Facts
B., born in 1950, was employed as a member of the Border Guard Corps at the Federal Customs Administration until the end of October 2008. On November 1, 2008, he took a three-year pre-retirement leave. During the pre-retirement leave, B. received the full salary, with the social security contributions deducted and transferred monthly to the Compensation Fund as salary contributions.
The Federal Compensation Fund (EAK) informed B. that during the pre-retirement leave, he would be subject to the contribution status of a non-employed person. B. filed an objection to this decision, which was partially upheld by the Cantonal Court of Basel-Landschaft. The Federal Office for Social Insurance (BSV) then filed an appeal in public law matters against the cantonal decision.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court states that for the assessment of whether an insured person is employed, the actual economic circumstances, and not the contribution amount, are decisive. An insured person is subject to the contribution status of an employed person if they were engaged in an employment activity with contributions on the earned income and of a certain extent during the relevant period.
The pre-retirement leave according to Art. 34 BPV cannot be equated with a release from the employment contract. A deviation from the employment or…