R-9, r. 7 - Regulation respecting the implementation of the Agreement on Social Security between the Gouvernement du Québec and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany

Schedule Disposition versions

2012-09-01

SCHEDULE I

(s. 1)

AGREEMENT ON SOCIAL SECURITY BETWEEN THE GOUVERNEMENT DU QUÉBEC AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY

The Gouvernement du Québec

and

The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Desirous of ensuring the coordination of their social security legislation,

Have agreed to the following provisions:

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

1. In this Agreement:

(a) «territory» means, in regard to Québec, the territory of Québec, and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, the territorial area of application of the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany;

(b) «national» means, in regard to Québec, a Canadian citizen residing in Québec, and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, a German within the meaning of the fundamental law of the Federal Republic of Germany;

(c) «legislation» means, in regard to Québec, the acts and regulations respecting the Québec social security plan referred to in Paragraph 1 of Article 2, and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, the acts, regulations and other legislative instruments respecting the social security plans of the Federal Republic of Germany referred to in Paragraph 1 of Article 2;

(d) «competent authority» means, in relation to Québec, the Minister responsible for administering Québec legislation and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, the federal Labour and Social Affairs Minister;

(e) «institution» means, in relation to Québec, the department or agency responsible for administering Québec legislation and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, the agency or authority responsible for administering the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany;

(f) «competent institution» means, in regard to Québec, the department or agency responsible for administering Québec legislation and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, the institution responsible in each individual case for administering the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany;

(g) «insurance period» means, in regard to Québec, any year in respect of which contributions have been paid or for which a disability pension has been paid under Québec legislation, or any other year deemed equivalent; and in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany, any contributory period established or recognized as an insurance period under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany and any other period in so far as it is deemed equivalent to an insurance period under that legislation;

(h) «cash benefits» means a pension or any other cash benefit, including any additional benefit, supplement or increase.

2. Any term not defined in Paragraph 1 has the meaning assigned to it in the applicable legislation.

Article 2

1. Unless otherwise provided, this Agreement applies:

in regard to Québec, to the Québec Pension Plan;

in regard to the Federal Republic of Germany:

i. to the workmen’s pension Plan (Rentenversicherung der Arbeiter);

ii. to the employees’ pension plan (Rentenversicherung der Angestellten);

iii. to the mineworkers’ pension plan (Knappschaftliche Rentenversicherung);

iv. to the steelworkers’ supplementary pension plan (Hüttenknappschaftliche Zusatzversicherung);

v. to the farm workers’ old age pension plan (Altershilfe für Landwirte).

2. This Agreement also applies to any act, regulation or other legislative instrument in so far as it amends, adds to or replaces the legislation of the Contracting Parties.

3. Unless otherwise provided, legislation within the meaning of this Agreement does not include provisions consequent for one of the Contracting Parties upon agreements made with a third Government or supranational legislation or provisions made to ensure the application thereof.

Article 3

Unless otherwise provided, this Agreement applies to:

(a) the nationals of both Contracting Parties;

(b) any Canadian citizen who does not reside in Québec but who is or has been subject to Québec legislation;

(c) any refugee as defined in Article 1 of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees of 28 July 1951 and the Protocol thereto of 31 January 1967;

(d) any stateless person as defined in Article 1 of the Convention Relating to Stateless Persons of 28 September 1954;

(e) any other person in respect of acquired rights attributable to a person referred to in the preceding Paragraphs of this Article;

(f) nationals of a Government other than one of the Contracting Parties in so far as they are not persons referred to in Paragraph e.

Article 4

1. Unless otherwise provided by this Agreement, persons referred to in Paragraphs a to e of Article 3 who reside in the territory of either Contracting Party shall receive, in the administration of the legislation of one Contracting Party, the same treatment as the nationals of that Contracting Party.

2. The nationals of one Contracting Party who reside or are staying outside the territory of both Contracting Parties shall receive the benefits provided by the legislation of the second Contracting Party under the same conditions it applies to its nationals residing or staying outside the territory of both Contracting Parties.

Article 5

Unless otherwise provided by this Agreement, the legislation of one Contracting Party that subjects entitlement to cash benefits or the payment of cash benefits to the condition that the person in question resides or is staying in the territory of that Contracting Party is not applicable to persons referred to in Paragraphs a to e of Article 3 residing or staying in the territory of the other Contracting Party.

Article 6

Subject to Articles 7, 8, 9 and 10, a person is subject only to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the Contracting Party in whose territory he works.

