BEG - Instructions in the case of death

1)     Deceased persons pensions

Compensation pensions are paid monthly in advance, e.g. End of April or beginning of May for the month of May. This pensions entitlement ends upon expiry of the month in which the beneficiary dies. Pension payments which are still made by the compensation authorities after this point in time must be paid back. As a consequence the survivors are committed to immediately informing the compensation authorities or the responsible German agency abroad as to the death of the pension beneficiary and all cheques or other forms of payments received after the death of the pension beneficiary are to be returned to the compensation authorities. In such a case please note that even after notification of the death it can still take up to six weeks until payments are stopped for bank technical reasons.

Moreover, an original death certificate or certified copy is to be sent to the compensation authorities.

In so far as the deceased person still had claim to payment of pension benefits in retrospect (for example, due to an increase in pension made in retrospect), these benefits can only be paid out to the inherits of the deceased person. As a general rule the hereditary succession must be evidenced by submitting a hereditary certificate. In certain cases other evidence will be sufficient; the compensation authorities will tell you more about this.

2)     Social assistance for funeral costs:

A claim for reimbursement funeral costs to a reasonable extent is only given when a specific infliction due to persecution has been recognized and health treatment has been granted in accordance with the Federal German Restitution Law [BEG] and it has been established that the deceased person has died as a result of this infliction.

Numbering amongst the funeral costs are the costs for the autopsy, embalming, coffin, funeral arrangements and the urn and laying in state apart from cost paid for the actual funeral and cremation including the usual church service and general celebrations. Also the expenses for the purchasing and first provision of the grave as well as for the grave stone and the expenses for obituaries and letters of thanks are included in the burial costs. Private and other insurance benefits (social insurances), which are granted for the burial and transportation will also be taken into account.

The appropriate application is to be made accompanied by detailed original invoices for the costs to be made valid, the public and private insurance benefits granted or paid for the burial and transportation. The documents are to be sent to the compensation authorities.

3)     Claims of survivors :

In contrast to social insurance, the Federal Compensation Act regulates individual compensation for victims of National Socialist persecution measures and primarily does not regulate the social security of the insured person or his relatives. The BEG therefore offers survivor's pensions or allowances only for a limited group of people and is also linked to other special conditions:

a)     Survivor's pension according to § 41 BEG:

  • The death must have been caused by a persecution-related health damage.
  • The deceased persecutee himself or his survivor must fulfill the personal eligibility requirements of § 4 or § 150 BEG.

            most important case groups: resident on the 31.12.1952 in the Federal Republic of Germany, persecuted from the expulsion areas with affiliation to the German language and culture or stay on 1.1.1947 in a DP camp in the Federal Republic of Germany and subsequent emigration, transition as a homeless foreigner in the Competence of the German authorities or acquisition of German citizenship.

Eligible are:

- the widow, and further, under certain other conditions, the widower.

- children only up to the age of 18 or, if still in education, until the age of 27 or if they became permanently disabled before that date.

- under certain further conditions, the parentless grandchildren of the deceased, relatives of the ascending line, adoptive parents and former spouses and life companions of the persecute

Application and application deadline:

- The application can be made informally (by simple letter).

- If the applicant had previously made his own timely application for compensation under the BEG by 01.04.1958, a one-year application period will apply.

- Otherwise, an informal application must be submitted immediately after death, together with a request for re-establishment of rights, as the general application deadline under the BEG (01.04.1958) has already expired.

- According to the administrative practice of the Landesamt für Finanzen , Amt für Wiedergutmachung  in Saarburg it is sufficient if the application is received by the compensation authority within a period of three months (if the applicant lives outside of Europe: six months) after the death of the victim.

b)    Survivor's allowance according to § 41a BEG:

  • The deceased persecutee must have received up to the date of his death a health damage pension under the BEG after a persecution related loss of earning capacity of at least 70%
  • He also did not die as a result of his persecution-related health damage
  • The deceased persecutee himself or the bereaved must meet the personal eligibility requirements of § 4 or § 150 BEG (s.o.) (OLG Koblenz v. 06.06.2018).

Eligible for the period of need:

- the widow, and further, under certain other conditions, the widower

- under certain further conditions the children (s.o.)

Application and application deadline s.o.

c)     Survivor's pensions under §§ 85, 97 or 157 BEG:

  • The deceased persecutee must have received a pension for damage in occupational advantage according to §§ 85, 93 or 156 BEG until his death.

Eligible:

- the widow, if the marriage was closed until 29.06.1956

- under certain further conditions the widower or the children

No formal application is required; sufficient is the informal message of death. The compensation authority then checks ex officio.

For further information please turn directly to the compensation authority in charge.