1. TRANSFER OF THE ACTUARIAL EQUIVALENT OF PENSION RIGHTS ACQUIRED UNDER AUSTRIAN PENSION SCHEMES TO THE COMMUNITY PENSION SCHEME (ARTICLE 11(2) AND (3) OF ANNEX VIII TO THE STAFF REGULATIONS)
   
   Officials and temporary staff covered by Article 2(a), (c) and (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants who have acquired pension rights under Austria's general social security scheme (ASVG), social security schemes for the self-employed (GSVG, BSVG) or civil service scheme are informed that it is now possible to transfer the actuarial equivalent of these pension rights to the Community scheme.
   
   
   
   1. Officials and temporary staff covered by Article 2(a), (c) and (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants who entered the service of the Communities after leaving the service of a national government department, a national organisation or a private undertaking or after a period of self-employment and have acquired, by virtue of such service or self-employment, pension rights under the ASVG, GSVG, BSVG or Austrian civil service scheme may apply to the institution for which they work for the actuarial equivalent of these rights to be transferred to the Community scheme.
      
      
   2. Pursuant to the general provisions for giving effect to Article 11(2) of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations, published in Administrative Notices No 789 of 16 April 1993, any such application must be made in writing on the form attached at Annex I:
      
      
      
      1. in the case of officials:
         
         within six months of the date of written notification of establishment or within six months of the date of reinstatement after a period of leave on personal grounds or a period of secondment (see Article 11(3) of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations);
         
         
      2. in the case of temporary staff covered by Article 2(a), (c) and (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants:
         
         within six months of the date on which they complete the period of service necessary to generate entitlement to a Community pension (see Article 77 of the Staff Regulations).
         
      
      Applications must be received by the Community administration before the expiry of the six-month period, failing which they will not be considered unless the delay in submitting the application is due to exceptional circumstances, the causes of which are not attributable to the applicant.
      
   
   
2. TRANSFER OF PENSION RIGHTS ACQUIRED UNDER THE COMMUNITY PENSION SCHEME TO AUSTRIA'S GENERAL SOCIAL SECURITY SCHEME, THE ASVG (ARTICLE 11(1) OF ANNEX VIII TO THE STAFF REGULATIONS)
   
   Officials and temporary staff covered by Article 2(a), (c) and (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants who leave the service of the European Communities and join an Austrian social security scheme are informed that it is now possible to transfer their rights under the Community scheme to the ASVG.
   
   Article 12(2) of the EU-Beamten-Sozialversicherungsgesetz (EUB-SVG) stipulates that applicants must submit their application for such transfer to the institution for which they worked and must do so within six months of leaving the service of the European Communities.
   
   Failing this their applications will not be considered unless the delay in submitting the application is due to exceptional circumstances, the causes of which are not attributable to the applicant.
   
   
3. TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
   
   
   
   1. 
      
      
      
      • Community officials,
        
        
      • Community temporary staff who have completed the period of service necessary to generate entitlement to a Community pension (Article 77 of the Staff Regulations),
        
        who are already working for a Community institution on the date this notice is published,
        
        
      • civil servants who already belong to an Austrian scheme on the date this notice is published,
        
        or
        
        
      • Community officials, Community temporary staff or members of an Austrian pension scheme who are already in receipt of a pension on the date this notice is published,
        
      
      WHO HAVE NOT PREVIOUSLY BEEN ABLE TO EXERCISE THEIR RIGHT TO TRANSFER THEIR PENSION RIGHTS BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF AN AGREEMENT WITH THE SCHEME CONCERNED
      
      must submit their application in writing to the relevant Community administration
      
      WITHIN SIX MONTHS OF THE DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE.
      
      
   2. Temporary staff covered by Article 2(a), (c) and (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants who were already in the service of the Communities prior to the date of publication of this notice but who have not yet completed the period of service necessary to generate entitlement to a Community pension (Article 77 of the Staff Regulations)
      
      MUST SUBMIT THEIR APPLICATION AT THE LATEST WITHIN SIX MONTHS OF THE DATE OF COMPLETING THE PERIOD OF SERVICE NECESSARY TO GENERATE ENTITLEMENT TO A COMMUNITY PENSION.
      
      
   3. Applications must be received by the administration before the expiry of this six-month period, failing which they will not be considered except where the delay is due to exceptional circumstances beyond the applicant's control.
      
      
   4. Where officials or temporary staff have died before the date of publication of this notice or within six months of that date, the persons entitled to a survivor's pension following such death are covered by these transitional arrangements.
      
   
   
   
4. GENERAL REMARKS
   
   Transfer pursuant to Article 11(2) and (3) of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations
   
   
   
   1. Submission of an application does not commit applicants to a transfer of pension rights at this stage. Individuals will have to take a final decision once they have been informed by the Community administration how a transfer will affect their Community pension.
      
      
   2. Before applying for the transfer of their pension rights, staff should bear in mind the following:
      
      
      
      1. As the Staff Regulations currently fix the maximum Community pension at 70% of final basic salary, a higher rate cannot be paid as the result of a transfer.
         
         
      2. Since widows/widowers and orphans are guaranteed a minimum Community pension, a transfer of pension rights may not necessarily be of any advantage to them and they are therefore requested to contact the Community administration before taking a final decision.
         
         
      3. The years of pensionable service credited to the Community scheme as the result of a transfer of pension rights are not taken into consideration for the purpose of calculating the ten years of service necessary to generate entitlement to a Community pension (Article 77 of the Staff Regulations).
         
         
      4. Only pension rights acquired before the applicant entered the service of the European Communities may be transferred, together with any rights acquired during periods of leave on personal grounds or periods of secondment.
         
         
      5. Where there are several persons entitled to a survivor's pension, the application will not be considered unless it has been duly dated and signed by all of them.
         
         
      6. Applications may not be withdrawn once the administration's proposal regarding the number of pensionable years' service to be credited to the applicant has been accepted in writing.
         
         
      7. Transfer of the actuarial value may still be made even if a pension is already being paid from an Austrian pension scheme. In that event either all amounts received under the Austrian scheme must be repaid plus 3.5% interest or these amounts must be set against the sum transferred.
         
      
      
   3. Before taking a final decision on whether to transfer their pension rights (and after they have received the administration's proposal), staff should bear in mind the following:
      
      The transfer entails the loss of all rights acquired under the Austrian pension scheme in respect of the periods concerned. Pension rights acquired after entering the service of the Communities (e.g. through voluntary contributions) are not affected. Such rights may be refunded, however, on application by the insured person under Article 9(1) and (2) of the EUB-SVG
      
      Officials and temporary staff who, at the time of application, are still in a non-pensionable employment relationship in Austria as a civil servant employed by the Federal Government or as a teacher employed by a Land Government are automatically dismissed from such employment relationship once the transfer has been accepted and carried out (Article 2 et seq. of the EUB-SVG).
      
      Transfer pursuant to Article 11(1) of Annex VIII to the Staff Regulations
      
      Transfer of the actuarial value retrospectively extinguishes entitlements under the Community pension scheme. Any amounts already paid out must be repaid to the Community administration, although this does not apply to pensions paid during temporary invalidity if the recipients were subsequently reinstated.
      

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