death

Protection in death eventuality aims to support the family on the occasion of one of its member’s death who was an employee or retiree and is materialized through the grant of benefits to the household:

• A lump sum benefit immediately after the family member death - the death allowance;
• A permanent benefit grant - the survivor’s pension.

In the convergent social protection scheme each one of these benefits shall be regulated by specific legal texts.

In the general social security scheme these benefits shall be ruled by specific legislation.

The death allowance aims to compensate immediately the increase of charges which are felt with greater urgency soon after the family member death, on duty or retired with a view to supporting the family life reorganization.

The survivor’s pension aims to compensate the family members who lived in economic inter-relation with the employee or retiree deceased for the work income lost or for the retirement pension received by the deceased.

Death Allowance – Convergent Social Protection Scheme

The right to death allowance shall not depend upon compliance with any waiting period, affiliation to the Public Employees’ Special Pension Scheme nor on the contribution payment.

The responsibility for the death allowance grant and payment falls upon the service where the employee fulfilled his/her functions. The responsibility for the death allowance grant and payment in the case of a retired employee falls upon the Public Employees’ Special Pension Scheme.

The family members who lived in the same household with the deceased at the time of death and meet other specific requirements are entitled to the death allowance.

The surviving spouse or the person living together on a non-marital partnership basis (1st group), descendants or equivalent (2nd group), ascendants (3rd group) and other relatives (4th group) may be entitled to the death allowance. The family members of the 1st and 2nd groups, who meet the legal requirements, shall prevail over the others.

The allowance may be requested within the time limit of 1 year as from the death’s date.

The allowance amount is equal to three times the value of the monthly compensation susceptible of contribution payment to the Public Employee’s Special Pension Scheme to which the employee with public employment relationship is entitled at the time of his/her death having as a maximum limit three times the value of the Social Support Indexation (SSI).

The allowance amount is equal to three times the value of the last gross monthly pension also having as a maximum limit three times the value of the Social Support Indexation (SSI) in the case of death of a retired public employee.

If there are no right holders to the allowance, who meet the legally demanded requirements, the expenses incurred with the funeral may be reimbursed to the person who proves to have incurred them and the respective amount shall not exceed the value of the death allowance not granted.

Death Allowance – Social Protection General Scheme

In the social protection general scheme the following beneficiary’s family members are entitled to the death allowance without compliance with a waiting period requirement:

The surviving spouse or the person living together on a non-marital partnership basis and former spouse provided that they receive a maintenance allowance at the time of death (1st group), descendants or equivalent (2nd group), ascendants (3rd group) and other relatives (4th group) may be entitled to the death allowance. The family members of the 1st and 2nd groups, who meet the legal requirements demanded, shall prevail over the others.
If there are no right holders to the death allowance, the expenses incurred with the funeral may be reimbursed to the person who proves to have incurred them. The reimbursement amount shall not exceed the death allowance amount not granted having as a maximum limit three times the value of the Social Support Indexation (SSI).

Survivor’s pension – Convergent Social Protection Scheme

Within the framework of the convergent social protection scheme the survivor’s pension shall be materialized through a monthly pension whose entitlement shall depend upon:

Affiliation to the Public Employees’ Special Pension Scheme;
Payment of the employee’s contribution – global deduction of 11% (8% for retirement purposes and 3% for survivor’s pension purposes) on the gross employee’s compensation;
Payment of the employer’s contribution – global contribution of 23.75% for retirement and survivor’s pension purposes (and of 3.75% if the Public Employee Special Pension Scheme shall be only responsible for the survivor’s pension payment) on the monthly compensation;
Compliance with the waiting period of 36 months (as from 2006).

The waiting period may be completed with the general social protection scheme contributions’ time.

The pension shall be requested within the time limit of 12 months as of the death’s date or after this time limit has been elapsed and in the first case the pension shall be due since the month following to this date and in the second case the pension shall be due as from the month following to that one of the request’s delivery.

Regarding family members entitled to survivor’s pension and corresponding amounts distinction shall be made between the different situations in which employees are framed with a public employment relationship and the date on which the death occurs:

Deaths ‘occurred until 2005.12.31 and after 2006.1.1 of employees or retirees with retirement pension to be calculated or granted based on the Retirement Statute, in force until 31.12.2005 – shall be subject to the survivor’s pension statute in force on the same date;
Deaths ‘occurred after 2006.1.1 of employees or retirees with retirement pension to be calculated or granted on the basis of the new rules in force as from the referred to date – shall be subject to the survivor’s pension statute rules to the P1 part and the social protection general scheme rules shall apply to the P2 part;
Deaths of employees or retirees registered to the Public Employees’ Special Pension Scheme after 1993.9.1 shall be subject to the social protection general scheme rules.

Pursuant to the survivors’ pension statute the family members entitled to the survivor’s pension, provided that they meet with the requirements set by law are the surviving spouse or the person living together on a non-marital partnership basis, or the former spouses entitled to a maintenance allowance paid by the deceased (1st group), children and foster children (2nd group) grandchildren (3rd group) and ascendants (4th group). The family members who integrate the first 3 groups prevail over the last one and the children prevail over the grandchildren of which they are progenitors.

The survivor’s pension amount according to the survivor’s pension statute shall correspond to 50% of the retirement pension to which the deceased would have right at the time of his/her death or of that which he /she were receiving. This global pension amount shall be divided by the different right holders, when there are multiple family members entitled to the pension, according to rules set by law.

The social protection general scheme calculation rules that apply to the survivor’s pension or to part of it are those which are described further ahead.

Survivor’s pension – Social Protection General Scheme

In the social protection general scheme the survivor’s pension shall be granted if the deceased beneficiary has had complied with the 36 month waiting period with registered contributions.

The employee deducts 11% on the monthly compensation as a contribution to the social security institutions; all public administration services as employers pay a compulsory contribution of 23.75% on the monthly compensations that also aims to ensure the right to all protected eventualities (or 18.6%, in situations in which the unemployment eventuality is not ensured by those institutions).

In the social protection general scheme the same family members identified as the pension right holders in the convergent social protection scheme are entitled to the respective pension and the prevalence rule is also identical to both.

Thus, the following family members are survivor’s pension right holders:

The surviving spouse or the person living together on a non-marital partnership basis and the former spouse provided that they receive a maintenance allowance on the date of the beneficiary’s death (1st group), descendants or equivalent (2nd group), ascendants (3rd group). If there are right holders of the two first groups, who meet the legal requirements, prevail over those of the 3rd group.

The social protection general scheme rules (applicable to survivor’s pensions of employees fulfilling public functions as from 2006.1.1, as mentioned above) predict autonomous pensions for the surviving spouse or equivalent and/or former spouse, for the descendants and ascendants. The amount of which is, in each case, divided in equal parts among the pension right holders included in the different family members groups.

The pension’s amount specifically shall comply with the following scheme: pension’s amounts are always calculated on the basis of the retirement pension value already granted or to be calculated, being that which is intended for the 1st group family members, i.e. spouse, equivalent and former spouse group corresponding to 60% or 70%, of that pension if 1 or more than 1 beneficiaries; the amount intended for descendants shall correspond to 20%, 30% or 40%, according to 1, 2 or more than 2 beneficiaries and in the event of existing spouse or equivalent or former spouse entitled to the pension; otherwise the amount shall correspond to 40%, 60% or 80% for 1, 2 or more than two descendants. Finally, the pension amount intended for ascendants shall correspond to 30%, 50% or 80%, according to 1, 2, or 3 or more beneficiaries exist.