIC — SLOVAKIA

Articles 15 and 16 of the Administrative Arrangement of 8 January 1993 concerning the specification of a seat of the
employer and the place of residence for the purposes of application of Article 20 of the Convention of 29 October 1992
on social security

DENMARK — IRELAND

The Exchange of Letters of 22 December 1980 and 11 February 1981 on the reciprocal waiving of reimbursement of the
costs of benefits in kind granted under insurance for sickness, maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and
of unemployment benefits and of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations (Articles 36(3), 63(3) of
Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72)

DENMARK — GREECE

Agreement of 8 May 1986 on the partial reciprocal waiving of reimbursement in respect of benefits in kind for sickness,
maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases and waiving of reimbursement in respect of administrative checks
and medical examinations

DENMARK — SPAIN

Agreement of 11 December 2006 of advance payment, time-limits and reimbursement with the actual amount of the
benefit provided to members of the family of an employed or self-employed person insured in Spain, where the family
member resides in Denmark and to pensioners and/or members of their family insured in Spain but residing in Denmark

DENMARK — FRANCE

The Arrangement of 29 June 1979 and the additional Arrangement of 2 June 1993 concerning the partial waiving of
reimbursement pursuant to Article 36(3) and Article 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 and the reciprocal waiving of
reimbursement pursuant to Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (partial waiving of reimbursement of the cost
of benefits in kind in respect of sickness, maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and waiving of reimbur-
sement of the cost of administrative checks and medical examinations)

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DENMARK — ITALY

The Agreement of 18 November 1998 on the reimbursement of costs of benefits in kind under insurance for sickness,
maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, costs of administrative checks and medical examinations

DENMARK — LUXEMBOURG

The Agreement of 19 June 1978 concerning the reciprocal waiving of reimbursement provided for in Article 36(3), 63(3)
and 70(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 costs of benefits in kind
for sickness, maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, costs of unemployment benefit and costs of adminis-
trative checks and medical examinations)

DENMARK — NETHERLANDS

The Exchange of Letters of 30 March and 25 April 1979 as amended by agreement of 12 December 2006 on reimburse-
ment of costs of benefits in kind for sickness, maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases

DENMARK — PORTUGAL

The Agreement of 17 April 1998 on the partial waiving of reimbursement of costs of benefits in kind under insurance
for sickness, maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases and administrative checks and medical examinations

DENMARK — FINLAND

Article 15 of the Nordic Convention on Social Security of 18 August 2003: Agreement on the reciprocal waiver of
refund pursuant to Articles 36, 63 and 70 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (cost of benefits in kind in respect of sickness
and maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and unemployment benefits) and Article 105 of Regulation
(EEC) No 574/72 (costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

DENMARK — SWEDEN

Article 15 of the Nordic Convention on Social Security of 18 August 2003: Agreement on the reciprocal waiver of
refund pursuant to Articles 36, 63 and 70 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (cost of benefits in kind in respect of sickness
and maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and unemployment benefits) and Article 105 of Regulation
(EEC) No 574/72 (costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

DENMARK — UNITED KINGDOM

The Exchange of Letters of 30 March and 19 April 1977 as modified by an Exchange of Letters of 8 November 1989 and
of 10 January 1990 on agreement of waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind and administrative checks
and medical examinations

GERMANY — LUXEMBOURG

(a) The Agreement of 14 October 1975 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and

medical examinations, adopted pursuant to Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(b) The Agreement of 14 October 1975 on the collection and recovery of social security contributions

(c) The Agreement of 25 January 1990 relating to the application of Articles 20 and 22(1)(b) and (c) of Regulation (EEC)

No 1408/71

ESTONIA — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement finalised on 29 March 2006 between the Competent Authorities of the Republic of Estonia and of the
United Kingdom under Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 establishing other methods of reimbur-
sement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under this Regulation by both countries with effect from 1 May 2004

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IRELAND — FRANCE

The Exchange of Letters of 30 July 1980 and 26 September 1980 concerning Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation
(EEC) No 1408/71 (reciprocal waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind) and Article 105(2) of Regulation
(EEC) No 574/72 (reciprocal waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

IRELAND — LUXEMBOURG

The Exchange of Letters of 26 September 1975 and 5 August 1976 concerning Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation
(EEC) No 1408/71and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits
in kind provided pursuant to Chapter 1 or 4 of Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71, and of the costs of administra-
tive checks and medical examinations referred to in Article 105 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72)

IRELAND — NETHERLANDS

The Exchange of Letters of 22 April and 27 July 1987 concerning Article 70(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (waiving
of costs of reimbursement in respect of benefits awarded in application of Article 69 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71)
and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (waiving of the reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks
and medical examinations referred to in Article 105 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72)

IRELAND — SWEDEN

The Agreement of 8 November 2000 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind of sickness, mater-
nity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and the costs of administrative and medical controls

IRELAND — UNITED KINGDOM

The Exchange of Letters of 9 July 1975 regarding Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (arrangement
for reimbursement or waiving of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under the terms of Chapter 1
or 4 of Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71) and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (waiving of reimbur-
sement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

GREECE — NETHERLANDS

The Exchange of Letters of 8 September 1992 and 30 June 1993 concerning the methods of reimbursement between
institutions

