Benefits included in the Regulations

1- General information:

Applicable to the following Social Security benefits:

Sickness and maternity benefits (medical assistance, temporary disability and maternity).
Disability benefits, including those intended to maintain or improve earning capacity
Old Age benefits
Survivors' benefits
Benefits for work-related injury and occupational disease:
Death subsidies
Unemployment benefits
Family benefits

Regarding these benefits, remember that:

To acquire the right to the contributory and non-contributory benefits set out in the Regulation, you can add the insurance, employment or residence periods accrued in any other European Union member state, European Economic Area member state, or Switzerland.

Contributory pensions, income for work-related injury and occupational disease and death subsidies can be claimed by the interested party whether or not they live in the European Union, European Economic Area or Switzerland.

The non-contributory benefits to which the Regulation applies may be received by the beneficiary only in the territory of the Member State of the European Union, the State party to the European Economic Area or Switzerland in which he/she resides and in accordance with the legislation in question.

Each country will pay its own benefits directly to the beneficiary.

2- Detailed information about benefits:

Important: When this information uses the word "country", this is understood to mean any European Union Member State, European Economic Area Member State, or Switzerland.

Sickness and maternity benefits (medical Assistance, Temporary Disability and Maternity)

For the recognition of the benefits deriving from these contingencies, the Authorised Institution of the country in question will add, if necessary, the insurance, employment or residence periods covered by the legislation of any other country.

Medical assistance is recognised, according to its national legislation, by the country where the worker is insured, or in the case of a pensioner, by the country responsible for the pension, and provided in the country where the beneficiary resides or happens to be, as established in the legislation applied by that country.

Normally, medical assistance is provided by the country recognising it. However, the following persons, who are entitled to Medical Assistance benefits in one country (e.g. Spain), may receive the benefit when travelling to other countries (for stay or residence, as the case may be):

Workers and family members moving to another country temporarily (e.g. on holiday).
Displaced workers who have moved to work in another country (stationed abroad) and their family members.
Sick workers who have been authorised to move to another country.
Pensioners, students (when they move to another country for official studies), as well as their family members, during their temporary stay in another country.
Pensioners and their family members who transfer their residence to the territory of another country.

Documentation needed:

Entitlement to medical assistance benefits in a country other than the competent country is accredited by means of the document established for this purpose, (European Health Card or corresponding form) issued by the authorised institution. In the case of Spain: National Social Security Institute(INSS) -Provincial Directorates and the Support and Information Centres of the Social Security-, and the Social Marine Institute(ISM)

Disability benefits

The way in which entitlement to a disability pension is determined depends on the legislation under which the person concerned was insured.

Disability legislation in different countries can be either Type A or Type B.

Countries with Type A legislation:

The amount of disability pension is not related to the length of insurance periods (Belgium; Spain - except special schemes for civil servants; Estonia; France - except special scheme for mines; Greece - only agrarian scheme; Ireland; Latvia; the Netherlands; and the United Kingdom).

Countries with Type B legislation:

The amount of the disability pension is related to the length of the insurance periods (Austria; Bulgaria; Czech Republic; Cyprus; Denmark; Finland; France - only special scheme for mines; Germany; Greece - except agrarian scheme; Hungary; Iceland; Italy; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Malta; Norway; Poland; Portugal; Romania; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain - only special scheme for civil servants; Sweden; Switzerland; and Spain - only special scheme for mines).

Settlement of benefits:

When a worker has been subject only to type A disability legislation, the settlement of benefits is the responsibility of only one country, the country whose legislation was applicable at the time the risk materialised. If necessary, the authorised institution of that country shall aggregate the residence and/or insurance periods, completed under the legislation of any other country (always type A).

Where a worker has been subject to both type A and type B, or only type B, disability legislation, the settlement of benefits is carried out in the same way as for old age pensions. Thus, the authorised institution of the country in which the worker was insured when the risk materialised calculates the national pension in accordance with its own legislation, taking into account only the insurance periods credited in that country.

It also calculates the amount of the theoretical pension to which the person concerned may be entitled by totalling the residence and/or insurance periods completed under other legislation, as if all those residence/insurance periods had been completed under the legislation applied by that institution. The authorised institution then calculates the amount of the pro-rata pension on the basis of the insurance periods completed in accordance with the legislation it applies.

The authorised institution recognises the higher of the pensions to which the person concerned is entitled (national and/or pro rata).

These actions are carried out by all institutions in which the interested party accredits insurance periods.

In order to determine the degree of disability, the institutions in the different countries must take into account the documents and medical reports submitted to them by other authorised institutions. However, each institution is free to arrange for the applicant to be examined by a doctor of its choice in the applicant's country of residence.

Old age and survivors' benefits (pensions)

Where the legislation of a country makes the acquisition, retention or recovery of the right to benefits conditional upon the completion of insurance periods, the authorised institution of that country shall, to the extent necessary, take into account any periods of insurance completed in another country as if they had been completed under its own legislation, with specific rules where such periods overlap (aggregation).

