Pmo Termination of Service Guide 2017
Pmo Termination of Service Guide 2017
Pmo Termination of Service Guide 2017
Termination of service
of temporary and contract staff members and
accredited parliamentary assistants
Practical Guide
2017
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FOREWORD
This guide is intended for temporary and contract staff and accredited
parliamentary assistants who are preparing to leave the service but are not
retiring1 or being recruited2 on a new contract in the EU institutions, bodies or
offices (hereafter ‘the EU institutions’).
If you are in this position, this guide will tell you about the administrative steps
you need to take so that your financial entitlements in the EU institutions can be
wound up and you can rejoin a national social insurance scheme in a
Member State.
This guide should help you understand the procedures to follow in order to:
Other financial or legal obligations and allowances may need to be adjusted (paid
or reimbursed to/by former staff members) on leaving employment. Such
adjustments include :
If you will be moving house when you leave the service, the following may
also be relevant:
approval and reimbursement of removal expenses;
reimbursement of travel expenses;
the resettlement allowance.
These matters are not all dealt with by a single unit; they need to be settled with
the relevant department in the EU institution or agency that employed you.
1 Guides are available for those retiring or leaving on grounds of invalidity. These can be found on the Pensions pages of HR and
Administration’s MyIntraComm.
2 Staff who are being recruited on a new contract should first contact the administration that is recruiting them in order to establish or
retain their individual rights and ensure that any removal and installation expenses are reimbursed if they will be serving in another
place of employment.
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Before leaving, remember to hand back:
any equipment or books you borrowed for carrying out your duties;
your special identity card (and those of family members) and the
EUR number plate for your car.
We recommend that you keep open the bank account that was used for paying
your salary until all your financial entitlements have been paid. You should also
communicate any change in your home address or bank account to the
department responsible for your last salary and, where necessary, to your
unemployment manager.
September 2017
In the event of a dispute, only the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European
Union and Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Union
apply3.
3 Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 of 29 February 1968 (OJ L 56, 4.3.68), and subsequent amending Regulations.
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Contents
Preamble ................................................................................................ 5
1. Unemployment allowance ........................................................................ 7
1.1 Conditions for receiving an allowance ................................................. 7
1.2 Duration ......................................................................................... 8
1.3 Amount .......................................................................................... 8
1.4 Calculation...................................................................................... 8
1.5 Taxation ......................................................................................... 8
1.6 Supplementary family allowances....................................................... 9
2. Unemployment allowance forms ............................................................... 9
2.1 Claim for Community unemployment benefit ..................................... 10
2.2 Monthly EC-FTS form / Sworn statement ........................................... 10
3. Compiling your file ............................................................................... 11
3.1 Within eight days of expiry of the contract......................................... 11
3.2 Within 30 days of expiry of the contract ............................................ 11
3.3 Each month .................................................................................. 12
4. Special cases ....................................................................................... 12
5. Sickness insurance ............................................................................... 14
6. Pension contributions ............................................................................ 16
6.1 Pensions ....................................................................................... 16
6.2 Severance grant ............................................................................ 16
6.3 Transfer of pension rights ............................................................... 18
7. Other entitlements ............................................................................... 18
7.1 Removal and travel expenses .......................................................... 18
7.2 Resettlement allowance .................................................................. 19
7.3 Annual leave not taken or in negative balance ................................... 19
7.4 Termination of the contract ............................................................. 19
8. Contacts ............................................................................................. 21
8.1 Submitting documents.................................................................... 21
8.2 For more information ..................................................................... 21
Annexes ................................................................................................. 22
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Preamble
Before reading this guide, you are strongly advised to complete the leaving form
sent to you by DG HR before your departure, to ensure that all administrative
formalities have been properly completed. If you have not received this form,
please request one from the HR B1 DEPARTS mailbox.
If you are on maternity leave when your contract ends, you will receive a salary.
Your entitlement to the unemployment allowance will only be dealt with after the
end of this period. If you give birth during this period, please send in the birth
certificate via PMO CONTACT.
So, before departure, you should make sure you have the necessary documents
for determining your entitlements in respect of the national social security
scheme and the transfer of the amount of your pension rights to another scheme
and, where appropriate, your supplementary unemployment allowance. This file
will enable you to rejoin a national social security scheme in your place of
residence and start a new job.