SPAIN — PORTUGAL

(a) Articles 42, 43 and 44 of the Administrative Arrangement of 22 May 1970 (export of unemployment benefits). This

entry will remain valid for two years from the date of application of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004

(b) The Agreement of 2 October 2002 laying down detailed arrangements for the management and settlement of reci-

procal claims for health care with a view to facilitating and accelerating the settlement of these claims

SPAIN — UNITED KINGDOM

The Agreement of 18 June 1999 on the reimbursement of costs for benefits in kind granted pursuant to the provisions of
Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

FRANCE — GERMANY

The Agreement of 26 May 1981 implementing Article 92 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (collection and recovery of
social security contributions)

FRANCE — SPAIN

The Agreement of 17 May 2005 establishing the specific arrangements for the management and settlement of reciprocal
claims in respect of health care benefits pursuant to Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

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FRANCE — ITALY

(a) The Exchange of Letters of 14 May and 2 August 1991 concerning the terms for settling reciprocal claims under

Article 93 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(b) The supplementary Exchange of Letters of 22 March and 15 April 1994 concerning the procedures for the settlement

of reciprocal debts under the terms of Articles 93, 94, 95 and 96 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(c) The Exchange of Letters of 2 April 1997 and 20 October 1998 modifying the Exchange of Letters mentioned under
points (a) and (b) concerning the procedures for the settlement of reciprocal debts under the terms of Articles 93, 94,
95 and 96 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(d) The Agreement of 28 June 2000 waiving reimbursement of the costs referred to in Article 105(1) of Regulation (EEC)
No 574/72 for administrative checks and medical examinations requested under Article 51 of the abovementioned
Regulation

FRANCE — LUXEMBOURG

(a) The Agreement of 2 July 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement, provided for in Article 36(3) of Council Regulation
(EEC) No 1408/71 of 14 June 1971, of the costs of sickness or maternity insurance benefits in kind provided to
members of a worker's family who do not reside in the same country as the worker

(b) The Agreement of 2 July 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement, provided for in Article 36(3) of Council Regulation
(EEC) No 1408/71 of 14 June 1971, of the costs of sickness or maternity insurance benefits in kind provided to
former frontier workers, the members of their families or their survivors

(c) The Agreement of 2 July 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical

examinations provided for in Article 105(2) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 of 21 March 1972

(d) The Exchange of Letters of 17 July and 20 September 1995 concerning the terms for settling reciprocal claims under

Articles 93, 95 and 96 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

FRANCE — NETHERLANDS

(a) The Agreement of 28 April 1997 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical

examinations pursuant to Article 105 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(b) The Agreement of 29 September 1998 laying down the special conditions for determining the amounts to be reim-

bursed for benefits in kind under the terms of Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

(c) The Agreement of 3 February 1999 laying down the special conditions for administration and settling of reciprocal

debts for sickness benefits under the terms of Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

FRANCE — PORTUGAL

The Agreement of 28 April 1999 laying down special detailed rules governing the administration and settlement of reci-
procal claims for medical treatment pursuant to Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and EEC No 574/72

FRANCE — UNITED KINGDOM

(a) The Exchange of Letters of 25 March and 28 April 1997 regarding Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

(waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

(b) The Agreement of 8 December 1998 on the specific methods of determining the amounts to be reimbursed for bene-

fits in kind pursuant to Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

ITALY — GERMANY

The Agreement of 3 April 2000 on the collection and recovery of social security contributions

ITALY — SPAIN

The Agreement on a new procedure for the improvement and simplification of reimbursements of costs for health care of
21 November 1997 concerning Article 36(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (reimbursement of sickness and maternity
benefits in kind) and Articles 93, 94, 95, 100 and 102(5) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (procedures for the refund and
sickness and maternity insurance benefits and late claims)

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ITALY — NETHERLANDS

The Agreement of 24 December 1996/27 February 1997 on Article 36(3) and Article 63(3) of Regulation (EEC)
No 1408/71

ITALY — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement signed on 15 December 2005 between the Competent Authorities of the Republic of Italy and of the
United Kingdom under Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 establishing other methods of reimbur-
sement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under this Regulation by both countries with effect from 1 January 2005

LUXEMBOURG — ITALY

Article 4(5) and (6) of the Administrative Arrangement of 19 January 1955 on the implementing provisions of the
General Convention on Social Security (sickness insurance for agricultural workers)

LUXEMBOURG — UNITED KINGDOM

The Exchange of Letters of 18 December 1975 and 20 January 1976 regarding Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC)
No 574/72 (waiving of reimbursement of the costs entailed in administrative checks and medical examinations referred to
in Article 105 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72)

HUNGARY — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement finalised on 1 November 2005 between the Competent Authorities of the Republic of Hungary and of
the United Kingdom under Articles 35(3) and 41(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 883/2004 establishing other methods of
reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under that Regulation by both countries with effect from 1 May
2004

MALTA — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement finalised on 17 January 2007 between the Competent Authorities of Malta and of the United Kingdom
under Articles 35(3) and 41(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 883/2004 establishing other methods of reimbursement of the
costs of benefits in kind provided under that Regulation by both countries with effect from 1 May 2004

NETHERLANDS — BELGIUM

(a) The Agreement of 21 March 1968 on the collection and recovery of social security contributions, together with the

