Social Insurance Law
PART 1: THE CONSOLIDATED ACT ON SOCIAL INSURANCE
PART 1: Private Schemes for Provident Funds, Pensions, Benefits and Payments Established by Employers and Legal Leaving Indemnity for Past Services Preceding Participation in Social Insurance
Article 93
All private schemes established by employers who are subject to the provisions of this Law shall be frozen as from the effective date of this Law, whether such schemes are in the form of provident funds, pensions, benefits or payments or in any other form, and whether such schemes are established under private agreements between such employers and their employees and workers or whether established at the discretion of employers individually. The funds of such schemes shall continue to be invested in favour of its beneficiaries until they are liquidated or replaced by other schemes. There shall be set up by Order of the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs a committee to audit the movable and immovable assets of such schemes
Article 94
The assets referred to in the preceding Article shall include, until their reference to the General Organisation or to the worker who has the right to receive it or to his heirs, the interests, profits, returns, investments and earnings of such assets, contributions of the employers and other elements constituting such assets, whether movable or immovable or whether retained by the employers who are subject to this Law or by trustees representing them or their employees and workers, and whether such assets are available within the country or outside it. Workers and employers who are participating in such schemes shall cease to contribute to such private schemes with effect from the date of their coverage by the Law.
Article 95
The assets of the private schemes referred to in Article 93 and 94 above which shall be assigned to the General Organisation by a written declaration by the worker shall be deemed to be included among the assets of the General Organisation immediately after its assignment and an account therefor shall be kept with the said Organisation for reference when necessary. The General Organisation shall notify every employee and worker of his entitlements and of the period added to his account in the period of contribution in social insurance against old-age, disability and death on the reversion of such entitlements to the General Organisation. The Minister for Labour and Social Affairs may permit payment of funds alluded to in Articles 93 and 94, referred to above, by instalments over five years during which the employer pays each instalment to the General Organisation at the end of each year together with annual interest at the rate of 5% until the date upon which the payment of the instalment is made
Article 96
Every employer whether bound or not to his workers by the private schemes referred to in Article 93 above, shall pay to the General Organisation, in accordance with the wish of those of his workers, their leaving indemnity assessed under the Labour Law, contracts of service, basic work rules, collective agreements or usage for the period of service preceding participation in the social insurance.
An employer shall, within the first month from the date of implementation of the Law, furnish the General Organisation with a list, certified by him or his authorized representative, containing each insured worker's name who expresses his wish have his past period of service prior to participation in social insurance being reckoned for him in the period of contribution in the social insurance in return for each entitlement, containing the date of joining employment and the amount of leaving indemnity up to date of his participation in social insurance. The General Organisation shall notify every insured person of his entitlements, the period reckoned for him in the period of contribution in the social insurance against old-age, disability and death in return for such entitlements. The Organisation shall keep a special account for each worker of such entitlements and of the period added to his account in the social insurance.
The payment of the sums referred to in the first paragraph shall be made in a lump sum together with the social insurance contributions due for the first month of the application of the Law.
An employer may, by a written request contained in a registered reply-paid letter, pay the sums referred to in the preceding paragraph in five annual equal instalments, the first of which shall be payable to the General Organisation at the end of the first year of the application to him of the Law and the remainder at the end of each subsequent year.
The instalments shall be payable with 5% interest per annum.
This shall not prejudice the rights of the insured persons to any excess between that which is borne by the employers under the contracts, rules and agreements referred to in the first paragraph or in accordance with generally accepted practice, and the leaving indemnity payable under the Labour Law, on the basis of the entire period of service, which shall be payable by the employer to the worker after subtracting the amount paid to the General Organisation.
PART 2: Registration of Employers and Workers with the General Organisation; Forms Used; Accounts of Contributions and Objectives
Article 97
The General Organisation shall, within a period to be specified by Order of the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs made for the actual implementation of the Law in the first and subsequent stages of application, enumerate the establishments, employers and workers and register them. The employers and workers shall be registered in accordance with the numbering system to be prescribed by a decision of the Director General.
Employers shall maintain the numbers of their participation in the social insurance and the registration numbers of their workers, and most quote such registration numbers, for identification, in all correspondence relevant to the implementation of the provisions of the Law, whenever necessary.
Article 98
The General Organisation shall issue an identification card with a social insurance fixed identification number to every worker upon registration for the first time. Such identification card shall also contain the following particulars:
- the worker's full name up to four names, (family name and surname, if any);
- the worker's social insurance fixed identification number
- the worker's date of birth and evidence thereof
Such identification cards shall be sent to the employer by whom the worker is employed on the date of his resignation together with a covering list of names in original and a copy thereof. The employer shall return the original list to the General Organisation indicating therein his declaration that he has delivered the identification cards to the respective workers. Where the employer is unable to deliver the identification card to a worker because of his leaving employment, he shall return the identification card to the General Organisation for subsequent delivery.
The worker shall always retain the identification card of his registered social insurance identification number and present it to every employer upon joining his employment and retrieve it after having its particulars recorded. He shall also quote such number in all correspondence relating to any aspect of the implementation of the provisions of the Law.
Article 99
An employer who fulfils the conditions of the application of the provisions of the Law as prescribed by Orders of the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, shall, within two weeks from the date of the application of the provisions of the Law to him, apply to the General Organisation, or to its field office under whose jurisdiction his establishment comes, for registration in the register of employers maintained by the General Organisation.
