Facts
The case concerns a job seeker who received a reimbursement claim from the employment office of the canton of Aargau for an amount of 18'629.55 Swiss francs. The job seeker filed an application for waiver of this claim after receiving a payment notice from the employment office. The application for waiver was rejected by the employment office and then by the social insurance court of the canton of Aargau, on the grounds that the application had been filed too late, after the expiration of the 30-day period provided for in Article 4, paragraph 4, of the Ordinance on Unemployment Insurance Benefits (GSSLO).
The job seeker appealed against this decision to the Federal Court, arguing that the 30-day period was a simple ordinance and not a time limit.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the question of whether the 30-day period provided for in Article 4, paragraph 4, GSSLO for filing an application for waiver is an ordinance or a time limit. The Federal Court recalled that, according to case law, the period provided for in the former Article 79, paragraph 2, of the Ordinance on Social Insurance (AHVV) was considered an ordinance.
The Federal Court considered that, even if the wording of Article 4, paragraph 4, GSSLO differs from that of the former Article 79, paragraph 2, AHVV, there is no reason to deviate from this case law. Indeed, the legislator has not explicitly provided for a time limit for filing an application for waiver, and Article 3, paragraph 3, of the Ordinance on Unemployment Insurance Benefits (ATSV) provides that the insurer may…