Administrative Arrangement of 25 November 1970 implementing that Agreement

(b) The Agreement of 13 March 2006 on health care insurance

(c) The Agreement of 12 August 1982 on sickness, maternity and invalidity insurance

NETHERLANDS — GERMANY

(a) Article 9 of Administrative Arrangements of 18 April 2001 on the Convention of 18 April 2001 (payment of

pensions)

(b) The Agreement of 21 January 1969 on the recovery of social insurance contributions

NETHERLANDS — SPAIN

The Agreement of 21 February 2000 between the Netherlands and Spain facilitating the settlement of reciprocal claims
relating to sickness and maternity insurance benefits when implementing the provisions of Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71
and (EEC) No 574/72

NETHERLANDS — LUXEMBOURG

The Agreement of 1 November 1976 on the waiving of reimbursement of the costs of administrative checks and medical
examinations adopted pursuant to Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72

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NETHERLANDS — PORTUGAL

The Agreement of 11 December 1987 concerning the reimbursement of benefits in kind in the case of sickness and
maternity

NETHERLANDS — UNITED KINGDOM

(a) The second sentence of Article 3 of the Administrative Arrangement of 12 June 1956 on the implementation of the

Convention of 11 August 1954

(b) The Exchange of Letters of 25 April and 26 May 1986 concerning Article 36(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71

(reimbursement or waiver of reimbursement of expenditure for benefits in kind), as amended

AUSTRIA — GERMANY

Section II, Number 1, and section III of the Agreement of 2 August 1979 on the implementation of the Convention on
unemployment insurance of 19 July 1978 shall continue to apply to persons who have exercised an activity as a frontier
worker on or before 1 January 2005 who become unemployed before 1 January 2011.

POLAND — GERMANY

The Agreement of 11 January 1977 on the implementation of the Convention of 9 October 1975 on old-age pensions
and benefits for accidents at work

PORTUGAL — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement of 8 June 2004 establishing other methods of reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind provided
by both countries with effect from 1 January 2003

FINLAND — SWEDEN

Article 15 of the Nordic Convention on Social Security of 18 August 2003: Agreement on the reciprocal waiver of
refund pursuant to Articles 36, 63 and 70 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (cost of benefits in kind in respect of sickness
and maternity, accidents at work and occupational diseases, and unemployment benefits) and Article 105 of Regulation
(EEC) No 574/72 (costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

FINLAND — UNITED KINGDOM

The Exchange of Letters 1 and 20 June 1995 concerning Articles 36(3) and 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (reim-
bursement or waiving of reimbursement of the cost of benefits in kind) and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) 574/72
(waiving of reimbursement of the cost of administrative checks and medical examinations)

SWEDEN — SPAIN

The Agreement of 1 December 2004 on the reimbursement of the costs of benefits in kind provided under Regulations
(EEC) No 1408/71 and (EEC) No 574/72

SWEDEN — LUXEMBOURG

The Arrangement of 27 November 1996 on the reimbursement of expenditure in the field of social security

SWEDEN — UNITED KINGDOM

The Arrangement of 15 April 1997 concerning Article 36(3) and Article 63(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (reimbur-
sement or waiving of reimbursement of the cost of benefits in kind) and Article 105(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72
(waiving of refunds of the costs of administrative checks and medical examinations)

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ANNEX II

SPECIAL SCHEMES FOR CIVIL SERVANTS

(referred to in Articles 31 and 41 of the implementing Regulation)

A. Special schemes for civil servants which are not covered by Title III, Chapter 1 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004

concerning benefits in kind

Germany

Special sickness scheme for civil servants

B. Special schemes for civil servants which are not covered by Title III, Chapter 1 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, with

the exception of Article 19, paragraph 1 of Article 27 and Article 35, concerning benefits in kind

Spain

Special scheme of social security for civil servants

Special scheme of social security for the armed forces

Special scheme of social security for the court officials and administrative staff

C. Special schemes for civil servants which are not covered by Title III, Chapter 2 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004

concerning benefits in kind

Germany

Special accident scheme for civil servants

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ANNEX III

MEMBER STATES CLAIMING THE REIMBURSEMENT OF THE COST OF BENEFITS IN KIND ON THE BASIS
OF FIXED AMOUNTS

(referred to in Article 63(1) of the implementing Regulation)

IRELAND

SPAIN

ITALY

MALTA

THE NETHERLANDS

PORTUGAL

FINLAND

SWEDEN

UNITED KINGDOM

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DETAILS OF THE DATABASE REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 88(4) OF THE IMPLEMENTING REGULATION

ANNEX IV

1. Content of the database

An electronic directory (URL) of the bodies concerned shall indicate:

(a) the names of the bodies in the official language(s) of the Member State as well as in English

(b) the identification code and the EESSI electronic addressing

(c) their function in respect of the definitions in Article 1(m), (q) and (r) of the basic Regulation and Article 1(a)

and (b) of the implementing Regulation

(d) their competence as regards the different risks, types of benefits, schemes and geographical coverage

(e) which part of the basic Regulation the bodies are applying

(f) the following contact details: postal address, telephone, telefax, e-mail address and the relevant URL address

(g) any other information necessary for the application of the basic Regulation or the implementing Regulation.

2. Administration of the database

(a) The electronic directory is hosted in EESSI at the level of the European Commission.

