An orphan's pension is a pension insurance benefit intended to cover the loss of income resulting from the death of a breadwinner.
This financial support is therefore intended to help meet the basic needs and maintain the standard of living of an orphaned child after the loss of his or her parent(s) or the person who cared for the child in lieu of parental care.
If the deceased was not a member of the armed forces, the Czech Social Security Administration is responsible for processing the application for an orphan's pension.
You are the orphan of a deceased parent, or of a person who has taken the place of your parent by virtue of a court decision, provided that the deceased was not a member of the armed forces and that you are also
With effect from 1 January 2012, in order to be entitled to an orphan's pension, the deceased person must have completed at least half of the insurance period required for entitlement to a disability pension at the time of death.
With effect from 1 February 2018, for the purpose of determining entitlement to an orphan's pension, the condition of the insurance period required for entitlement to an invalidity pension shall also be deemed to be satisfied if the deceased person had completed
(a) at least one year of insurance prior to the date of death, if he was not over 28 years of age on the date of death; or
(b) at least one year of insurance during the ten years preceding the date of death, if he was over 28 years of age on that date; or
(c) at least two years of insurance during the twenty years preceding the date of death, if the deceased was over 38 years of age on that date (this alternative condition will only be considered if the deceased was over 38 years of age on the date of death and did not satisfy the conditions set out in (b)).
You can apply for an orphan's pension at any time after the death of a parent or a person who has taken over the care of a parent. You will receive a pension from the date of entitlement and any unpaid pension instalments will be paid in a lump sum.
When applying for an orphan's pension, the following documents must always be submitted in their original form or as officially certified copies:
If the deceased was not a pensioner, the following documents relating to the deceased's periods of insurance must also be submitted:
An adult orphan who becomes an orphan after reaching the age of 18 applies for an orphan's pension in person, unless he or she applies online. In the case of a minor orphan, the application must be submitted in person by his or her legal representative or guardian if he or she does not apply online.
The application must be submitted by the parent or the person replacing the parent who was not a member of the armed forces, in person, as indicated above, or on the basis of a power of attorney issued by a representative, at the territorial contact office of the Social Security Administration of your choice or at your contact place of work (district Social Security Administration). The application must be made to an employee of the Social Security Administration on the prescribed form.
In the case of a person who is unable to apply on his or her own behalf because of his or her state of health, his or her family members may apply on the basis of a medical certificate attesting to his or her state of health, provided they give their consent.
The written application is then forwarded to the Czech Social Security Administration, which is responsible for deciding on the right to a pension and the amount of the pension if the deceased was not a member of the armed forces. The time limit for processing the application is 90 days from the date of filing the application. However, this period may be extended by the time it takes to investigate facts that are decisive for the right to a pension, its amount or payment and that the Czech Social Security Administration does not have in its records (e.g. undocumented missing insurance period of the deceased in the Czech Republic, period of employment/insurance of the deceased abroad).
If the Czech Social Security Administration does not have the facts relevant to the entitlement to a pension, its amount or payment, you as the pension claimant may be asked to submit them. You must comply with this request within 8 days of receiving it. You can document or confirm the required facts either in person at the territorial social security administration or at its contact workplace or by sending them by post directly to the address of the Czech Social Security Administration or by sending a data message to the data box of the Czech Social Security Administration or a data message with a recognised electronic signature to the address of its electronic filing office. You can find contact details on the Czech Social Security Administration website.
As soon as the Czech Social Security Administration has all the necessary documents, it will decide on the application for an orphan's pension. If the conditions for entitlement are met, the Czech Social Security Administration will send you a written decision on the granting of an orphan's pension, stating the date from which the pension will be granted and the amount. If the conditions for entitlement are not met, the Czech Social Security Administration will send you a written decision on the rejection of your application for an orphan's pension, stating the reasons for the rejection.
If an orphan's pension is paid to a dependent child on the basis of his or her continuous preparation for future employment, the Czech Social Security Administration continuously checks the duration of the entitlement to the orphan's pension. It is therefore your responsibility as a recipient to prove that you continue to meet the conditions for receiving this pension. This continuous verification begins after the end of compulsory schooling, when it is necessary to provide proof of the child's subsequent studies, i.e. studies at a secondary school, higher vocational school or university. You can send the document directly to the Czech Social Security Administration or submit it to the local social security administration, which will forward it to the Czech Social Security Administration. You are also obliged to present your study certificate at any other time if the Czech Social Security Administration asks you to do so.
