Refusal of the 20% supplement on the old-age pension for divorced persons whose former spouse is deceased

Facts

H., born on June 28, 1917, was married to B. from October 17, 1940 to October 22, 1953. After the death of her former husband on May 18, 1997, H. requested the payment of a higher widow's pension. However, the compensation fund refused to grant her the 20% supplement provided for in Art. 35bis OASIA, considering that only widows and widowers in the strict sense of the term are entitled to it, and not divorced persons whose former spouse is deceased.

Considerations

The Federal Insurance Court ruled that the text of Art. 35bis OASIA, which mentions "widows and widowers in receipt of an old-age pension", must be interpreted restrictively. Although Art. 24a OASIA assimilates divorced persons to widows and widowers under certain conditions for the right to a widow's or widower's pension, this assimilation does not extend to the provisions on the calculation of pensions, such as the 20% supplement provided for in Art. 35bis OASIA. The preparatory work for the…