Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 48

AddedSHORT JUSTIFICATION

AddedOn the 13th of December 2016, the European Commission published its proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 on the coordination of social security systems and regulation (EC) No 987/2009 laying down the procedure for implementing Regulation (EC) No 883/2004. The proposal aims at modernising and simplifying the existing rules for social security coordination to respond to the social and economic reality in the Member States, and enhance the exercise of citizens’ rights under these regulations.

AddedThe rapporteur is of the view that any amendment to the existing rules concerning social security coordination should be governed by the common values of universality, equity and solidarity, especially with regard to access to health care benefits. In particular, students and disabled persons should retain the portability of their social security rights and entitlements when moving from one Member State to another without discrimination.

AddedIn this regard, the rapporteur takes note of the new chapter on long-term care benefits proposed by the Commission, and welcomes the fact that disability benefits are now clearly covered by this chapter; she suggests that the Administrative Commission work closely with associations of beneficiaries, including representatives of disability organisations, when determining the detailed list of benefits covered under this chapter. The rapporteur also stresses the need to ensure the swift implementation of the European Disability Card in all EU Member States, and calls on the Administrative Commission to promote the adoption of a common disability definition and criteria for the purpose of social security coordination. The rapporteur hopes that the implementation of the European Disability Card will allow for discussions on the benefits covered by the card, with a view to include further important benefits in the area of care, health care and assistance, for people with disability to fully enjoy their freedom of movement within the EU.

AddedThe Petitions Committee is regularly seized with petitions concerning all social security areas in cross-border situations. Issues relating to the portability of pension rights and benefits have been regularly brought to the attention of the PETI Committee, in particular concerning the long delays suffered in obtaining adequate information from the competent authorities, as well as concerning the calculation of pension benefits for citizens who have worked in more than one Member State. The rapporteur proposes establishing time-limits for the institutions of the competent Member States to determine the habitual residence of claimants, to calculate the amount of benefits and to resolve possible differences of views with other Member States. Access to tailored and concise information in this often complex field is also paramount to ensure that citizens can exercise their freedom to move and work within the EU without discrimination.

AddedThese proposals would contribute to the objectives set by the Commission to enhance the exercise of citizens’ rights while ensuring legal clarity and enforceability of the rules in the field of social security coordination, and respecting the overarching values of universality, equity and solidarity which are shared across the European Union.

AddedAMENDMENTS

AddedThe Committee on Petitions calls on the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, as the committee responsible, to take into account the following amendments:

AddedRecital 3 a (new): (3 a) The definitions and criteria for determining disability and invalidity differ widely across the Member States, which can constitute a major obstacle to the mutual recognition of national decisions on disability and invalidity issues, in particular as regards access to specific services and facilities, and can put people with a disability or invalidity at a particular disadvantage in the field of social security when moving from one Member State to another. It is therefore necessary, with a view to facilitating the travel and movement of persons with a disability or invalidity from one Member State to another, to ensure the adoption of a common European definition in line with the UNCRPD and a mutual recognition of disability status between Member States, in particular through the swift implementation of the European Disability Card in all Member States which will be connected to the European Health Insurance Card and the European Social Security Card.

AddedRecital 3 b (new): (3b) In order to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), and guarantee the portability of disability benefits, the adoption of common definition, criteria and methods of evaluation of disability (percentage of disability) for the purpose of social security coordination should be promoted.

AddedRecital 3 c (new): (3 c) It is important to respect the common values and principles of Union’s health systems as referred to in the Council Conclusions of 22 June 2006 on Common values and principles in European Union Health Systems1a, in particular the overarching values of universality, access to good quality care, equity and solidarity. This is particularly significant for categories of citizens who are neither employed, nor looking for a job, such as students, whose mobility should be preserved through their appropriate access to social security benefits, including health insurance, in the host Member State. As stated by the Council, “universality means that no-one is barred access to health care; solidarity is closely linked to the financial arrangement of our national health systems and the need to ensure accessibility to all; equity relates to equal access according to need, regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, social status or ability to pay.” / 1a OJ C 146, 22.6.2006, p.1.

AddedRecital 4 a (new): (4 a) In its resolution of 15 March 2017 on obstacles to EU citizens’ freedom to move and work in the internal market1a, the European Parliament stressed the need “to ensure the portability of social security benefits (e.g. state pensions, health insurance, unemployment benefits and family benefits) and consequently reduce barriers to labour mobility in the Union” and called for “ resolute effective steps towards a coordinated system of aggregated social contributions and benefits for each individual across the Union, such as a social security card to facilitate the tractability of social security contributions and entitlements”. / 1a Texts adopted, P8_TA(2017)0083.

