Social Security Benefits
A number of legislative improvements have been reached since the year 2000 with regards to social benefits for survivors of the Shoah:
- An extension of the possibilities for Austrian victims of National-Socialist persecution, who were born on or before May 8, 1945, to participate in Austria's pension system.
- The possibility for receiving care benefits up to level 7 even if the recipient lives outside of Austria.
- It is no longer necessary to currently be an Austrian citizen to receive a victim's pension for those victims of persecution having suffered damage to their health.
An overview of social benefits in Austria:
- If the following statutory criteria apply, Austrian survivors of the Shoah are entitled, among other things, to the following social benefits:
- Beneficiaries' pension from the Pensionsversicherungsanstalt (PVA) social insurance institution
- Care benefits from the PVA should care be needed
- Victim's pension if proof is shown that the victims of National Socialism suffered damage to their health and the damage was directly caused by the National-Socialist regime.
- Widows or widowers of Austrian victims of National Socialist persecution are able to file a claim with the PVA for a widow's/widower's pension.
- In addition to their widow's/widower's pension, widows or widowers of deceased recipients of victim's pensions are also entitled to a survivor's pension under the Victim Welfare Act.
- Descendants of Austrian victims of National Socialist persecution are only entitled to receive pension and care benefits for which pension and care credits had already been accumulated and which can no longer be paid out to deceased insured persons.
The Center for Psychosocial Care ESRA has been available for individual counseling in matters involving social benefits and compensation since January 2009:
ESRA
Tempelgasse 5
A-1020 Vienna
Tel.: +43-1-214 90 14
Fax: +43-1-214 90 14-30
E-mail: office@esra.at