15.2.2014

Official Journal of the European Union

C 45/8

(Case C-166/12)(Request for a preliminary ruling - Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations - Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 and Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 723/2004 - Officials of the European Union - Pension rights in the national scheme - Transfer to the European Union pension scheme - Calculation method - Concept of ‘capital value of pension rights’)

2014/C 45/15

Language of the case: Czech

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Radek Časta

Defendant: Česká správa sociálního zabezpečení

Re:

Request for a preliminary ruling — Krajský soud v Praze — Interpretation of Article 4(3) of the EU Treaty and Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 of the Council of 29 February 1968 laying down the Staff Regulations of Officials and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities and instituting special measures temporarily applicable to officials of the Commission (OJ, English Special Edition 1968(I), p. 30), as amended by Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 723/2004 of 22 March 2004 amending the Staff Regulations of officials of the European Communities and the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities — Transfer of pension rights acquired before the official enters the service of the European Union — Concept of ‘capital value of pension rights’ — National legislation laying down a method of calculation of the pension rights offered for transfer resulting in a value much lower than the sum of the contributions paid to the national pension scheme.

Operative part of the judgment

1.On a proper construction of Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 of 29 February 1968 laying down the Staff Regulations of officials and the conditions of employment of other servants of the European Communities and instituting special measures temporarily applicable to officials of the Commission, as amended by Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 723/2004 of 22 March 2004, a Member State may determine the amount of the capital value of pension rights by means of the actuarial equivalent, the flat-rate redemption value or by means of other methods, in so far as the amount to be transferred actually represents the pension rights acquired by virtue of the previous activities of the official concerned.

2.Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to Regulation No 259/68, as amended by Regulation No 723/2004, and Article 4(3) TEU must be interpreted as not precluding application of the method for calculating the capital value of pension rights acquired earlier, such as that defined in Czech law, even where that method results in the amount of capital to be transferred into the European Union pension scheme being set at a level of not even half the amount of the contributions paid by the official and his former employer into the national pension scheme.

3.Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to Regulation No 259/68, as amended by Regulation No 723/2004, and Article 4(3) TEU must be interpreted as meaning that, for the purposes of calculating the amount of the capital value of pension rights acquired under the national pension scheme and intended to be transferred into the European Union pension scheme, account is not to be taken of the period during which the official had already participated in that scheme.

(1) OJ C 200, 7.7.2012.