Claims Conference Pension Amounts Equalized Following Negotiations with German Government
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Since the establishment of the Central and Eastern European Fund (CEEF) in 1998, which issues pensions to certain Holocaust survivors living in the former Soviet bloc, the Claims Conference has been strongly advocating to the German government that its monthly payment should be the same as the Article 2 Fund.
As of January 1, 2013, the monthly payments for CEEF will increase to €300, the same as Article 2.
In addition, the special pensions currently being paid to survivors age 75 or older who were in a ghetto for 3 to 11 months can be paid to any eligible survivor who lived under these conditions, regardless of current age, as of November 1, 2012. The Claims Conference also succeeded in increasing the amount of these pensions to €300 per month, as of January 1, 2013.
The equalization of pension payments will affect approximately 20,000 Holocaust survivors.
The Claims Conference also negotiated to reduce the time from 12 months to 6 months that victims had to have lived in hiding or under false identity in Nazi-occupied territories in order to be eligible for Claims Conference pensions. This will make an additional 5,000 survivors eligible for monthly pensions starting January 1, 2013, affecting primarily survivors persecuted in Hungary, Italy, France, Greece, and Slovakia. This follows a change in the criteria negotiated in November 2011 that reduced the time in hiding or living under false identity under Nazi occupation from 18 to 12 months.
As well, all one-time payments from the Claims Conference will be €2,556 as of November 1, 2012. Recipients of the Holocaust Victim Compensation Fund (HVCF) currently receive €1,900; those who have already been paid will receive a supplemental payment while those not yet paid will now receive €2,556.
July 10, 2012
