The Federal Court of Germany has announced that it has
canceled its demand that Jews of German origin currently
residing in other countries be able to write fluent German in
order to be eligible for pensions.
As of now, a Jew who originates from an "ethnic group of the
German language and culture in Europe" can demand pension
payments from the German state pension funds if he files the
required application within the next four years. Until now,
German refugees not only had to know how to speak and read
German in order to be eligible for the pension, but also how
to write the German language.
The decision was made in the wake of the request made of an
83-year-old Jew currently residing in Israel who originated
in the German region in Romania.
The court's decision is the result of a change which was
introduced in 1995 in the Israeli-German agreement of the
National Security Fund (Bituach Leumi) which currently
enables Nazi victims who left Germany many years ago to
receive pension payments from the German government.