Article 7

1. Where an employee employed in the territory of one Contracting Party is temporarily assigned by his employer under the terms of that employment to the territory of the other Contracting Party to carry out work therein for that employer, he remains subject, in respect of that employment, only to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the first Contracting Party for the first 60 calendar months of his employment in the territory of the second Contracting Party as if he were still employed in the territory of the first Contracting Party. If the duration of the work to be carried out extends beyond 60 months, the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the first Contracting Party remains applicable in so far as the competent institution of Québec and the competent authority of the Federal Republic of Germany or the agency the latter designates so agree, on application by the employee and his employer.

2. Where a self-employed person resides in the territory of one Contracting Party and works in the territory of both Contracting Parties, he is subject, in respect of that work, only to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the first Contracting Party.

3. Where a self-employed person resides in the territory of one Contracting Party and works solely in the territory of the other Contracting Party, the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of both Contracting Parties applies.

Article 8

A person who is a member of a ship’s crew and who, but for this Article, would be subject to the legislation of both Contracting Parties in respect of that employment is subject to German legislation only if the ship is authorized to fly the flag of the Federal Republic of Germany; in every other case, the person is subject to Québec legislation.

Article 9

1. Any person who is a national of one of the Contracting Parties and employed thereby or by another public sector employer in the territory of the other Contracting Party is subject, in respect of that employment, as provided in paragraph 2, only to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the first Contracting Party.

2. A person referred to in the preceding paragraph who, before beginning his employment for one Contracting Party or for another public sector employer of that Contracting Party, was residing in the territory of the other Contracting Party, is subject to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the latter Contracting Party. He may, within 6 months of beginning that employment, choose to be subject to the legislation respecting compulsory insurance of the first Contracting Party. The employer must be advised of that choice. The chosen legislation then applies from the notification date.

3. The provisions of Paragraphs 1 and 2 apply by analogy to a person employed by a person referred to in Paragraph 1.

Article 10

On application by the employee and his employer or on application by a self-employed person, the competent Québec institution and the competent authority of the Federal Republic of Germany or the agency designated by the latter may, by joint agreement, derogate from the provisions of Articles 6, 7, 8 and 9, provided that the person in question remains or becomes subject to the legislation of one of the Contracting Parties. In that event, the nature and terms of the employment will be taken into consideration.

TITLE II

PROVISIONS RESPECTING BENEFITS

Article 11

Where a person, under the legislation of either Contracting Party, has completed insurance periods that are admissible for the purposes of establishing entitlement to benefits and where he is not eligible for benefits under admissible insurance periods completed solely under the legislation of one Contracting Party, the competent institution of that Party shall totalize, to the extent required establish entitlement to benefits under the legislation it is applying, the insurance periods admissible under the legislation of each Contracting Party, in so far as they do not overlap.

Article 12

1. This Article applies to benefits payable under Québec legislation.

2. Where the totalization prescribed in Article 11 applies, the competent Québec institution shall proceed as follows:

(a) any calendar year including at least 3 months of insurance period admissible under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany is recognized as a contributory year;

(b) the years recognized under the preceding Paragraph are totalized with insurance periods completed under Québec legislation.

3. Where entitlement to benefits is acquired under Paragraph 2, the competent Québec institution determines the amount of benefits as follows:

(a) the amount of the part of the benefit related to earnings is calculated according to the provisions of Québec legislation;

(b) the amount of the flat rate of the benefit is established proportionately to the period in respect of which contributions have been paid under Québec legislation in relation to the contributory period as defined in that legislation.

4. A person’s entitlement to benefits under this Agreement may be acquired only if his contributory period as defined in Québec legislation is at least equal to the minimum contributory period that establishes entitlement to benefits under that legislation.

Article 13

The following applies for the Federal Republic of Germany:

(a) Where the conditions of establishing entitlement to a pension are met only by applying the provisions of Article 11, the insurance periods mentioned therein are assigned to the insurance plan for which the institution may determine benefits under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany only. If, in that event, the mineworkers’ pension plan institution is the competent institution, the insurance periods completed under Québec legislation are taken into consideration by the mineworkers’ pension plan only if they were completed in the service of a mining business in below ground operations.

(b) For the purposes of the totalization prescribed by Article 11, a period of residence in Québec that is recognized under the Old Age Security Act that applies on the territory of Québec is deemed to be an admissible insurance period by the competent institution of the Federal Republic of Germany.

