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PARALLEL TEXTS
Il diritto dell'Unione non tollera la normativa spagnola in materia di modalità di calcolo della pensione di vecchiaia, in quanto non tiene adeguatamente conto della circostanza del lavoro svolto anche in uno Stato membro diverso dalla Spagna
Inglese tratto da:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-15_en.htm
Italiano tratto da: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-15_it.htm
Data documento: 21-02-2013
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EU law precludes the Spanish legislation concerning the method of calculation of retirement pensions, inasmuch as the method used does not take sufficient account of the fact that the applicant has also worked in a Member State other than Spain
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Il diritto dell'Unione non tollera la normativa spagnola in materia di modalità di calcolo della pensione di vecchiaia, in quanto non tiene adeguatamente conto della circostanza del lavoro svolto anche in uno Stato membro diverso dalla Spagna
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Spanish legislation grants entitlement to a contributory retirement pension, provided, inter alia, that a minimum contribution period of 15 years has been completed.
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La normativa spagnola concede il diritto di godere di una pensione di vecchiaia di tipo contributivo a condizione, segnatamente, di avere maturato un periodo minimo contributivo di quindici anni.
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The ‘basic amount’ of that benefit is calculated by adding together the worker’s contribution bases during the 15 years immediately preceding the last contribution paid in Spain, and by dividing that sum by 210.
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L'«importo di base» di tale prestazione si calcola sommando le basi contributive del lavoratore durante i quindici anni immediatamente precedenti l'ultimo contributo versato in Spagna e dividendo questo importo per 210.
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The 210 divisor corresponds to a total of 12 ordinary contributions and two extraordinary contributions paid during a period of 15 years.
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Il divisore 210 corrisponderebbe al totale dei dodici contributi ordinari e dei due straordinari annui versati per un periodo di quindici anni.
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Ms Salgado González paid contributions in Spain to the Special Scheme for Self-Employed Persons from 1 February 1989 to 31 March 1999 and in Portugal from 1 March 2000 to 31 December 2005.
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La sig.ra Salgado González ha versato contributi in Spagna al regime speciale dei lavoratori autonomi dal 1° febbraio 1989 al 31 marzo 1999 e, in Portogallo, dal 1° marzo 2000 al 31 dicembre 2005.
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She applied for a retirement pension in Spain which was granted to her by the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) from 1 January 2006 in the monthly basic amount of €336.86.
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Essa ha chiesto di godere di una pensione di vecchiaia in Spagna, che le è stata concessa dall'Instituto Nacional de la Seguridade Social (INSS,ente previdenziale nazionale) con effetti dal 1° gennaio 2006 per un importo di base pari a EUR 336,86 mensili.
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In order to determine whether she had paid contributions for the minimum period of 15 years, the INSS took account, in accordance with EU law, of the periods completed both in Spain and in Portugal.
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Per verificare se avesse versato contributi per il periodo minimo di quindici anni, l'INSS ha tenuto conto, conformemente al diritto dell'Unione, sia dei periodi maturati in Spagna sia di quelli maturati in Portogallo.
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However, in order to calculate the basic amount, the INSS added together the Spanish contribution bases for the period from 1 April 1984 to 31 March 1999 – i.e. the 15 years preceding the payment of Ms Salgado González’s last contribution in Spain – and divided them by 210.
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Tuttavia, per calcolare l'importo di base, l'INSS ha cumulato le basi contributive spagnole dal 1° aprile 1984 al 31 marzo 1999 – ossia i quindici anni precedenti il versamento dell'ultimo contributo versato dalla sig.ra Salgado González in Spagna – e le ha divise per 210.
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As she had not started to pay contributions to Spanish social security until 1 February 1989, the contributions included between 1 April 1984 and 31 January 1989 were counted as zero.
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Poiché aveva iniziato a versare contributi alla previdenza spagnola solo il 1° febbraio 1989, i contributi tra il 1° aprile 1984 e il 31 gennaio 1989 sono stati contabilizzati come pari a zero.
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Ms Salgado González argued that the contributions she paid in Portugal should also be taken into account when calculating her retirement benefits, and applied for the basic amount to be reassessed and set at €864.14.
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Ritenendo che occorresse inserire nel calcolo della sua prestazione di vecchiaia anche i contributi versati in Portogallo, la sig.ra Salgado González ha chiesto che tale importo fosse rivisto e stabilito pari a EUR 864,14 mensili.