If the conditions for receiving an orphan's pension cease to apply, you are obliged to notify the Czech Social Security Administration of this within 8 days. For example, if an orphan's pension is paid to a dependent child on the basis of his or her continuous preparation for a future profession and the orphan prematurely terminates or interrupts his or her studies, he or she is obliged to report this fact.
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A dependent child whose parent has died or whose care has been taken by a person replacing the parent by virtue of a court decision shall receive financial support in the form of an orphan's pension from the date of the death of the parent or the person in question for the entire period of the child's dependency (but not later than the age of 26).
A dependent child is considered to be a child until the end of compulsory schooling, and then until the age of 26 at the latest, if he or she is permanently preparing for a future occupation, or is unable to prepare for a future occupation because of illness or injury, or is unable to work because of illness or injury or a long-term health problem. After leaving compulsory education, a child who is registered with the labour office as a jobseeker and who is not entitled to unemployment benefit or retraining benefit is also considered dependent until the age of 18.
Written objections to the decision of the Czech Social Security Administration in matters of pension insurance may be filed as a proper remedy within 30 days from the date of notification of the decision to the party to the proceedings.
The objection must contain the same information as an appeal under Section 82 of the Administrative Code, i.e. it must first and foremost indicate who is submitting it, what is at issue and what is being proposed, i.e. it must contain the name of the participant and the administrative body to which it is addressed, as well as the signature of the person submitting it.
It shall also state the decision to which objection is made, the extent to which it is contested and the grounds on which it is considered that the decision or procedure which preceded it is contrary to the law or incorrect.
If the appeal does not specify the extent to which the participant contests the decision, it shall be deemed to request the annulment of the entire decision.
The submission of an appeal does not have a suspensive effect if the decision concerns the fulfilment of the sanction obligation of the beneficiary or the employer. Objections are submitted to the Czech Social Security Administration, which issued the decision and also decides on them.
Appeals may be submitted within the specified time limit directly to the Czech Social Security Administration or to any territorial social security administration or to its counterpart - the district social security administration. Therefore, first-instance decisions of the Czech Social Security Administration do not become legally effective upon delivery, but only upon expiry of the 30-day period for submitting objections, or upon delivery (notification) of the decision of the Czech Social Security Administration on objections.
The Czech Social Security Administration examines the contested decision in its entirety; at the same time, it is not bound by the objections submitted and may also decide against the party to the proceedings. Proceedings on appeals must be conducted separately from the first-instance decision of the Czech Social Security Administration - persons who took part in the proceedings to issue the contested decision cannot take part in them or make decisions in them.
The submission of an appeal is a proper remedy in administrative proceedings, and the successful or unsuccessful outcome of the appeal proceedings is therefore a necessary condition for the matter to be considered by the court in the context of possible subsequent administrative proceedings.
However, a beneficiary who considers that his rights have been infringed may file a lawsuit against the final decision of the Czech Social Security Administration within 2 months from the date of delivery of the decision on the appeal. The details of the appeal are regulated by the Administrative Court Act (Act No. 150/2002 Coll.).
The Regional Court (Municipal Court in Prague) in whose district the plaintiff resides or in whose district the plaintiff is domiciled has jurisdiction over the action.
If the person is not domiciled or resident in the Czech Republic, the Regional Court in Brno shall have jurisdiction if the person is domiciled or resident in the Slovak Republic; the Regional Court in Ostrava if the person is domiciled or resident in the Republic of Poland; the Regional Court in Pilsen if the person is domiciled or resident in the Federal Republic of Germany; the Regional Court in České Budějovice if the person is domiciled or resident in the Republic of Austria.
If the jurisdiction of the regional court cannot be determined in this way, the competent regional court shall be determined according to the last place of residence of the person on the territory of the Czech Republic, and if the jurisdiction cannot be determined in this way, the competent regional court in Prague shall be determined.
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