AddedRecital 4 b (new): (4 b) Measures to facilitate the identification and upholding of social security rights and benefits across the Union, such as the adoption of a European Social Security Card, which should be associated with the existing European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), the European Disability Card, and cover all social security areas, should be promoted.

AddedRecital 4 c (new): (4c) In order to improve the mobility of workers, students and job seekers across the Union, it is essential that Member States guarantee access to the European Health Insurance Card to all people, including temporary workers, self-employed persons and those in atypical employment relationships, as well as students and mobile jobseekers, without discrimination.

AddedRecital 4 d (new): (4 d) Cross-border healthcare is of particular relevance to guarantee an equitable coordination of social security systems. In this regard, the implementation of Directive 2011/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council1a differs greatly across the Member States. In particular, Article 7 of that Directive should be implemented without discrimination to ensure the freedom of movement for Union citizens and their families. / 1a Directive 2011/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on the application of patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare (OJ L 88, 4.4.2011, p. 45).

AddedRecital 8: (8) In the area of unemployment benefits, the rules on the aggregation of periods of insurance should be applied uniformly by all Member States. With the exception of cross-border workers referred to in Article 65(2), the rules on the aggregation of periods for the purpose of conferring entitlement to unemployment benefits should be subject to the condition that an insured person has most recently completed at least one month of insurance in that Member State. The previously competent Member State should become competent for all insured persons who do not satisfy this condition. In this case, registration with the employment services of the Member State of most recent insurance should have the same effect as registration with the employment services of the Member State, where the unemployed person had been previously insured.

AddedRecital 9: (9) There is a need to extend the duration of export of unemployment benefits until exhaustion of the rights acquired by the job seeker in order to improve the opportunities for unemployed persons moving to another Member State to look for work and their chances for requalification and reintegration into the labour market and to address skills mismatches across borders..

AddedRecital 11 a (new): (11 a) There is a need to ensure that the competent authorities determine habitual residence for the purpose of establishing social security benefits within a reasonable time-limit.

AddedRecital 11 b (new): (11b) Individuals should be able to choose their habitual residence for the purpose of establishing social security benefits, with competent authorities certifying it within a reasonable timeframe on the basis of proven sufficient roots to the concerned Member State.

AddedRecital 12: (12) In order to enable a timely update of this Regulation to the developments at the national level, the Annexes to this Regulation and Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 should be amended on a regular basis. / (deleted)

AddedRecital 13: (13) With a view to supporting Member States in their efforts to combat fraud and error in the application of the coordination rules, it is necessary to establish a further permissive legal basis to facilitate the processing of personal data about persons to whom Regulations (EC) No 883/2004 and (EC) No 987/2009 apply, paying due respect to the relevant Union data protection acquis, in particular Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council1a. This would enable a Member State to periodically compare data held by its competent institutions against that held by another Member State in order to identify errors or inconsistencies that require further investigation. / 1a Regulation (EU) 679/2016 of the European Parliament and the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L119, 4.5.2016, p. 1).

AddedRecital 15: (15) With a view to expediting the procedure for the verification, rectification and withdrawal of documents (in particular concerning the social security legislation which applies to the holder) in case of fraud and error, it is necessary to strengthen the collaboration and the exchange of information between the issuing institution and the institution requesting a withdrawal. Where there is doubt about the validity of a document or about the correctness of supporting evidence or where there is a difference of views between Member States concerning the determination of the applicable legislation, it is in the interest of the Member States and the persons concerned that the institutions concerned reach an agreement within a reasonable period of time. In the absence of a response within the specified deadline, the requesting institution should become competent to determine the legislation applicable.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3, Recital 5 a: deleted

AddedThe derogation from the principle of equal treatment for more than 700.000 economically inactive mobile citizens constitutes a considerable gap in the coordination of social security systems within the European Union. The proposed changes made by the Commission will neither lead to greater legal clarity nor alleviate the situation of the citizens concerned. Therefore, a cross-reference to Directive 2004/38 should not be introduced into the Regulation.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3, Recital 5c: (5c) Notwithstanding the limitations on the right to equal treatment for economically inactive persons, that arise from the Directive 2004/38/EC or otherwise by virtue of Union law, nothing within this Regulation should restrict the fundamental rights recognised in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, notably the right to human dignity (Article 1), the right to life (Article 2), the entitlement to social security and social assistance (Article 34) and the right to healthcare (Article 35).