When a person credits insurance periods in different countries, each authorised institution settles the benefits as follows:

It calculates the national pension taking into account only its domestic legislation (fulfilment of residence or insurance periods under it and all other requirements laid down in that legislation).
It then calculates the theoretical pension after totalling the residence or insurance periods completed in other countries. It shall then determine the actual amount of the benefit - pro rata pension - pro rata the theoretical amount indicated above by the length of the residence or insurance periods completed in accordance with the applicable legislation, in relation to the total length of the residence or insurance periods completed.
It then compares the amount of the national pension and the amount of the pro-rata pension and recognises the higher amount.

The following shall be taken into account in the recognition and calculation of the theoretical pension:

Fulfilment of the discharge requirement: The Spanish institution shall consider the worker to be insured if they are insured under the legislation of another country or, failing that, receive a benefit (pension) under the legislation of the aforementioned States for the same event.

Compliance with the specific exclusion period: If, for the award of a benefit, a minimum insurance period is required to be completed immediately prior to the causal event giving rise to the benefit, this requirement shall also be deemed to be satisfied if the person concerned proves this in the period immediately prior to the award of the benefit under the legislation of another country.

Determination of the base rate: If for the recognition of the Spanish pension it has been necessary to add residence and insurances periods accredited in other countries, the calculation of the theoretical benefit will be made on the basis of the insured person's actual contribution bases during the years immediately prior to the payment of the last contribution to the Spanish Social Security. The amount thus obtained shall be increased in accordance with the revaluations established annually for pensions of the same nature.

The right to an orphanhood pension will be recognised and the pension will be settled as described above, provided that the deceased was subject only to the legislation of countries that provide for orphanhood's pension protection (Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland).
[For the cases in which the legislation of countries that protect orphanhood by means of benefits or supplementary benefits is involved, see for specific information on family benefits].

Benefits for work-related injury and occupational disease

The right to benefits deriving from work-related injuries or occupational diseases will be determined by the country whose legislation was applicable to the worker on the date of the accident or onset of the ailment.

In the case of occupational disease, if the worker was exposed to the risk of the occupational disease in question in more than one country, the benefit will be paid exclusively by the last country to whose legislation they were subject, as long as the required conditions are met. If necessary, the insurance periods completed in other countries due to the work exposing the worker to this risk will be added together.

Death subsidy

For the acquisition of entitlement to death subsidies, residence or insurance periods completed under the legislation of any country shall be aggregated, if necessary, as if they were one's own.

If the person concerned dies in a country other than that in which they are a member or pensioner, their death shall be deemed to have occurred in the territory of the latter country.

If the deceased is an active worker or a pensioner, the allowances are paid by the institution of the State with which the person concerned is insured or responsible for his pension, even if the deceased was resident in another country.

In the case of a pensioner whose pension is due from more than one country, the death subsidy is payable under the legislation of the country where they were resident at the time of death, provided that they were in receipt of a pension from that country. Otherwise, the death subsidy shall be payable by the country where the longest residence or insurance period is attested.

Family benefits

A) Workers:

Workers shall be entitled, in respect of members of their families residing in the territory of another country, to the family benefits provided for by the legislation of the country to which the worker is subject.

In the event of entitlement to family benefits under the legislation of that country and under the legislation of the country in which the members of the family are resident because of the pursuit of a professional activity in the latter country, family benefits are paid by the institution of the State of residence of the children and their dependants. However, the legislation of the competent country must pay a supplement if the family benefits provided for under its legislation are higher than the benefits provided for in the country of residence of the members of the family.

B) Pensioners:

Family benefits for dependent children of pensioners, irrespective of the country of residence of the pensioner or the children, shall be granted as follows:

If the pensioner is a pensioner of only one country, according to the legislation of that country.
If the pensioner is in receipt of pensions from two or more countries, according to the legislation of the country where the pensioner resides if they are entitled to family benefits under that legislation. If this is not the case, family benefits shall be recognised in accordance with the legislation of the State to which the pensioner has been insured for the longest period of time, provided that they are entitled to such benefits.

Notwithstanding the above, if the amount of family benefits recognised by the legislation of the competent country is lower than the amount of family benefits to which they would be entitled under the legislation of another country, the pensioner shall receive from the institution of the latter country a supplement equal to the difference between the two amounts.

The right to orphanhood benefits caused by the death of a worker or pensioner subject at some time in their working life to the legislation of a country which protects orphans with family allowances rather than pensions (Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Malta and the UK), will be determined in the same way as the right to family benefits.
[The cases in which the legislation of countries that protect orphanhood with pensions is involved are listed in the specialised information on old age and survivors' benefits (pensions)].

3. - Application for benefits and information:

To present an application for benefits or request information, the interested party should contact the Authorised Institution of their country of residence.

In Spain:

Provincial Directorates of the National Social Security Institute and the Support and Information Centres of the Social Security (CAISS)
Provincial Directorates of the Social Marine Institute, in the case of workers included in the Special Seafarers' Scheme.

In other countries, in the Authorised Institutions designated for that purpose.