Hello,
In order to continue receiving a pension from Germany, the Deutsche Rentenversicherung (DRV) requires the beneficiary (a Slovenian citizen) to obtain a Certificate of Living by post once a year from the administrative unit (UE) and to send it back to the DRV as proof that he/she is still alive and entitled to receive a pension. So far, so good. Since many elderly people have difficulty walking or are even immobile, it is extremely difficult or even impossible for them to get to the UE. This year, I wanted to arrange for my father to get the certificate himself, but this time there were complications:
Problem 1 - Not uniform: Last year at another UE I was able to arrange this without my father, just with his ID card, but this year the UE insists that they want to see my father in person. Standardise the practice!
Problem 2 - Distinction: It is illogical that the UE does not need the beneficiary to be alive when reporting to ZPIZ (for a domestic pension), but does for a foreign pension. If for ZPIZ the living data from the UE database is sufficient, then I really see no reason why the same data should not be sufficient for the DRV. Since the UE does not send the residence data to the DRV electronically, but via a certificate per beneficiary, the UE clerk should simply consult the UE data and validate the Residence Certificate, regardless of whether the beneficiary is present in person or not.
Problem 3 - Unpatriotic: The UE has a less restrictive approach to certification for the payment of domestic pensions than for foreign pensions, where they require personal presence. This implies or gives the appearance that they are more concerned about the pension budget of the German Republic than about the funds of the Republic of Slovenia. Very sad! Please fix these problems and allow all UEs to validate the Certificate of Living only on the basis of UE data without the necessary presence of the beneficiary.