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The INSS refused her application; Ms Salgado González subsequently brought an action before the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Galicia (High Court of Justice, Galicia) (Spain).
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Avendo l'INSS ha respinto la sua domanda, la sig.ra Salgado González ha adito il Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Galicia (Corte suprema della Regione autonoma di Galizia, Spagna).
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That court states that it has no doubt as to the impossibility of including the contributions paid in Portugal in the calculation of the amount of the retirement pension to be paid by Spain, but asks the Court of Justice whether the Spanish legislation, which precludes the adaptation of either the duration of the period of contributions or the divisor used so as to take account of the fact that the worker concerned has exercised his right to freedom of movement, is compatible with EU law.
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Detto giudice dichiara di non aver nessun dubbio sull'impossibilità di includere i contributi versati in Portogallo nel calcolo della pensione di vecchiaia a carico della Spagna, ma chiede alla Corte di giustizia se la normativa spagnola, la quale non consente di adeguare né la durata del periodo contributivo, né il divisore utilizzati per tener conto del fatto che il lavoratore ha esercitato il suo diritto alla libera circolazione, sia conforme al diritto dell'Unione.
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Thus, that court submits that the Spanish legislation puts migrant workers on an unequal footing with non-migrant workers.
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In effetti, detto giudice ritiene che la normativa spagnola instauri una disparità di trattamento tra lavoratori sedentari e lavoratori emigranti.
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Firstly, for the same level of contributions, a Community migrant worker will receive a smaller basic amount than a non-migrant worker who has paid contributions only in Spain.
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Da un lato, a fronte di un onere contributivo equivalente, il lavoratore emigrante comunitario otterrebbe un importo di base più esiguo del lavoratore sedentario che abbia versato contributi solo in Spagna.
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Secondly, the more a worker pays contributions in a Member State other than Spain, the less time he has during his professional life to pay contributions in Spain – which contributions are the only ones that can be taken into account for the calculation of the pension.
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Dall'altro, più un lavoratore versa contributi in uno Stato membro diverso dalla Spagna, meno dispone di tempo nel corso della sua carriera lavorativa per poter versare i suoi contributi spagnoli – i soli a poter essere presi in considerazione per il calcolo della pensione.
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The Court reiterates, firstly, that EU law does not set up a common scheme of social security, but allows different national social security schemes to exist; its sole objective is to ensure the coordination of those schemes.
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In via preliminare, la Corte ricorda che il diritto dell'Unione non organizza un regime comune di previdenza sociale, ma lascia sussistere regimi nazionali distinti e ha come solo obiettivo quello di assicurare un coordinamento tra essi.
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Thus Member States retain the power to organise their social security schemes.
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Pertanto, gli Stati membri conservano la loro competenza a disciplinare i propri sistemi di previdenza sociale.
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However, in exercising those powers, Member States must nonetheless observe the law of the EU and, in particular, the recognised freedom of every citizen of the EU to move and reside within the territory of the Member States.
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Ciò nondimeno, nell'esercizio di tale competenza gli Stati membri devono rispettare il diritto dell'Unione e, in particolare, la libertà riconosciuta a qualsiasi cittadino dell'Unione di circolare e soggiornare nel territorio degli Stati membri.
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Accordingly, migrant workers must not suffer a reduction in the amount of their social security benefits as a result of having availed themselves of their right of free movement.
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Di conseguenza, i lavoratori emigranti non devono subire una riduzione dell'importo delle prestazioni previdenziali per il fatto di avere esercitato il loro diritto alla libera circolazione.
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The Court then notes that where the legislation of a Member State provides that benefits are calculated on the basis of average contributions – as is the case in Spain – EU law provides that the calculation of the average contribution basis must be based on the amount only of the contributions actually paid.
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La Corte ricorda poi che, quando la normativa di uno Stato membro prevede che il calcolo delle prestazioni si fondi su una base contributiva media – come è il caso della Spagna – il diritto dell'Unione prevede che il calcolo della base contributiva media si base sull'importo dei soli contributi effettivamente versati.
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However, in order to calculate the basic amount of Ms Salgado González’s benefit, it appears that the INSS took account not only of the contributions actually paid in Spain, but also added a credited period running from 1 April 1984 to 30 January 1989 in order to fulfil the requirement of contributions spanning a period of 15 years.