(c) For the purposes of establishing entitlement to benefits under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany, under Article 11:

i. a month that ends on or before 31 December 1965 and that is recognized under the Old Age Security Act that applies on the territory of Québec as a month of residence is deemed to be a contributory month under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany;

ii. an insurance period completed under Québec legislation is deemed to be 12 contributory months under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany;

iii. a month beginning on or after 1 January 1966 and recognized under the Old Age Security Act that applies on the territory of Québec as a month of residence and for which no contribution has been paid to the Québec Pension Plan is deemed to be a contributory month under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany.

(d) In calculating the pension, only insurance periods to be taken into consideration under the legislation of the Federal Republic of Germany are used for the basis of calculation.

(e) Where the conditions for establishing entitlement to the pension are met only by applying the provisions of Article 11, in calculating the pension, one-half of the portion of the pension owing for complementary periods (Zurechnungszeit) shall be paid.

(f) Where the conditions for establishing entitlement to an orphan’s pension are met only by applying the provisions of Article 11, one-half of the additional amount (Erhohungsbetrag) shall be paid.

(g) For the purposes of suspending the compensation (Knappschaftsausgleichsleistung) paid to a mineworker who has left his employment as a miner, a Québec mining business is equivalent to a German mining business.

(h) Where the compulsory insurance of a self-employed worker depends on a minimum number of contributions, the insurance periods completed under Québec legislation are also taken into consideration.

TITLE III

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Article 14

1. The 2 Contracting Parties or the authorities they designate shall enter into an Arrangement that sets out the terms and conditions for administering this Agreement (Arrangement), including administrative procedures.

2. The liaison agencies of the 2 Contracting Parties shall be designated in that Arrangement.

Article 15

1. In accordance with the legislation they are applying, the authorities, institutions and associations of institutions of the Contracting Parties shall provide mutual assistance for the purposes of administering this Agreement and the legislation of the Contracting Parties. Such assistance shall be provided free of charge, except where it involves amounts disbursed as cash payments.

2. The competent authorities of the Contracting Parties shall forward to one another any information respecting changes made in their respective legislation in so far as such changes affect the administration of this Agreement.

Article 16

1. The forwarding of any information is respect of a person for the purposes of this Agreement is governed by the act respecting the protection of information of the Contracting Party whose agency forwards the information. Unless disclosure is required under the legislation of a Contracting Party, such information is confidential and may be used solely for the purposes of administering this Agreement and the legislation to which it applies.

2. Access to a file containing information is subject to the legislation of the Contracting Party in possession of the file.

3. For the purposes of the preceding Paragraphs, the word «information» means any information specifically concerning a natural or juridical person or any information from which the identity of such a person can be established.

Article 17

Cash benefits are validly payable by the institution of one Contracting Party, without the intervention of the liaison agency of the other Contracting Party, to any person residing in the territory of the latter, without deductions for administrative charges or any other expense, in the currency of either Contracting Party. If payment is made in the currency of the second Contracting Party, the exchange rate used is that in force on the day the bank transfer is made.

Article 18

1. Any waiving or reduction of administrative charges prescribed by the legislation of one Contracting Party in regard to the issuing of a certificate or document required under that legislation is extended to certificates and documents required under the legislation of the other Contracting Party.

2. Any deed or document required for the purposes of the legislation of the 2 Contracting Parties is exempted from endorsement of authentication by diplomatic or consular authorities and from any similar form of procedure.

Article 19

1. An application for benefits submitted after the coming into force of this Agreement under the legislation of one Contracting Party is deemed to be an application for similar benefits submitted under the legislation of the other Contracting Party. Unless otherwise provided in this Agreement, the date on which an application is received by the authorized agency of the first Contracting Party is deemed to be the date of receipt of the application by the competent institution of the other Contracting Party. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the applicant may demand that determination of the rights acquired under the legislation of the other Contracting Party be deferred.

2. If an application for benefits payable under the legislation of one Contracting Party was submitted to an agency of the other Contracting Party which, under the legislation of the latter Contracting Party, is authorized to receive an application for similar benefits, that application is deemed to have been submitted on the same date to the competent institution of the first Contracting Party. This provision applies by analogy to other applications, notices and appeals.

3. Applications, notices and appeals received by an agency of one Contracting Party shall be forwarded immediately by that agency to the competent agency of the other Contracting Party.

Article 20

1. The expert medical assessments prescribed by the legislation of one Contracting Party shall, to the extent possible, be carried out at the request of the competent institution in the territory of the other Contracting Party by the institution of the place of stay or residence of the applicant. The institution requesting the expert medical assessments shall reimburse the institution carrying them out for the cost of such assessments and for reasonable travel and living expenses related thereto. The applicant institution shall reimburse the person who undergoes an expert medical assessment for other expenses in accordance with the legislation it is applying.