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5 a (new), Recital 24 a (new): (5a) After recital 24, the following is inserted: / “(24a) Nothing within this Regulation should give ground to any Member State other than the competent Member State to refuse residence to economically inactive persons solely on the basis of the application for the branches of social security covered by this Regulation.ˮ

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 8, Recital 46: deleted / (deleted)

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 9 – point d, Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point vb: (vb) “long-term care benefit” means any benefit in kind, cash or a combination of both for persons who, over an extended period of time, on account of old-age, disability, illness or impairment, require assistance from another person or persons to carry out essential daily activities, including to support their personal autonomy; this includes benefits granted to or for the person providing such assistance;”

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 11, Article 4 – paragraph 2: deleted / (deleted)

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 13, Article 12 – paragraph 1: 1. 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 to perform work on that employer's behalf shall continue to be subject to the legislation of the first Member State, provided that: / (a) the anticipated or actual duration of such work does not exceed six months and that the person is not posted or sent to replace another employed or self-employed person previously posted or sent within the meaning of this Article; and / (b) for a period of at least six months immediately preceding the start of the activity as an employed person, the person concerned is already subject to the legislation of the Member State in which his or her employer is established. / (deleted)

AddedThe average duration of a posting is less than four month according to the Commission. Therefore, it is reasonable that after six month the law of the country of employment should apply in terms of social security coverage.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 13, Article 12 – paragraph 2: 2. A person who normally pursues an activity as a self-employed person in a Member State who goes to pursue a similar activity in another Member State shall continue to be subject to the legislation of the first Member State, provided that: / (a) the anticipated or actual duration of such activity does not exceed six months and that the person is not replacing another posted employed or self-employed person, and / (b) for a period of at least six months immediately preceding the start of the activity, the person concerned has already been subject to the legislation of the Member State in which he or she normally pursues his or her activity.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 13, Article 12 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. Member States shall ensure that economically inactive mobile citizens and job seekers can access comprehensive sickness insurance cover in the host Member State by allowing such citizens to contribute in a proportionate manner to a sickness insurance or to otherwise fulfil the relevant criteria for access to sickness insurance in the Member State in which they habitually reside.

AddedComprehensive sickness insurance is a fundamental right. Inactive mobile citizens should have the possibility to obtain sickness insurance also in their Member State of residence. Member States should be able to rely on binding guidelines when making their sickness insurance system accessible for inactive mobile EU citizens.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 17, Article 35a – paragraph 2: 2. The Administrative Commission, after properly consulting the social partners concerned as well as representative associations of beneficiaries, including disability organisations, and all relevant stakeholders, shall draw up an exhaustive and detailed list of long-term care benefits which meet the criteria contained in Article 1 (vb) of this Regulation, specifying which benefits are in kind and which are benefits in cash.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 17, Article 35a – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. The Administrative Commission shall ensure the swift implementation of the European Disability Card in all Member States, and shall promote the adoption of a common disability definition and criteria for the purpose of this Regulation and of the Implementing Regulation.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 18 a (new), Article 52 – paragraph 1 a (new): 18 a. In Article 52, the following paragraph is inserted: / “1a. The competent institutions shall calculate and award the benefit due within three months of submission of a request for an award.”

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 19, Article 61 – paragraph 1: 1. Except in the cases referred to in Article 65(2), the application of Article 6 shall be conditional on the person concerned having most recently completed a period of at least one month of insurance, employment, or self-employment in accordance with the legislation under which the benefits are claimed.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 19, Article 61 – paragraph 2: 2. Where an unemployed person does not satisfy the conditions for the aggregation of periods in accordance with paragraph 1 because the total duration of his or her most recently completed periods of insurance, employment or self-employment in that Member State is less than one month that person shall be entitled to unemployment benefits in accordance with the legislation of the Member State where he or she had previously completed such periods under the conditions and subject to the limitations laid down in Article 64a.

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 20 – point a, Article 64 – paragraph 1 – point c: (a) In paragraph 1, point (c) is replaced by the following: / “(c) entitlement to unemployment benefits shall be maintained until their expiry;”

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 20 – point a a (new), Article 64 – paragraph 2: (a a) Paragraph 2 is deleted;

Added(http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32004R0883&from=EN)

AddedRegulation (EC) No 883/2004

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 20 – point b, Article 64 – paragraph 3: (b) Paragraph 3 is deleted