16.7.2011

Official Journal of the European Union

C 211/3

(Case C-485/07) (<span class="super">1</span>)

(EEC-Turkey Association - Social security for migrant workers - Waiving of residence clauses - Scope - Supplement to the invalidity pension paid by the host Member State in order to ensure a minimum standard of living for the recipients - Amendment of national legislation - Withdrawal of that supplement when the recipient resides outside the territory of the Member State concerned)

2011/C 211/04

Language of the case: Dutch

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Raad van bestuur van het Uitvoeringsinstituut werknemersverzekeringen

Defendants: H. Akdas, H. Agartan, Z. Akbulut, M. Bas, K. Yüzügüllüer, E. Keskin, C. Topaloglu, A. Cubuk, S. Sariisik

Re:

Reference for a preliminary hearing — Centrale Raad van Beroep — Interpretation of Article 9 of the Association Agreement, of Article 59 of the Additional Protocol to the Agreement establishing an Association between the European Economic Community and Turkey signed at Brussels on 23 November 1970 and concluded, approved and confirmed on behalf of the Community by Council Regulation (EEC) No 2760/72 of 19 December 1972 (OJ 1973 C 133, p. 17) and of Article 6(1) of Decision No 3/80 of the Association Council of 19 September 1980 on the application of the social security schemes of the Member States of the European Communities to Turkish workers and members of their families (OJ 1983 C 110, p. 60) — National legislation providing for the grant of a supplementary benefit by means of insurance against incapacity for work in order to reach the level of the minimum wage — Restrictions in the event of residence outside the Netherlands — Two speed withdrawal of supplementary benefit according to place of residence and nationality

Operative part of the judgment

The first subparagraph of Article 6(1) of Decision No 3/80 of the Association Council of 19 September 1980 on the application of the social security schemes of the Member States of the European Communities to Turkish workers and members of their families must be interpreted as having direct effect, so that Turkish nationals to whom that provision applies are entitled to rely on those provisions directly before the Member States’ courts in order to have rules of national law which are contrary to it disapplied;

The first subparagraph of Article 6(1) of Decision No 3/80 must be interpreted, in circumstances such as those at issue in the main proceedings, as precluding legislation of a Member State, such as Article 4 of the Law on supplementing benefits (Toeslagenwet) of 6 November 1986, which withdraws the award of a benefit such as the supplement to invalidity benefit, made under the national legislation, from former Turkish migrant workers such as the respondents in the main proceedings when they have returned to Turkey after losing their right to remain in the host Member State because they became incapacitated in that Member State.

Article 9 of the Agreement establishing an Association between the European Economic Community and Turkey, signed at Ankara on 12 September 1963 by the Republic of Turkey and by the Member States of the EEC and the Community and concluded, approved and confirmed on behalf of the Community by Council Decision 64/732/EEC of 23 December 1963, does not apply to a situation such as that at issue in the main proceedings.

(<span class="super">1</span>) OJ C 22, 26.1.2008.