Under the Social Security Institution (SGK), monthly pensions and other benefit payments are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. Benefits that are not claimed within the applicable period can only be recovered retroactively up to five years from the date of claim. Therefore, payments such as wedding grants or funeral allowances lapse if they are not requested within five years.
Pay Attention to Deadlines
Certain payments and supports administered by the Social Security Institution are subject to statute-of-limitations rules and must be claimed within specified timeframes. Some pensions and income benefits paid by SGK are not always claimed promptly for various reasons. Accordingly, insured persons under 4A (SSK) and 4B (Bağ-Kur), as well as civil servants who started working under 4C status for the first time after 2008, must claim income and pensions related to workplace accidents, occupational diseases, disability, or death within five (5) years from the date the right arose. If these benefits are not claimed within that period, the rights expire and beneficiaries cannot claim those amounts later.
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Those who can prove that failure to apply resulted from a justified reason are not affected by the five-year limitation. However, unexplained five-year delays or postponements will invalidate the rights. In cases of death due to a workplace accident or occupational disease, other entitlements arising from insurance also become void if not claimed within the relevant time limit.
When the Limitation Period Starts
For SGK payments, the key point for the five-year statute of limitations is that the institution only pays amounts due for up to five years prior to the date of the claim. In other words, income and pensions corresponding to periods exceeding five years are not payable. Under earlier SSK and Bağ-Kur regulations, the start date for the five-year limitation could be determined differently—SSK often used the date the right arose, while Bağ-Kur sometimes used the date of death. However, with the Social Insurances Law No. 5510, effective from 2008, a uniform rule was established: the five-year limitation runs from the date the right arose for all insured persons. For example, if a woman’s father died in 2012 and she divorces her spouse in 2016, the five-year limitation for claiming orphan’s pension starts from the divorce date.
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Start Date in Work-Related Cases
For workplace accidents and occupational diseases, determining the start date of the limitation period is critical. The starting point is generally the commencement date of the disability (work incapacity) benefit. If there is a health board report stating that the loss of earning capacity in the profession is at least 10 percent, the date on that report is accepted as the start of the limitation period.
If a court case is necessary to establish the percentage loss of earning capacity from a work accident or occupational disease, the relevant benefit payments begin from the first day of the month following the court’s decision. For a civil servant who began work for the first time after 2008 and dies in retirement, it is possible to set the start of the limitation period as the first day of the month following the death. If the person dies while still in service (not yet retired), the five-year limitation generally begins on the 15th of the month following the death. For SSK and Bağ-Kur insured persons, for example, if a person dies on January 1, the survivor’s pension could be established starting February 1. In all such cases, claimants must strictly observe the five-year limitation period.
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