These forms are available for Commission staff members in SYSPER, at the
earliest 15 days before the end of the contract, via
https://www.cc.cec/SYSPER2/per/viewHrmforms.do .
If you have left the service because your contract has expired, this certificate will
normally enable you to register as unemployed/as a jobseeker, since your
employment ended for reasons beyond your control.
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3. a certificate of membership of the Joint Sickness Insurance Scheme (JSIS)4 to
demonstrate the existence of cover for reimbursement of medical expenses
(during your contract with the EU institution), to be produced when joining a
national scheme so as to avoid serving a qualification period for cover and
reimbursement;
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1. UNEMPLOYMENT ALLOWANCE
No later than eight days after your contract ends, submit a formal
application for EU unemployment allowance;
5 Articles 28a(1) and 96(1) of the Conditions of Employment of other Servants (CEOS):
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/docs/toc100_en.pdf
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1.2 Duration
Temporary/contract staff members and accredited parliamentary assistants
entitled to an unemployment allowance may receive it for a period equivalent to a
third of the length of the contract, up to a maximum of 36 months.
See 8. Contacts
1.3 Amount
First 12 months: maximum 60% of the basic salary.
Second year (if applicable): maximum 45 % of the basic salary.
Third year (if applicable): maximum 30 % of the basic salary.
Important ! 6
No ceiling is applied to the amount of the allowance in the first six months. After
this period, the following ceilings are applied:
For temporary staff7:
Minimum: € 1.425,79
Maximum: € 2.851,59
For contract staff8:
Minimum: € 1.069,34
Maximum: € 2.138,67
For accredited parliamentary assistants:
Minimum: € 940,79
Maximum: € 2.213,62
1.4 Calculation
[Since during the period of employment the contribution to the unemployment
insurance scheme is calculated on the basis of the full-time basic salary (even in
the case of part-time work)], the allowance is always calculated on the basis of
the total amount of the last full-time basic salary.
1.5 Taxation
Community tax is levied if the basic amount of the unemployment allowance
(60% of the basic salary) exceeds €2 739.619.
6 All figures in this guide may change following the annual salary adjustment.
7 Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 420/2008 and Article 28a(3) of the CEOS.
8 Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 420/2008 and Article 96(3) of the CEOS.
9 Article 6 of Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 260/68:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31968R0260:en:HTML
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While unemployed you may obtain a tax declaration, on request, from the EU
unemployment manager.
Before the end of their contract, temporary and contract staff and
accredited parliamentary assistants should contact11:
the European School, as you will have to bear all the tuition
fees and the cost of the school bus. The tuition fees and
cost of transport may be reimbursed up to the flat-rate
ceiling of the education allowance referred to above;
the day nursery/after-school centre, as you will no longer
be entitled to benefit from this service.
The following forms and documents must be sent to PMO/4, with the exception of
the proof of registration for national medical cover, which must be returned to the
Settlements Office (see point 10 of Annex I).
See 8. Contacts
10 https://myintracomm.ec.europa.eu/staff/en/family/benefits/Pages/education-allowance.aspx
11 https://myintracomm.ec.europa.eu/staff/en/family/benefits/dependent-child-allowance/Pages/index.aspx
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2.1 Claim for Community unemployment benefit
Documents to be submitted with Annex 1:
a copy of the contract (and extensions of the contract if more than one);
POINT 11: if you have dependent children, complete this part and
attach the relevant documents for all income you receive for the children
(such as study grants, family allowances of a similar nature received
from other sources, etc.).
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From the second month of unemployment, it should be submitted within 15 days
of the form being stamped by the national authority.
Details:
POINT 1: complete this part and specify your institution or agency and
its postal address.
POINT 5.1 should be ticked and if POINT 5.2 is also selected you have
a maximum of 2 months to allow for an answer to be received from the
national authority.
If, at the time of leaving the service, you are covered by a medical certificate or
on maternity leave, or awaiting a certificate of new residence, you must send a
sworn statement (Annex IV) (+ medical certificate where applicable) instead
of the EC-FTCS form.
Complete, sign and date the Claim for Community unemployment benefit (see
2.1) and send it, together with the relevant documents:
by e-mail to [email protected]
See 8. Contacts
The important thing is to send the claim for unemployment allowance; the
supporting documents may be sent later, but this should be done as soon as
possible.