(b) Member States are responsible for collecting and checking the necessary information of bodies and for the timely
submission to the European Commission of any entry or change of the entries falling under their responsibility.

3. Access

Information used for operational and administrative purposes is not accessible to the public.

4. Security

All modifications to the database (insert, update, delete) shall be logged. Prior to accessing the Directory for the
purposes of modifying entries, users shall be identified and authenticated. Prior to any attempt for a modification of an
entry, the user's authorisation to perform this action will be checked. Any unauthorised action shall be rejected and
logged.

5. Language Regime

The general language regime of the database is English. The name of bodies and their contact details should also be
inserted in the official language(s) of the Member State.

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ANNEX V

MEMBER STATES DETERMINING, ON A RECIPROCAL BASIS, THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF
REIMBURSEMENT REFERRED TO IN THE THIRD SENTENCE OF ARTICLE 65(6) OF THE BASIC
REGULATION, ON THE BASIS OF THE AVERAGE AMOUNT OF UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS
PROVIDED UNDER THEIR LEGISLATIONS IN THE PRECEDING CALENDAR YEAR (referred to in Article 70
of the implementing Regulation)

BELGIUM

CZECH REPUBLIC

GERMANY

AUSTRIA

SLOVAKIA

FINLAND

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STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL'S REASONS

I. INTRODUCTION

On 29 April 2004, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 (1)
on the coordination of social security systems (hereinafter referred to as the ‘basic Regulation’) which is
intended to replace Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (2).

Article 89 of the basic Regulation requires that a Regulation laying down the procedures for its imple-
mentation be adopted. To this effect, on 31 January 2006, the Commission submitted a proposal for a
Regulation to the Council. The proposal is based on Articles 42 and 308 of the Treaty.

Acting in accordance with Article 251 of the Treaty, the European Parliament delivered its opinion in
first reading on 9 July 2008 (3). The Economic and Social Committee delivered its opinion on
26 October 2006 (4).

The Commission presented its amended proposal on 15 October 2008, in which it accepted 159 out of
the 162 amendments adopted by the European Parliament.

In accordance with Article 251(2) of the EC Treaty, the Council adopted its Common Position by unani-
mity on 17 December 2008.

II. OBJECTIVE

The objective of the proposal is to complete the process of modernising the rules currently applicable in
the field of the coordination of social security systems by establishing the procedures for implementing
Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, thus replacing the current implementing Regulation (Regulation (EEC)
No 574/72). It aims, in particular, to define for all the parties involved (insured persons, their employers
as the case may be, social security institutions and the competent authorities of the Member States) the
procedures for implementing the rules set out in the basic Regulation in practice. The proposal also
seeks to improve the current procedures by simplifying them and clarifying the rights and obligations of
the various stakeholders. It further aims to allow for enhanced cooperation between institutions, in par-
ticular through electronic data exchange between the Member States.

III. ANALYSIS OF THE COMMON POSITION

1. General observations

a) Commission's amended proposal

The European Parliament adopted 162 amendments to the Commission's proposal. 160 of these
amendments were incorporated into the Commission's amended proposal wholly, in part or after
being reworded (amendments Nos 1-25, 27-54 and 56-162). 2 other amendments were, however,
not acceptable to the Commission (amendments Nos 26 and 55).

b) Council's Common Position

The Council could accept 146 of the 162 amendments, as either wholly or partially incorporated
into the Commission's amended proposal, namely amendments Nos 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12-14, 17-25,
27-34, 36-47, 49-54, 56-71, 74-78, 80-88, 90-107, 109-132, 134-146, 147 (first part), 148 (first
part), 149, and 152-162.

(1) OJ L 166, 30.4.2004, corrected version in OJ L 200, 7.6.2004, p. 1.
(2) Council 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 149 of 5.7.1971, p. 2. Regulation last
amended by Regulation (EC) No 1992/2006 (OJ L 392 of 30.12.2006, p. 1).

(3) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(4) OJ C 324, 30.12.2006, p. 59.

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The Council also accepted, subject to redrafting, the principles underlying amendments:

— No 3 (new recital 8a): while fully in agreement with the substance of the amendment, the
Council considered that the last sentence should be redrafted in a more general way, along the
lines of the last sentence in recital No 10 of the Common Position;

— Nos 6 and 9 which concern the definitions of ‘access point’ and ‘standardised electronic message’
in Article 1(2)(a) and (d): the Council considered that these definitions should be reviewed on the
basis of the outcome of the work of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for
Migrant Workers in the context of the EESSI (Electronic Exchange of Social Security Information)
project (Article 1(2)(a)) in the Common Position);

— No 10 (Article 2 new paragraph (-1)): the Council was of the view that this amendment should
be slightly redrafted and that a reference to the elderly should be introduced alongside the refer-
ence to the disabled (Article 2(1) of the Common Position);

— No 11 (Article 2(1)): the Council considered it necessary to use the terms ‘without delay’ instead
of ‘the deadlines prescribed by the social security legislation of the Member State in question’ as
these deadlines may, in certain cases, be quite long or, on the contrary, may not exist under
national legislation. This is a horizontal issue which is common to all the amendments regarding
deadlines (Article 2(2) in the Common Position);

— No 15 (Article 3(2)): the Council could only accept the first paragraph of this amendment as it
felt that the detailed provisions suggested by Parliament in the other parts of this amendment
might interfere with the internal organisation of the Member States in this area, which is in any
case already covered by Directive 95/46/EC (Article 3(2) in the Common Position);