2. The expert medical assessments carried out under the terms prescribed in Paragraph 1 may not be invalidated solely by reason of having been made in the territory of the other Contracting Party.

Article 21

For the purposes of the legislation of the Contracting Parties and of this Agreement, the agencies referred to in Paragraph 1 of Article 15 may communicate directly with one another and with the persons in question or their agents in the official language of each Contracting Party. A decision of a tribunal or an institution of either Contracting Party may be communicated directly to a person residing or staying in the territory of the other Contracting Party.

Article 22

1. Disputes between the 2 Contracting Parties in respect of the interpretation or administration of this Agreement shall, in so far as possible, be resolved by the competent authorities.

2. If a dispute cannot be resolved in that manner, it shall be submitted, at the request of one Contracting Party, to an arbitration board.

3. The arbitration board shall be an ad hoc body. Each Contracting Party shall appoint one member, and the 2 members shall agree to select as chairman a national of a third Government who shall be appointed by the Governments of the 2 Contracting Parties. The members shall be appointed within 2 months and the chairman within 3 months after one of the Contracting Parties has informed the other that it wishes to submit the dispute to the arbitration board.

4. If the periods prescribed in Paragraph 3 are not respected and in the absence of another arrangement, each Contracting Party may ask the President of the International Court of Justice to make the necessary appointments. If the President is a national of one of the Contracting Parties or if he is impeded for another reason, the Vice-President shall make the appointments. If the Vice-President is a national of one of the Contracting Parties, or if he likewise is impeded, the member of the Court immediately following in the hierarchy and who is not a national of either Contracting Party shall make the appointments.

5. The arbitration board shall make its decisions on the basis of existing treaties between the Governments and general international law, by majority vote. Its decisions are binding.

6. Each Contracting Party shall bear the expenses incurred by the activity of its own member, and the costs of his representation in proceedings before the arbitration board. The expenses of the chairman and other costs shall be borne equally by the 2 Contracting Parties. The arbitration board may law down other methods for the payment of expenses. In respect of other matters, the arbitration board shall determine its own procedures.

TITLE IV

TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 23

1. This Agreement does not establish entitlement to the payment of benefits for any period prior to the date of its coming into force.

2. For the purposes of this Agreement, account is taken of relevant facts that occurred under the legislation of the Contracting Parties before the coming into force of this Agreement.

3. The legal validity of decisions made before the coming into force of this Agreement does not obstruct the application of the provisions of this Agreement. Any benefits that have been refused or suspended shall, on application by the person in question, be reviewed, taking this Agreement into account.

4. Benefits granted before the date of coming into force of this Agreement shall be reviewed on application by the person in question. They may also be reviewed automatically. Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph 3, if that review results in there being no benefit or a benefit smaller than that last paid for any period preceding the coming into force of this Agreement, the benefit shall be maintained at the amount of the benefit previously paid.

5. The sixty-month period referred to in Article 7 runs from the date of coming into force of this Agreement for a person who is already on temporary assignment on that date.

6. For a person referred to in Paragraph 2 of Article 9 who has already taken up his duties on the date of coming into force of this Agreement, the six-month period runs from that date.

Article 24

The final Protocol is part of this Agreement.

Article 25

This Agreement also applies to the district of Berlin, unless otherwise stated by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Gouvernement du Québec within 3 months following the coming into force of this Agreement.

Article 26

Each Contracting Party shall advise the other when the internal procedures required for the coming into force of this Agreement have been completed. This Agreement comes into force on the date agreed to by the Contracting Parties.

Article 27

1. This Agreement is entered into for an indeterminate period. It may be terminated by one of the Contracting Parties by notice to the other Contracting Party. This Agreement ends on the 31st of December of the year following the date of notification.

2. In the event of termination of this Agreement, its provisions in respect of rights acquired up to the date of suspension of this Agreement will be maintained and negotiations will be undertaken to decide on the rights in the process of being acquired under this Agreement.

In witness whereof, the undersigned, duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.

Signed at Québec City on this 14th day of May 1987, in duplicate, in French and in German, both texts being equally authentic.

For the Gouvernement du

Québec

MICHEL GRATTON

For the Government of

the Federal Republic of

Germany

W. BEHRENDS

O.C. 1736-87, Sch. I.