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after 30 days will automatically lead to non-recognition of the days between the
date of leaving the service and the date of registration.
The EC-FTCS form or the sworn statement, as described in 2.2, should be sent to
PMO/4 by e-mail to the address [email protected].
See 8. Contacts
Complete, date and sign the EC-FTCS form or sworn statement (see 2.2) and
send it to PMO/4.
See 8. Contacts
It must be signed/sent not earlier than the last working day of the month just
completed, as follows:
Part A (points 3.1, 3.2 and 4) completed by the competent national
job placement authorities;
Part B (points 5, 6, 7 or 8, and 9) by the competent national
authorities responsible for payment of unemployment benefits.
In order to avoid any delay in the processing of these documents, they must be
submitted as soon as possible to PMO/4, no sooner than the last working day of
the month and no later than within the first 15 days of the following month.
4. WHAT IF :
When you find a new job, you need to inform the PMO in writing with a
letter bearing your signature in which you indicate the change, the date as
of which you start working again and the name and address of the new
employer. As a result of taking up employment again, you will stop being
entitled to the EU unemployment allowance.
If at the end of this new employment, you are still within the period for
which you are entitled to the EU unemployment allowance (see under 1.2)
you can again start receiving the EU unemployment allowance if the
conditions to register as a jobseeker and apply for national unemployment
allowance are fulfilled. You will need to provide a copy of the contract of
employment with the last employer, plus any documents showing that the
termination of the contract is involuntary.
If you have dependent children aged 18 to 26, at the start of every new
school year or every new semester, you need to submit the usual
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documents confirming that your dependent child(ren) is continuing his or
her education or vocational training.
You need to inform the PMO of every change in your personal or family
circumstances.
In case you change your residence, you need to submit a new certificate
of residence.
In case you change your bank account and/or your address, you (also)
need to submit a new Financial Identification form.
Remember!
Avoid any delay in the payment of your benefits by following the rules and
supplying all the information in time.
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5. SICKNESS INSURANCE
You must therefore register with a national sickness insurance scheme in order to
benefit from EU top-up cover during a period of unemployment covered by
supplementary EU unemployment allowance.
If your contract has expired, you should first request an ‘end of primary cover’
certificate from the Membership Entitlements department at your Settlements
Office.
In Belgium, this means registering with a ‘caisse de mutuelle’ as a resident
(registration is free).
If the national system of your place of residence refuses primary cover, primary
cover will be provided by the JSIS. Proof of refusal of primary cover by the
national system should be sent without delay to the Membership Entitlements
department at your Settlements Office, so that they can update your sickness
cover as quickly as possible.
For those who are not entitled either to unemployed status or unemployment
benefits in Belgium, proof of refusal of cover by the Belgian ‘mutuelle’ is not
required.
Pending confirmation by the national system, the JSIS may provide primary
cover. This decision will be reviewed when the national scheme decides whether it
will be providing primary cover or not.
For this reason you are asked not to send any claims for reimbursement of
medical costs during the first two months of unemployment, if possible.
Staff who have resigned and are not entitled to EU unemployment allowance
must ask the Membership Entitlements department at their Settlements Office for
an end-of-cover certificate to allow them to register with a national medical
insurance scheme in their country of residence.
If primary cover is refused by the national insurance scheme, they can ask for an
extension of primary cover through the JSIS for a maximum of six months,
provided:
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- they show they cannot obtain reimbursement through any other compulsory or
statutory sickness insurance scheme;
- they pay one half of the contribution to the current scheme calculated by
reference to the most recent updated basic salary for their grade and step.
The request for cover must be submitted before the end of the first month
following the date of resignation or the end of the contract, using the form
provided (Annex XIII).
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6. PENSION CONTRIBUTIONS
6.1 Pensions
Pension contributions paid into the EU pension scheme must be repaid to staff
members when they finally leave the service of an EU institution/agency/office.
As explained below, pension rights are regularised in two different ways
(‘severance grant’ or ‘transfer out’), depending on:
the starting date of each contract (before or after the reform of the Staff
Regulations of 1 May 2004);
the length of service;
the staff member's age on leaving the service, and
any contributions to a national scheme kept up during the period of
employment with the EU institutions.