— No 16 (Article 3(3)): as in the case of amendment No 11, the Council was again in favour of
using the terms ‘without delay’ rather than referring to national deadlines, for the same reasons
as indicated above (Article 3(3) of the Common Position). The same remark also applies in
respect of Articles 27(5), 49(1), 51(2) of
(Articles 27(5), 49(1)
and 51(2) of the Common Position);

the Commission proposal

— No 26 (Article 6(4)): while in agreement with the substance of the Article, the Council was of the
view that the text should be clarified further, as set out in Article 6(5) of the Common Position;

— No 48 (Article 17(3)): while in agreement with the substance of the amendment, the Council was
of the view that the text should be redrafted and should make reference to the Member State
concerned, as in Article 16(3) of the Common Position;

— No 72 (Article 26(2) last paragraph): the Council considered that the fifteen calendar days' dead-
line for replying to a request for authorisation would be impossible to meet. It felt that this dead-
line should set by national legislation (Article 26(2) in the Common Position);

— No 73 (Article 26(3)): the Council considered that the only aim of this provision was to lay down
the procedure for determining the institution granting the authorisation when a person does not
reside in the competent Member State. It does not cover other situations where the authorisation
should not be refused, as those cases are clearly covered in the basic Regulation (Article 26(3) of
the Common Position);

— No 97 and 98 (Article 43(1) and 43(3) new subparagraph): while being of the view that these
amendments were acceptable, the Council nevertheless considered that the title of the Article
should be changed to read ‘Additional provisions for the calculation of benefits’.

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However, the Council did not deem it advisable to take up amendments:

— No 1 (third recital, relating to the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of
personal data and its exchange): the Council considered that this amendment, which is closely
related to amendment No 15 (see below), was unnecessary as this issue would best be addressed
in Article 3(2). The Council was therefore of the view that the text of the Commission's original
proposal should be maintained in this recital (recital No 3 in the Common Position);

— No 35 (Article 12(new paragraph 6a): The Council decided to delete this provision on the basis
of a report by the Administrative Commission which considered that it was not technically neces-
sary in view of the absence of any possible negative impact on persons' rights;

— No 55 (Article 19(2)): this amendment provides that the certificate determining the legislation
applicable will indicate the wages paid by the employer. The Council shared the Commission's
view that this amendment goes further than the information needed for social security purposes
and therefore goes beyond the objectives of the Regulation (Article 19(2)
in the Common
Position);

— No 79 (Article 26(6)): the Council was of the view that the costs of travel and stay that are inse-
parable from the treatment of the insured person should be assumed by the competent institution
provided that the national legislation of this institution so provides and that an authorisation has
the amendment
been granted. Furthermore, the Council could not accept the last part of
concerning the reimbursement of travel and stay costs for a person accompanying a person with
disabilities. It considered that this would go beyond the scope of the coordination of social
security systems, as this would result in an obligation for the Member State to provide a new
benefit in the field of sickness insurance (Article 26(6) in the Common Position).

It is to be noted, however, that the specific needs of persons with disabilities have been taken into
account as the Council did accept amendment No 10 (Article 2 new paragraph (-1), see above)
subject to some redrafting;

— Nos 164, 165, 166 and 167 (Article 66 — deadlines for the introduction and settlement of
claims): the Council considered it necessary to extend the deadlines proposed by the Commission
for the introduction and settlement of claims as well as for the settlement of disputes (12 months
for the introduction of claims, 18 months for the settlement of claims and 36 months for the
settlement of disputes). The Council could not therefore accept amendments Nos 164 to 167
which aim to maintain the deadlines proposed by the Commission, as most Member States were
of the opinion that any such deadlines could only be introduced in the light of experience and of
the technological progress which is likely to make the exchanges between institutions faster. In
the draft Regulation already provides for
this respect,
down-payments and interest on late payments as incentives to speed up procedures.

it should be borne in mind that

However, bearing in mind the importance of this issue for the European Parliament, the Council
agreed to introduce a specific review clause in Article 86(1) into the Common Position whereby
the time limits set out in Article 67(2), (5) and (6) of the implementing regulation will be
reviewed no later than four years after the date of entry into force of the implementing Regu-
lation on the basis of a report from the Administrative Commission. The aim of this review will
be to reduce the time limits in a significant way.

The Commission has accepted the Common Position agreed by the Council.

2. Specific comments

With regard to Article 2(4): the Council felt that the text of the Commission's proposal, which
Parliament wishes to maintain, should be clarified further and that reference should be made to the
liaison body only, as this paragraph only concerns the bodies involved in data exchange and not the
way in which such data are exchanged (Article 2(4) of the Common Position). In the same spirit,
with regard to amendment 108, the Council considered that this amendment would be acceptable if
the terms ‘in its capacity as contact institution’ were introduced in order to allow Member States to
organise their exchange of information systems (Article 47(1) of the Common Position). There are
also cases where the exchange of information between institutions should not be automatic in order
to avoid unnecessary bureaucracy. In this respect, amendment 89 would also be acceptable if the
terms ‘if necessary’ were added (Article 27(9) in the Common Position).