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Tuttavia, al fine di calcolare l'importo di base della prestazione della sig.ra Salgado González, risulta che l'INSS ha tenuto conto non solo dei contributi effettivamente versati in Spagna, ma anche di periodi contributivi fittizi compresi tra il 1° aprile 1984 e il 31 gennaio 1989, al fine di completare i quindici anni precedenti il suo ultimo versamento al regime previdenziale spagnolo.
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Those periods having necessarily been calculated as zero, taking them into account had the effect of reducing the average contribution basis.
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Poiché questi periodi dovevano necessariamente essere contabilizzati come pari a zero, la loro considerazione ha portato al risultato di ridurre la base contributiva media.
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However, the fact remains that as no such reduction would have been made if Ms Salgado González had paid contributions only in Spain, without exercising her right to freedom of movement, such an outcome is contrary to EU law.
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Orbene, è giocoforza constatare che siffatta riduzione non si sarebbe verificata qualora la sig.ra Salgado González avesse versato contributi unicamente in Spagna, senza esercitare il suo diritto alla libera circolazione; un risultato del genere è contrario al diritto dell'Unione.
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The Court adds that the situation might be different if the national legislation laid down adjustment mechanisms for the method of calculation of the theoretical amount of the retirement pension in order to take into account the exercise by the worker concerned of his right to freedom of movement.
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La Corte aggiunge che il risultato potrebbe essere diverso qualora la normativa spagnola prevedesse sistemi per adeguare il calcolo dell'importo di base della pensione di vecchiaia tenendo conto dell'esercizio, da parte del lavoratore, del suo diritto alla libera circolazione.
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In the present case, the divisor could be adjusted to reflect the number of contributions for ordinary and extraordinary pay which the insured has actually paid.
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Nel caso di specie, il divisore potrebbe essere modificato per riflettere il numero di versamenti contributivi ordinari e straordinari realmente effettuati dall'assicurato.
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Consequently, the Court finds that EU law precludes legislation of a Member State pursuant to which the theoretical amount of the retirement pension of a self-employed worker, migrant or non?migrant, is invariably calculated on contribution bases paid by that worker over a fixed reference period preceding the payment of his last contribution in that Member State, to which a fixed divisor is applied, without its being possible to adapt either the duration of that period or the divisor so as to take account of the fact that the worker concerned has exercised his right to freedom of movement.
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Di conseguenza, la Corte risponde che il diritto dell'Unione osta a una normativa nazionale in forza della quale l'importo di base della pensione di vecchiaia del lavoratore autonomo, emigrante o meno, è sempre calcolato a partire dalle basi contributive dal medesimo versate per un periodo di riferimento fisso che precede il versamento della sua ultima contribuzione in tale Stato, cui viene applicato un divisore fisso, senza che né la durata di tale periodo né detto divisore possano essere adeguati per tener conto del fatto che il lavoratore interessato abbia esercitato il suo diritto alla libera circolazione.
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NOTE:
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IMPORTANTE:
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A request for a preliminary ruling allows the courts and tribunals of the Member States, in disputes which have been brought before them, to refer questions to the Court of Justice about the interpretation of European Union law or the validity of a European Union act.
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Il rinvio pregiudiziale consente ai giudici degli Stati membri, nell'ambito di una controversia della quale sono investiti, di interpellare la Corte in merito all’interpretazione del diritto dell’Unione o alla validità di un atto dell’Unione.
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The Court of Justice does not decide the dispute itself.
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La Corte non risolve la controversia nazionale.
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It is for the national court or tribunal to dispose of the case in accordance with the Court’s decision, which is similarly binding on other national courts or tribunals before which a similar issue is raised.
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Spetta al giudice nazionale risolvere la causa conformemente alla decisione della Corte.Tale decisione vincola egualmente gli altri giudici nazionali ai quali venga sottoposto un problema simile.
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LISTEN WITH READSPEAKER
EU law precludes the Spanish legislation concerning the
method of calculation of retirement pensions, inasmuch as the method used does
not take sufficient account of the fact that the applicant has also worked in a
Member State other than Spain
Spanish legislation grants entitlement to a contributory
retirement pension, provided, inter alia, that a minimum contribution period of
15 years has been completed.
The ‘basic amount’ of that benefit is calculated by adding
together the worker’s contribution bases during the 15 years immediately
preceding the last contribution paid in Spain, and by dividing that sum by 210.
The 210 divisor corresponds to a total of 12 ordinary
contributions and two extraordinary contributions paid during a period of 15
years.