12 = 12 months;
1.9%: annual rate of acquisition of pension rights in the
EU pension scheme;
Pensionable years in decimals: number of years of
employment and contributions (three and a half
years = 3 years 6 months = 3.5);
Actuarial coefficient: coefficient according to life
expectancy and age at time of leaving the service.
Staff who, at the end of their contract, are not entitled to a retirement/invalidity
pension from the European institutions may request the payment of a severance
grant:
if they have completed less than one year of service and have not
transferred pension rights acquired in another scheme to the EU pension
scheme;
See Annex V (2 pages)
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Calculation: the severance grant will be equal to three
times the pension contributions deducted from the basic
salary12.
for temporary staff only: if they have completed at least one year of
service but, for the duration of the contract, have asked the institution to
effect the payments which they are required to make in order to establish
or maintain their pension rights in their country of origin (application of
Article 42 of the CEOS).
The severance grant consists of the personal contributions deducted from the
monthly basic salary (plus compound interest) and an amount proportional to the
actual length of service (equivalent to one-and-a-half times the last basic salary
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for each year x the number of pensionable years in decimals). The severance
grant is subject to Community tax at the rate applied to the last salary in service.
See Annexes VIII and IX
Important !
Some national pension systems set a deadline and specific
conditions for the transfer of pension rights. It is up to staff
members to check the specific conditions of admissibility that may
apply under the national scheme in their case.
see Annex IX
7. OTHER ENTITLEMENTS
16 A transfer under this arrangement is also possible for staff members leaving after 63 but before 65 years of age.
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Should their place of resettlement not be the same as their place of origin, the
staff concerned must, before incurring such expenses, apply to PMO/4 to have
their place of origin changed and enclose documents proving that they have
resettled in another place (lease/deed of ownership for the new address, utility
bills, new employment contract, etc.).
1. The calculation is based on two months' basic salary provided that they
and their family, who must be considered to be dependent and living
under the same roof at the time when they leave the service, make the
same transfer of residence. If they move alone or rejoin their family,
the allowance is equivalent to one month's basic salary.
2. Staff who have worked for a period of less than four years (but not less
than one year) qualify for a reduced resettlement allowance which is
proportional to the number of full years worked.
In order to receive this allowance they must provide documents proving the
actual change of residence and the accommodation costs borne by them or,
where applicable, their dependent family (lease or deed of ownership and utility
bills).
See application form in Annex XI
This allowance will not be granted or may be reclaimed if staff or their family
receive a similar grant from a new employer.
17 https://myintracomm.ec.europa.eu/staff/en/working-conditions/benefits/Pages/removal-expenses.aspx
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7.4 Termination of the contract18
In the case of certain types of dismissal the employer will calculate compensation
for termination of the contract (see the HR department of your last place of
employment). PMO will be responsible for payment.
For information:
The employer may decide to dismiss a member of the temporary staff before
the end of their probation period by giving them at least one month's notice. A
temporary staff member whose contract is terminated during the probation period
is entitled to compensation equal to one third of their basic salary per month of
probation completed.
Temporary staff members themselves may also terminate their contracts before
expiry by giving notice of not less than one month per year of service. The period
of notice must be at least one month and at most three months. If the staff
member's contract has been renewed, the maximum period of notice is six
months.
Remember that staff members who terminate their contract themselves will not
be entitled to unemployment allowance.
If the institution terminates the fixed-term contract, the same principle as that
applicable to temporary staff holds: compensation equivalent to one third of basic
salary for each remaining month of the contract.
18 Legal basis: Articles 14, 47 and 48 of the CEOS for temporary staff and Article 84 of the CEOS for contract staff.
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8. CONTACTS
Questions on termination of service can be sent via:
https://ec.europa.eu/pmo/contact/en/
Send all your documents relating to the regularisation of pension rights to:
MY INTRACOMM
EUROPA
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ANNEXES
The following annexes are intended for staff who worked in the Commission. They
can be used by staff in the agencies, but must be submitted to the agency itself
(not directly to PMO).
Staff who served in other institutions must contact the department that
administers individual entitlements at their last place of employment.
20 https://myintracomm.ec.europa.eu/staff/en/working-conditions/end-of-service/Pages/index.aspx
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