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The Council was of the view that the term ‘beneficiaries’ in the title of Article 3 should be replaced
with ‘persons concerned’
in order to indicate more clearly that this provision applies to persons
covered by the basic Regulation and not to beneficiaries in general. Moreover, the Council felt that
paragraphs 4-8 of this Article should be deleted. It was felt that paragraphs 4-7 of the Commission's
proposal concerning an acknowledgement of receipt in the case of the cross-border sending of docu-
ments, and its legal effects and remedies, interfered with national competence. As for paragraph 8
concerning decisions sent electronically to the person concerned, it was felt that this issue was more
related to Article 4. This provision has therefore been included in Article 4(3) in the Common
Position.

With respect to Article 4(2), the Council considered that the text of the Commission's original
proposal, which Parliament wishes to maintain, is not compatible with the organisation that Member
States will put in place. In the Council's view, this provision should be reworded to say that the trans-
mission of data between the institutions or the liaison bodies shall be carried out by electronic
means either directly or indirectly through the access points, as the access points serve the functions
of electronic contact points (Article 4(2) in the Common Position).

The Council was of the opinion that the term ‘supporting evidence’ should be used in the title of
Article 5, instead of the term ‘supporting documents’, as well as in the text of the Article. This relates
to supporting evidence which is the basis for issuing a document and which is not binding for the
institutions in another Member State unless it forms part of the set of data included in a document.
In addition, the Council considered that the reference in the Article to the decisions of the taxation
authorities should be deleted, as there is either no Community competence or this issue is dealt with
under other Community instruments (Article 5 in the Common Position).

With respect to Article 5(3), while in agreement with the substance of the Commission's proposal
which Parliament maintained, the Council nevertheless considered that the text should be reworded
to provide that the institutions have to try to solve any dispute for at least one month before being
entitled to refer the matter to the Administrative Commission. This clarification appeared necessary
in order to encourage Member States to agree bilaterally, rather than automatically bringing disputes
before the Administrative Commission. It is also important that such requests be made via the
competent authorities and not via each individual institution (Article 5(4) in the Common Position).

The Council was of the view that it should be specified in Article 6(2) that the benefits are in cash or
in kind. The title of Article 6 should be amended accordingly so that the term ‘granting’ should be
used instead of ‘payment’(Article 6 in the Common Position).

The Council was of the opinion that the title of Article 7 should be reworded to specify that this
Article relates to the provisional calculation of benefits and contributions. In the second paragraph of
the Article, the term ‘or documents’ should be added to allow for the necessary information for the
final calculation of the contributions or benefits also being included in documents (Article 7 in the
Common Position).

With regard to Article 8(1), the Council could accept maintaining the Commission proposal subject
to correcting the reference to Article 8, which should be Article 8(1) (Article 8(1) in the Common
Position).

In Article 9, reference should be made to ‘authorities and institutions’ as this Article does not only
deal with institutions (Article 9 in the Common Position).

In Article 10, the Council considered that, since Articles 53 to 55 of the basic Regulation contain
special provisions on the overlapping of benefits with other benefits or income which should not be
touched by this provision on the overlapping of benefits, the terms ‘notwithstanding other provisions
in the basic Regulation’ should be added (Article 10 in the Common Position).

In Article 11, the Council was of the view that points (c), (d) and (e) should be deleted on account of
the need to redraft paragraph 1 (Article 11 in the Common Position).

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In Article 12(5), the Council was of the view that the term ‘the insured person’ should be replaced by
‘the person concerned’ (to ensure consistency with Article 12(1)), as Article 6 of the basic Regulation
is not limited to insured persons. This term is, moreover, not used in all chapters of the basic Regu-
lation (for instance in the chapter concerning pensions where the term used is ‘persons’) (Article 12(5)
in the Common Position).

Article 13 of the proposal (Article 13 in the Common Position) concerns the conversion of periods
expressed in different units for the purposes of aggregation. The Commission proposal was based on
the assumption that only conversions for periods which are based on a 5-day week are necessary.
The discussion in Council showed that this was not sufficient as Member States still calculate (at least
for some schemes) on the basis of a 6 or 7-day week (e.g. in the case of self-employed persons). In
this situation, there was the option of either taking over the existing scheme of Article 15(3) of
Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 or of constructing a new provision. Bearing in mind that the
existing conversion provision is not clear, it was decided to lay down a new provision which would
deal with all the problems encountered under the existing scheme.

The objective was to set up a new system for the conversion of periods which would systematically
apply so as to ensure that the conversion of periods would never entail any loss of insurance periods.

As regards Article 14(2) of the proposal, which concerns the centre of interest which determines the
competence of the relevant Member State in case of self-employment under Article 13(2)(b) of the
basic Regulation, the Council considered it necessary to add the number of services rendered (as
already set out in Article 12a(5)(d) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72) and to delete the
mention of the Member State where the person concerned is liable to pay taxes, as it considers that
taxation issues go beyond the scope of the coordination of social security systems (Article 14(8) in
the Common Position).

In Article 14(10), the Council was of the opinion that the terms ‘third country’ should be used
instead of the terms ‘territory outside the Union’ to also cover situations in relation to the European
Economic Space and Switzerland (Article 14(11) in the Common Position).