Ms Salgado González paid contributions in Spain to the Special
Scheme for Self-Employed Persons from 1 February 1989 to 31 March 1999 and in
Portugal from 1 March 2000 to 31 December 2005.
She applied for a retirement pension in Spain which was
granted to her by the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) from 1
January 2006 in the monthly basic amount of €336.86.
In order to determine whether she had paid contributions for
the minimum period of 15 years, the INSS took account, in accordance with EU
law, of the periods completed both in Spain and in Portugal.
However, in order to calculate the basic amount, the INSS
added together the Spanish contribution bases for the period from 1 April 1984
to 31 March 1999 – i.e. the 15 years preceding the payment of Ms Salgado
González’s last contribution in Spain – and divided them by 210.
As she had not started to pay contributions to Spanish social
security until 1 February 1989, the contributions included between 1 April 1984
and 31 January 1989 were counted as zero.
Ms Salgado González argued that the contributions she paid in
Portugal should also be taken into account when calculating her retirement
benefits, and applied for the basic amount to be reassessed and set at €864.14.
The INSS refused her application; Ms Salgado González
subsequently brought an action before the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de
Galicia (High Court of Justice, Galicia) (Spain).
That court states that it has no doubt as to the impossibility
of including the contributions paid in Portugal in the calculation of the amount
of the retirement pension to be paid by Spain, but asks the Court of Justice
whether the Spanish legislation, which precludes the adaptation of either the
duration of the period of contributions or the divisor used so as to take
account of the fact that the worker concerned has exercised his right to freedom
of movement, is compatible with EU law.
Thus, that court submits that the Spanish legislation puts
migrant workers on an unequal footing with non-migrant workers.
Firstly, for the same level of contributions, a Community
migrant worker will receive a smaller basic amount than a non-migrant worker who
has paid contributions only in Spain.
Secondly, the more a worker pays contributions in a Member
State other than Spain, the less time he has during his professional life to pay
contributions in Spain – which contributions are the only ones that can be taken
into account for the calculation of the pension.
The Court reiterates, firstly, that EU law does not set up a
common scheme of social security, but allows different national social security
schemes to exist; its sole objective is to ensure the coordination of those
schemes.
Thus Member States retain the power to organise their social
security schemes.
However, in exercising those powers, Member States must
nonetheless observe the law of the EU and, in particular, the recognised freedom
of every citizen of the EU to move and reside within the territory of the Member
States.
Accordingly, migrant workers must not suffer a reduction in
the amount of their social security benefits as a result of having availed
themselves of their right of free movement.
The Court then notes that where the legislation of a Member
State provides that benefits are calculated on the basis of average
contributions – as is the case in Spain – EU law provides that the calculation
of the average contribution basis must be based on the amount only of the
contributions actually paid.
However, in order to calculate the basic amount of Ms Salgado
González’s benefit, it appears that the INSS took account not only of the
contributions actually paid in Spain, but also added a credited period running
from 1 April 1984 to 30 January 1989 in order to fulfil the requirement of
contributions spanning a period of 15 years.
Those periods having necessarily been calculated as zero,
taking them into account had the effect of reducing the average contribution
basis.
However, the fact remains that as no such reduction would have
been made if Ms Salgado González had paid contributions only in Spain, without
exercising her right to freedom of movement, such an outcome is contrary to EU
law.
The Court adds that the situation might be different if the
national legislation laid down adjustment mechanisms for the method of
calculation of the theoretical amount of the retirement pension in order to take
into account the exercise by the worker concerned of his right to freedom of
movement.
In the present case, the divisor could be adjusted to reflect
the number of contributions for ordinary and extraordinary pay which the insured
has actually paid.
Consequently, the Court finds that EU law precludes
legislation of a Member State pursuant to which the theoretical amount of the
retirement pension of a self-employed worker, migrant or non?migrant, is
invariably calculated on contribution bases paid by that worker over a fixed
reference period preceding the payment of his last contribution in that Member
State, to which a fixed divisor is applied, without its being possible to adapt
either the duration of that period or the divisor so as to take account of the
fact that the worker concerned has exercised his right to freedom of movement.
NOTE:
A request for a preliminary ruling allows the courts and
tribunals of the Member States, in disputes which have been brought before them,
to refer questions to the Court of Justice about the interpretation of European
Union law or the validity of a European Union act.
The Court of Justice does not decide the dispute itself.
It is for the national court or tribunal to dispose of the
case in accordance with the Court’s decision, which is similarly binding on
other national courts or tribunals before which a similar issue is raised.
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