Facts
F. is employed as a tax commissioner at the tax administration X. On August 1, 1992, the general meeting of M. AG elected him as the auditor. During an employer inspection, it was found that the company had not paid any social security contributions on the remuneration of CHF 5,000 paid to F. in 1993. The compensation fund of the Swiss mechanical engineering industry then obliged M. AG to pay retroactive AHV/IV/EO/ALV contributions, including administrative costs, amounting to CHF 608.30.
M. AG filed a complaint against this decision. The AHV/IV appeals commission of the canton of Thurgau dismissed the complaint, as F. was not employed as a self-employed auditor and the disputed compensation therefore constituted determining wages.
M. AG renewed its legal claim from the previous instance by filing an administrative court appeal.
Considerations
The Federal Insurance Court states that the obligation to pay social security contributions of employed persons is to be assessed according to whether the earned income is to be classified as self-employment or employment. The decisive factor is the economic circumstances, not the legal nature of the contractual relationship.
The court finds that the regulation of Art. 7 para. 1 let. h AHVV, according to which compensation to the part-time auditor of a public limited…