Article 17 concerns persons normally exercising activities in more than one Member State. According
to Article 17(1) in the Commission proposal, all Member States should be informed and the applic-
able legislation should be determined by common accord. The Council considers that faster proce-
dures are necessary and that the decision should be taken by the institution of the Member State of
residence. In addition, paragraph 1 in the Commission proposal would also duplicate the second
paragraph, as set out in Amendment 47. This amendment would, for its part, be acceptable to the
Council if Article 16(1) in the Common Position was to be accepted by Parliament. Amendment 48
is also acceptable, subject to some redrafting (Article 16(3) in the Common Position).

As regards Article 20(2) concerning the provision of information on the applicable legislation by the
competent institution, the Council chose to use the same concept as under Article 15 to make it
clear that there is no automatic obligation to provide the information in all cases to the previously
competent institution, but that the information has only to be made available (Article 20(2) in the
Common Position).

In Article 22, the Council considered that the second paragraph should be deleted and replaced with
a new general recital (recital No 16 in the Common Position). Similarly, the Council felt that the
third paragraph was unnecessary as Article 9 already provides for the possibility of agreeing on other
procedures (Article 22 in the Common Position).

No reference should, in the Council's view, be made to Article 27 in Article 23 (Article 23 in the
Common Position).

In Article 24(1), the Council was of the view that it should be made clear that the document issued
by the competent institution should be issued upon request of the insured person or the institution
of the place of residence, and that it may also be cancelled by the competent institution if the condi-
tions are no longer satisfied (Article 24(1) in the Common Position).

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The Council considered that a new paragraph should be added in Article 25 to clarify the provision
proposed by the Commission under paragraph 6 subparagraph 3 (Article 25(7) in the Common
Position).

The Council was of the view that several changes should be made to the text of the Commission's
proposal with regard to Article 27 (Article 27 in the Common Position):

— the text in Article 27(5) should be reworded to make it clear that the institution of the place of
residence or stay should carry out any necessary administrative checks or medical examinations
at the request of the competent institution only. The terms ‘without delay’ should be used;

— in paragraph 8, the Council considered that the text of the Commission's proposal should be clar-
ified, in particular as regards the medical findings of the examining doctor or institution and by
specifying that the certificate of incapacity for work should have the same legal value as a certifi-
cate drawn up in the competent Member State;

— in paragraph 9, the Council felt that, in the event of the cash benefits being refused, the institu-
tion of the place of residence should not necessarily be notified. The terms ‘where necessary’
should therefore be added.

In Article 28 of the Commission proposal, the Council understands that Parliament's intention, with
regard to amendment 91 which is fully acceptable to the Council, is to limit this Article to the first
paragraph only, as in Article 29 of the Common Position.

Article 31(1) and (3) of the Common Position concern specific provisions on exemptions from insur-
ance which are necessary for some Member States and aim to protect the balance between the
Member States.

The provisions agreed by the Council
in Articles 33 to 42 of the Common Position (Title III,
Chapter II, Benefits in respect of accidents at work and occupational diseases and death grants) are
largely drawn from the relevant provisions in Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 (in particular
Articles 34 and 40), as the Council considered it important to maintain these provisions to protect
the worker. Article 33 of the Commission proposal (which reduces to a certain extent the conditions
for the granting of the authorisation in the cases of accidents at work or occupational diseases) has
been deleted and its contents incorporated into Article 36 of the basic Regulation. Articles 35, 36,
37, 38, 39 and 42 of the Commission proposal have been clarified in the Common Position
(Articles 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 and 42 in the Common Position).

In Article 43, the Council was of the opinion that the title should be clarified to indicate that this
Article provides for additional provisions for the calculation of benefits (Article 43 in the Common
Position). The same should apply to Article 47 where the term ‘concerned’ should be added in the
title (Article 47 in the Common Position).

In Article 45(3) of the Commission proposal, the reference to Article 47(1)(b) of the basic Regulation
should be corrected to read Article 47(1)(a) (Article 45(3) in the Common Position) and Article 45(6)
should be reworded to make it clear that, when the claimant intentionally neglects to provide infor-
mation about his/her employment or residence in a Member State and he/she later submits a claim
for a pension in that Member State, the claim should be considered to be a new claim (Article 45(6)
in the Common Position).

In Article 49(1), the Council considered that the text should be reworded to indicate clearly which
institution should in each case make the decision. In addition, the terms ‘without delay’ should be
used instead of the term ‘immediately’ in the Commission proposal (Article 49(1) in the Common
Position).

In Article 50(2), the Council was of the view that the provision on provisional payment of benefit or
advance payment of benefit should be clarified. A payment is considered provisional if the process of
investigating the claim is under way and its outcome could affect the amount of the benefit to be
awarded. An advance payment is paid by the institution of the Member State under whose legislation
the person concerned will have a right to a pro-rata pension (Article 50(2) in the Common Position).

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While in agreement with the substance in Article 51(2) of the Commission proposal, the Council felt
that some amendments should be made and, in particular, that the term ‘immediately’ should be
replaced by ‘without delay’(Article 51(2) in the Common Position). The same applies to Article 54(1)
(Article 54(2) in the Common Position).

In Article 55 of the Commission proposal, the Council considered that the wording in the second
paragraph should be clarified. In the fifth paragraph, the Council was of the view that the terms
‘where necessary’ should be added at the beginning of the second sentence. In the sixth paragraph,
the Council was of the view that the text should be made more flexible by providing for the possibi-
lity of agreements between two or more Member States laying down other measures to facilitate
job-seeking. In addition, it should be added that, if the competent authorities, or institutions, of two
or more Member States need other specific procedures and/or time-limits, they may agree to do so
among themselves (Article 55 in the Common Position).

