Facts
A., born in 1964, suffered a stroke in November 1999 and applied for disability insurance benefits in July 2000. At the time, the IV office denied the claim due to a lack of fulfillment of the one-year minimum contribution period. In December 2009, A. filed a new pension application, which the IV office granted in March 2015. On November 29, 2011, A. additionally applied for a helplessness allowance, which the IV office rejected in June 2012. A renewed application from September/October 2015 was also rejected by the IV office in May 2016.
The Social Insurance Court dismissed the appeals against these rulings. A. then filed a public law appeal with the Federal Court, requesting the granting of a helplessness allowance from May 2016.
Considerations
The Federal Court dismissed the appeal. It stated that the expiration of a waiting period is a prerequisite for the entitlement to a helplessness allowance, in analogous application of Art. 28 para. 1 lit. b IVG. This corresponds to the case law of the Federal Court in BGE 137 V 351 and the administrative practice according to the circular of the Federal Office of Social Insurance.
The law no longer provides for a second variant without a waiting period, as previously stipulated in Art. 29 para. 1 IVG. The requirements for benefits…