Where a staff member dies in service or on leave for military service his widow shall be entitled, provided that she has been married to him for at least one year at the time of his death and subject to the provisions of Articles 1 and 21 hereafter, to a widow's pension equal to 35 % of the staff member's last basic monthly salary, which shall not be less than the minimum subsistence figure defined in Article 5.
The condition of duration of the marriage specified in the first paragraph shall not be taken into account if there are one or more children of the marriage or of a previous marriage of the staff member provided that the widow maintains or has maintained those children, or if the staff member's death resulted either from physcial disability or sickness contracted in the performance of his duties or from accident.
Where a former staff member was in receipt of retirement pension his widow shall be entitled, provided that she had been married to him for at least one year when he left the service of the Foundation, and subject to the provisions of Article 21, to a widow's pension equal to 60 % of the retirement pension which he was receiving at the time of his death. The minimum widow's pension shall be 35 % of the staff member's last basic monthly salary and shall not be less than the minimum subsistence figure defined in Article 5; the amount of the widow's pension shall in no case, however, exceed the amount of the retirement pension which her husband was receiving at the time of his death.
The Condition of duration of the marriage specified in the first paragraph shall not be taken into account if there are one or more children of a marriage contracted by the staff member before he left the service, provided that the widow maintains or has maintained those children.
The widow of a former staff member who left the service before reaching the age of 60 years and requested that his retirement pension be deferred until the first day of the calendar month following that during which he reached the age of 60 years shall be entitled, provided that she had been married to him for at least one year when he left the service of the Foundation, and subject to Article 21 to a widow's pension equal to 60 % of the retirement pension which would have been payable to her husband at the age of 60 years. The minimum widow's pension shall be 35 % of the staff member's last monthly basic salary; the amount of the widow's pension shall in no case, however, exceed the amount of the retirement pension to which the staff member would have been entitled at the age of 60 years.
The condition of duration of the marriage specified in the first paragraph shall not be taken into account if there are one or more children of a marriage contracted by the staff member before he left the service, provided that the widow maintains or has maintained those children.
For the purpose of Articles 17 and 18, the condition of the duration of the marriage shall not be taken into account where the marriage, though contracted after termination of the official's service, has lasted at least five years.
1. The orphan's pension provided for in Article 41d (1) of the Conditions of Employment shall for the first orphan be equal to eight-tenths of the survivor's pension to which the staff member's widow would have been entitled, the reductions set out in Article 25 of this Annex being disregarded.
It shall not be less than the minimum subsistence figure, as defined in Article 5, subject to the provisions of Article 21.
2. The pension shall be increased, for each dependent child after the first, by an amount equal to twice the dependent child allowance.
3. The total amount of pension and allowance calculated in this way shall be divided equally among the orphans entitled.
Where a staff member leaves a widow and also orphans of a previous marriage or other persons entitled under him, the total pension, calculated as if for a widow having all these persons dependent on her, shall be apportioned among the various persons concerned in proportion to the pensions which would have been payable to each category of them if treated separately.
Where a staff member leaves orphans of different marriages, the total pension, calculated as though all the children were of the same marriage, shall be apportioned among the various persons concerned in proportion to the pensions which would have been payable to each category of them if treated separately.
For the purposes of calculating this apportionment, dependent children within the meaning of Article 7 of Annex IV, of a previous marriage of either spouse, shall be included in the category of children of the marriage to the staff member.
In the case envisaged in the second paragraph, ascendants who are recognized as being dependants within the meaning of Article 7 (4) of Annex IV shall be treated in the same way as dependent children and, for the purpose of calculating the apportionment, included in the category of descendants.
By special decision of the authority referred to in Article 41h of the Conditions of Employment, a pension calculated on the basis of Article 16 above may be granted to the widower of a female member of staff, who dies in service, provided he furnishes evidence that he has no income of his own and that at his wife's death he was permanently incapacitated by invalidity or serious illness from engaging in gainful employment.
Article 41e of the Conditions of Employment shall apply by analogy.
Payment of the pension shall cease if the surviving husband remarries.
Those entitled under a deceased member of staff, as defined in this chapter, shall also receive the grant provided for under Article 11 above.
Where a member of staff dies leaving no survivors who qualify for a survivor's pension, the heirs shall be entitled to receive the grant provided for under Article 11.
However, amounts paid pursuant to Article 37 shall be deducted from the grant.
The right to receive payment of survivor's pension shall take effect from the first day of the calendar month following that in which the staff member died. However, where the payment provided for in Article 36 of the conditions of employment is made on the death of the Conditions of Employment is made on the death pension, such right shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month following that in which death occurred.
The right to receive payment of survivor's pension shall cease at the end of the calendar month in which the recipient of the pension dies or ceases to satisfy the requirements for payment of the pension.
Where the difference in age between the deceased staff member and his surviving spouse, less the length of time they have been married, is more than 10 years, the survivor's pension, calculated in accordance with the preceding provisions, shall be subject to a reduction, per full year of difference, amounting to:
- 1 % for the years between 10 and 20,
- 2 % for the years 20 up to but not including 25,
- 3 % for the years 25 up to but not including 30,
- 4 % for the years 30 up to but not including 35,
- 5 % for the years from 35 upwards.
A widow's entitlement to survivor's pension shall cease on remarriage. She shall be entitled to immediate payment of a capital sum equal to twice the annual amount of her survivor's pension, provided that the second paragraph of Article 41d (2) of the Conditions of Employment does not apply.
The divorced wife of a staff member shall be entitled on his death to a survivor's pension, as defined in this chapter, provided that the court which pronounced the decree of divorce did not find that the divorced wife in question was solely to blame. This entitlement shall cease if she remarries before her former husband dies. The provisions of Article 26 shall apply if she remarries after her former husband dies.
Where a divorced staff member who has remarried leaves a widow entitled to survivor's pension, that pension shall be divided, in proportion to the duration of the marriages, between the divorced wife if she has not remarried and the widow, if the court which pronounced the decree of divorce did not find that the divorced wife was solely to blame. The amount to which the divorced wife is entitled if she has not remarried shall not be more than the amount of the maintenance awarded to her under the decree.
If any of the persons entitled to pension dies or renounces her share, her share shall accrue to the shares of the other persons, except where there are orphans' rights under Article 41d (2) of the Conditions of Employment.
Reductions in respect of difference in age, as provided for in Article 25, shall be applied separately to pensions divided in accordance with this Article.
Where under Article 35 the divorced wife ceases to be entitled to a pension, the total pension shall be payable to the widow, provided Article 41d (2) of the Conditions of Employment does not apply.
CHAPTER V
FUNDING OF THE PENSION SCHEME
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