While the substance of Article 56(1) of the proposal is maintained, the Council considered that some
amendments were necessary to provide that the competent institution of the place of residence,
which will grant the benefits, has the leading role. Thus, when the unemployed person decides to
make himself also available to the employment services of the Member State where he pursued his
last professional activity by registering there as a person seeking work, he should inform the compe-
tent institution of the Member State of residence (Article 56(1) in the Common Position).

The Council deemed it necessary to introduce a new Article 57 in the Common Position laying
down 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.

With regard to Article 59(5) of the Commission's proposal, the Council felt that this provision
should be made more flexible by replacing the term ‘shall’ with ‘may’ (Article 60(5) in the Common
Position).

In the title of Title IV, Chapter I, reference should be made to Article 35 as a whole.

In Article 61(1) and (3) as well as in Article 62(3), the Council was of the view that the text should
be clarified (Articles 62(1) and (2) in the Common Position and 63(2) in the Common Position).

In Article 64(2) of the Commission's proposal, the Council considered it necessary to specify that the
annual average costs should be determined in accordance with the previous paragraph (Article 65(2)
in the Common Position).

As regards Title IV, Chapter III, while taking over the main principles of the Commission proposal,
the Council introduced changes (as laid down in Articles 71 to 86 of the Common Position) to take
into account, on the one hand, the existing provisions (in particular Article 111 of Regulation (EC)
No 574/72) and, on the other hand, the specificities in the social security field which make it neces-
sary to deviate from the text proposed by the Commission, which is based on the text of a Directive
concerning taxation.

Finally, with regard to Title V of the Commission proposal (‘Miscellaneous, transitional and final
provisions’), the Council's aim was to facilitate the changeover from the existing Community legisla-
tion to the new one while ensuring legal certainty (for instance as regards bilateral agreements
concluded in the framework of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 or, in the case of pension benefits
having been granted under the existing Regulation, the changeover from this legislation to the new
one), taking into account constraints with regard to logistics as far as electronic exchanges are
concerned, and protecting persons' rights.

The main changes introduced into the Common Position with regard to the Commission's proposal
are the following:

— With regard to Article 85 of the Commission proposal, the Council considered it useful to add
further clarifications in paragraphs 1 and 3 concerning the quality of the information provided
(Article 89 (1) and (3) in the Common Position);

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— Concerning Article 88 of the Commission proposal, the Council considered it necessary to add a
new paragraph 3 to Article 9 of the basic Regulation. The aim is to ensure legal certainty with
regard to the agreements concluded by the Member States in the framework of Council Regula-
tions (EEC) Nos 1408/71 and 574/72;

— In addition, a new Article 87(4) has been introduced into the Common Position concerning the
state of dependence with a view to clarifying the conditions for the determination of the degree
of dependence;

— In relation to Article 89 of the Commission's proposal, the Council felt that Article 87(8) of the

basic Regulation should be amended (doc. 14518/08 ADD 1 REV 1);

— Article 88(2) to (5) of the Common Position contains some specifications with respect to

Annex IV;

— With regard to Article 91 of the Commission's proposal, the Council reached unanimous agree-
ment on a provision (Article 98 of the Common Position) stating that the Regulation should
enter into force on the first day of the month which follows the period of six months from the
date of publication of the Regulation and, in any case, not earlier than 1 January 2010 (Article 97
in the Common Position);

— Furthermore, the Council introduced a new Article 94 in the Common Position in relation to
transitional provisions relating to pensions, following the model of Article 118 of Council Regu-
lation (EEC) No 574/72, as these provisions are of particular relevance for the new Member
States;

— The Council considered it necessary to add a new Article 95 in the Common Position in relation
to the transitional period for electronic data exchanges in order to specify that the transitional
periods for exchanging data by electronic means should not exceed 24 months from the date of
application of the Regulation.

Furthermore, the Common Position contains five Annexes relating to bilateral agreements (Annex I),
special schemes for civil servants (Annex II), a list of Member States claiming the reimbursement of
the cost of benefits in kind on the basis of fixed amounts (Annex III), details on the database referred
to in Article 89(4) of the Regulation (Annex IV) and the list of the Member States determining, on a
reciprocal basis, the maximum amount of reimbursement referred to in the third sentence of
Article 65(6) of the basic Regulation (Annex V).

IV. CONCLUSION

The Council welcomes the spirit of cooperation which prevailed with the European Parliament during
the first reading of this major piece of draft legislation and which allowed the two institutions already to
reduce to a very large extent the scope of potential disagreement.

It considers that its Common Position goes largely in the direction of the concerns voiced by Parliament
that the reform of the coordination of social security systems should ensure that the new rules will
improve and simplify procedures for both employers (in particular SMEs), and insured persons (both
employees and self-employed workers), as well as for EU citizens in general, on the one hand, and social
security institutions on the other.

It looks forward to pursuing this constructive discussion with the European Parliament, with a view to
reaching final agreement as soon as possible, in view of the overriding interest of the early entry into
application of the new rules regarding the modernisation and simplification of the coordination of
social security systems.