Brussels, 25/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - By allowing their authorities not to recognise mobile workers' documents certifying that they pay into the social security system of another member state (form A1) and to require mobile workers to pay into the Belgian national social security scheme, Belgian rules contravene EU law, says the European Commission in a reasoned opinion sent to Belgium on Thursday 25 September.
European workers temporarily posted to another member state may be exempted from paying social security contributions in the host state as long as they are able to prove that they pay their social security contributions in their home state. Host states are obliged to accept the relevant documents as long as they have not been withdrawn or declared invalid by the issuing state. However, Belgium does exactly the opposite in some cases, the Commission says. There are specific and clearly established EU rules to verify the validity of the documents presented by posted workers but Belgium chooses to invalidate them sometimes unilaterally. Belgium now has two months to remedy this situation, or the Commission may decide to refer Belgium to the EU Court of Justice. (JK)