Facts
Rogelio [F.], of Spanish nationality, passed away on December 5, 1976. His widow, Claudina [F.], domiciled in Spain, submitted a claim for a widow's pension to the Swiss Compensation Fund on April 5, 1984. As the partial pension to which she was entitled was less than 10% of the full ordinary pension, the Fund granted her a lump-sum allowance of 3154 francs instead of a monthly benefit.
Claudina [F.] appealed this decision to the Federal Appeals Commission for Old Age and Survivors' Insurance/Disability Insurance for persons residing abroad, requesting the payment of a monthly pension. However, the Commission dismissed the appeal and revised the initial decision, considering that Claudina F.'s right to the lump-sum allowance was "prescribed" under Art. 46(1) OASI.
Considerations
The Federal Insurance Court upheld the administrative law appeal filed by the Swiss Compensation Fund. It considered that the reasoning of the lower courts was not relevant, as there is no analogy between the one-time widow's allowance and the lump-sum allowance in question. The latter constitutes merely an administrative prescription, intended to allow for more rational management of the Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (OASI), and cannot be subject to the same jurisprudence as the one-time widow's allowance.
Thus, if the pension amount had been higher than 10% of the full ordinary pension, Claudina [F.] would have been entitled to a monthly benefit, within the five-year time limit of Art. 46(1) OASI. The situation would not have been different if she had been domiciled in Switzerland at the time of her claim. The…