The Supreme Court has declared illegal a provision in the administrative instruction that required contributory pensioners to present proof of education obtained before January 1, 1991 in order to qualify for pension benefits.
According to the Court’s announcement on Wednesday, this ruling means that contributory pensioners will now have their diplomas obtained after this date recognized as well.
“With this ruling, the Supreme Court has declared illegal and annulled paragraph 5 of Article 5 of Administrative Instruction No. 09/2015 (MPMS), which regulated the categorization of contributory pension beneficiaries according to educational qualifications and the duration of contribution payments,” the announcement reads.
The Court noted that the contested provision, which required proof of educational qualifications obtained before 01.01.1991, lacked legal basis and exceeded the authority granted by law. The reasoning of the judgment emphasized that the pension law does not link pension rights to the timing of educational qualifications, but rather to the payment of contributions and fulfillment of legal conditions.
“The annulled provision was arbitrary, without any clear legitimate purpose, and disproportionate, as it excluded an entire category of contributory pensioners who met the legal requirements, solely based on the timing of their educational qualification,” the announcement stressed.
The Supreme Court further stated that the restriction violated the principle of equality before the law and legal certainty, creating a distinction between pensioners in the same circumstances regarding contributions and pensionable service.
“The provision annulled is inconsistent with the Law on State-Financed Pension Schemes and undermines fundamental principles of the legal order, imposing an unjustified and discriminatory restriction on contributory pension beneficiaries,” concluded the Supreme Court.
