Opinion of Advocate General Lenz delivered on 12 January 1993

1 Original language: German.

2 Council Regulation No 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community, in the version annexed to Council Regulation No 2001/83 of 2 June 1983, OJ 1983 L 230, p. 6, last amended by Regulations 1247, 1248 and 1429/92 of 30 April 1992, OJ 1992 L 136, p. 1.

3 The Law of 27 June 1969 was partially superseded and amended by the Law of 27 February 1987 and supplemented by the Law of 20 July 1991 which entered into force on 1 August 1991.

4 Moniteur belge of 1.8. 1991, p. 16971.

5 Cf. Article 4(1)(2), cited above.

6 Case C-39/74 Costa v Belgium [1974] ECR 1251; Case C-187/73 Callemeyn v Belgium [1974] ECR 553 and Case C-7/75 Mr & Mrs F. v Belgium [1975] ECR 679 and cf. the Report for the Hearing in Case C-326/90 Commission v Bel-f'ium [1992] ECR I-5517, arguments of the Commission eading to a judgment against Belgium.

7 Cf. Regulation No 1247/92 of 30 April 1992 amending Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community (OJ 1992 L 136, p. 1).

8 Cf. Article 4(2)(a) and Annex II to Article 10(a) of Regulation No 1408/71.

9 Cf. Article 3 of the amending Regulation No 1247/92, cited above, footnote 6.

10 Case C-39/74, cited above, paras 5 and 6; Case C-24/74 Caisse Régionale d'Assurance Maladie v Biason [1974] ECR 999, para. 9; Case C-183/73 Callemeyn, cited above, para. 6 and Case C-356/89 Newton v Chief Judication Officer [1991] ECR 3017. All these judgments concerned aid to disabled persons. Also compare Joined Cases 379/85 to 381/85 and 93/86 Caisse Régionale d'Assurance Maladie Rhône-Alpes v Oletti [1987] ECR 954, para. 9. This judgment concerned a supplementary allowance.

11 Emphasis added.

12 Cf. Case C-39/74 Costa, cited above, footnote 5 and Cases C-249/83 Hoeckx v Openbaar Centrum voor Maatschappelijk Welzijn Kalmthout [1985] ECR 973, para. 12, pointing out that the risk covered must relate to a type of allowance specified in Article 4(1) of the regulation: the judgment concerned a benefit guaranteeing a minimum means of subsistence, like Case C-122/84 Scrivener v Centre Public d'aide Sociale Chastre [1985] ECR 1027, para. 19, and cf. Case C-9/78 Directeur Régionale de la Sécurité Sociale Nancy v Gillard [1978] ECR 1661, para. 5, on recognizing periods of captivity as a prisoner of war for the purposes of calculating pensions; the characteristics and purpose of the benefits are used as criteria.

13 Emphasis added.

14 Cf. Case C-39/74 Costa, cited above, footnote 5, paras 7 and S. With regard to the double function of social benefits, see also Case C-139/82 Piscitello v INPS [1983] ECR 1428, para. 12. This judgment concerned classification of a supplementary pension. See also C-187/73 Callemeyn, cited above, footnote 5, para. 8. In this regard see Case C-1/72 Frilli v Belgium [1972] ECR 457, para. 14 and 15, concerning guaranteed minimum old age pension; also in this regard concerning a supplementary pension payment from a national solidarity fund see Joined Cases C-379 to 381/85 and 93/86, cited above, para. 10.

15 See Costa, cited above, footnote 5, paras 9 to 11.

16 C-187/73 Callemeyn, cited above, footnote 5, para. 11; see in this regard also Case C-356/89 Newton, cited above, footnote 9.

17 Case C-7/75 Mr & Mrs F. F cited above, footnote 5 and C-63/76 Inzirillo v Caisse d'Allocations Familiales Lyon [1976] ECR 2057.

18 Case C-7/75 Mr & Mrs F., cited above, footnote 5, para. 17.

19 Cf. Case C-7/75, cited above, footnote 5, paras 18 to 20.

20 Case C-63/76, cited above, footnote 16, paras 15 to 17.

21 See observations of the applicant, para. 11. This should probably read Urlaub ohne Gewährung von Bezügen (der ohne Bezüge beurlaubte Beamte), see the questions submitted for a preliminary ruling, subsidiary question 1.

22 Joined Cases C-389/87 and C-390/87 Echternach and Moritz v Minister for Education and Science [1989] ECR 723, paras 11 and 12.

23 Cf. Case C-148/79 Commission v Belgium [1980] ECR 3881, para. 11.

24 Cf. Echtemacb and Moritz, cited above, footnote 21, para. 14.

25 Echternach and Moritz, cited above, footnote 21, para. 15.

26 Emphasis added.

27 International Convention on Cooperation for the Safety of Air Navigation Eurocontrol, amended in 1981, law of 16 November 1984, Moniteur belge of 30 April 1985, p. 6014 and Bundesgesetzblatt (BGBl.) 1984, Part II 69, 71.

28 Case C-40/76 Kermaschek v Bundesanstalt für Arbeit [1976] ECR 1669.

29 Cf. Kermaschek, cited above, footnote 27, para. 7.

30 Case C-157/84 Frascogna v Caisse des Depots et Consignations [1985] ECR 1739, para. 15.

31 Case C-94/84 ONEM v Deák [1985] ECR 1873, para. 11.

32 Case C-147/87 Zaoui v CRAMIF [1987] ECR 5511, para. 11.

33 C-4/76 Kermaschek, unemployment benefit, C-157/84 Frascogna, old age allowances, C-94/84 Deak, unemployment benefit and C-147/87 Zaoui, supplementary invalidity allowances for nationals of a nonmember country.

34 Case C-243/91 Belgium v Taghavi [1992] ECR I-4401, paras 7 and 8.

35 Council Regulation No 1612/68 of 15 October 1968 on the freedom of movement of workers within the Community, OJ, English Special Edition 1968 (II), p. 475.

36 Regulation No 1251/70 of the Commission of 29 June 1970 on the right of workers to remain in the territory of a Member State after having been employed in that State, OJ, English Special Edition 1970 (II), p. 402.

37 Case C-7/75, cited above, footnote 16.

38 Case C-63/76, cited above, footnote 16.

39 Case C-63/76, cited above, footnote 16, paras 18 to 21.

40 Cf. Case C-249/83 Hoeckx, cited above, footnote 11, para. 20 and Case C-122/84 Scrivener, cited above, footnote 11, para. 24.

41 Cf. Article 10(l)(a) of Regulation No 1612/68.

42 Case C-316/85 CPAS de Courcelles v Lebon [1987] ECR 2811, para. 12.

43 Case C-316/85, cited above, footnote 41.

44 Cf. Case C-3/90 Bernini v Dutch Minister for Education and Science [1992] ECR I-1071, para. 22 et seq.

45 Case C-316/85, cited above, footnote 41.

46 Case C-243/91, cited above, footnote 33, para. 11.

47 Case C-63/76, cited above, footnote 16, para. 18.

48 Case C-3/90, cited above, footnote 43, para. 26.

49 Cf. the Opinion of Advocate General Jacobs in Case C-111/91 Commission v Luxembourg [1993] ECR I-817, at p. I-818, point 33.