Employers who, for the first time, commence business after the application of each of the stages of application of the Law, or who have the number of workers required to form the minimum which shall be available for the application of the provisions of the Law at each stage, shall apply for registration with the General Organisation within two weeks from the date of commencement of business or the date of the formation of the minimum, as may be appropriate.
An application for registration of their workers shall be supported by a birth certificate or anything to this effect, specimens of the signature of the employer or his authorized representative, in addition to a detailed list including every worker's wages and monthly contribution on the basis of the first month of application of this Law.
The detailed list of wages referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be submitted by the employer in January of every year.
Every employer subject to the provisions of the Law shall furnish the General Organisation, or its field office under whose jurisdiction his business comes, with the particulars of every worker joining his employment or leaving his service within two weeks from such joining or leaving his service thereafter on the forms provided for this purpose.
Article 100
The Minister for Labour and Social Affairs shall, after the consent of the Board of Directors, determine the registers and books which an employer shall maintain, the files which shall be maintained for every insured person and the documents which shall be maintained for every insured person and the documents which shall be maintained therein, the forms in which the particulars of employers and workers shall be submitted, the registration certificates issued to employers in the application of Article 103, in such other forms and the sale price thereof and the method of providing them and the number of copies of each form to be submitted and the appointed dates for the submission thereof.
Article 101
An employer shall attach to the document of the monthly payment of the social insurance contributions such particulars as shall be determined by the Ministerial Order referred to in the preceding Article, together with the forms of workers whose services terminated during the preceding month (the month for which contributions are paid) and the forms of workers who joined his employment during the said month.
Article 102
The completion and submission of the forms, particulars, registers, books and documents referred to in the preceding Articles 99, 100 and 101 within the time limits specified shall be amongst the executive measures of the Law and failure to submit such forms of their submission with incomplete particulars or the necessary enclosures thereto or in the event that they do not conform with the true facts or in the event of delay in their submission to the General Organisation or to its field offices within whose area of jurisdiction the employer's business is located and within the time limit prescribed, shall constitute an offence liable to the penalties provided for in Article 148 and 149 of this Law.
Article 103
The General Organisation shall provide every employer who has fulfilled his obligations towards it with a certificate indicating his registration in the social insurance registers, and such certificate shall be valid only if it bears the official seal of the General Organisation. In the case of an employer having a number of branches and each of them is treated as an independent employer, a separate certificate shall be issued in respect of each such branch.
Such certificate shall be valid until the end of the Gregorian calendar year in which it is issued. It shall be renewed annually by an application made by the employer to the General Organisation, or to its field office under whose jurisdiction his business is located.
Such certificate shall be issued or renewed only after the employer has submitted all the required forms duly completed with all particulars and after fulfilling all of his obligations towards the General Organisation up to the date of the issue of such certificate
Article 104
The insurance contributions shall be computed on the basis of the particulars recorded in the forms and registers referred to in Articles 99, 100 and 101 above. When an employer fails to submit such completed forms together with the particulars, the contributions payable shall be computed on the basis of the last list submitted by him to the General Organisation until the actual contributions payable are computed.
If an employer fails to submit such forms or if he submits such forms incomplete or where the registers, documents and files referred to in Article 100 are not available, the contributions payable shall be computed on the basis of the last list submitted by him to the General Organisation or according to the result of its inquiry concerning the determination of the extent of his obligation towards the General Organisation in accordance with the rules to be issued by an Order of the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs on a recommendation of the Board of Directors.
The General Organisation shall notify the employer by registered reply-paid letter of the amount of contributions computed in the aforesaid manner and of the other sums due from him to the Organisation.
Am employer may, within thirty days from the date of receipt of the notification referred to in the preceding paragraph, object to such claims, by registered reply-paid letter.
The General Organisation shall, within thirty days from the date of receipt of such objection, reply to it, and in the event of rejecting such objection, the employer may request the General Organisation to refer the dispute to the dispute Settlement Committee within thirty days after the lapse of the time limit referred to in this paragraph or from the date of his receipt of the rejection by the General Organisation.
Such Committee and the other dispute settlement committees shall be established with the consent of the Board of Directors by an Order of the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, which Order shall determine the procedure for their functions and the remuneration of members.
Both the General Organisation and the employer may, within the thirty days following the notification of a decision to the party concerned by a registered reply-paid letter, object to the decision of the Committee before the Senior Civil Court, otherwise the calculation shall be deemed to be final.
PART 3: Assessment of Age and Assessment of Employment and non-Employment Disability
Article 105
The age of an applicant for an old age pension, shall be determined by his birth certificate or by an official extract thereof or by any other official document acceptable to the General Organisation. Where no such documents are available, the age shall be determined by a Medical Board to be set up by Order of the Minister for Health.
Both the General Organisation and the insured person may, within thirty days from the date of learning of such determination, object to the decisions of the Medical Board by submitting an application for the assessment of age to the Appellate Medical Board provided for in Article 106.
The decision of the Medical Board, in the event that it is not so challenged, and the decision of the Appellate Medical Board on assessing the age, shall be final even if a birth certificate or any official document is produced thereafter.
Article 106
One or more Medical Boards shall be set up by Order of the Minister for Health, and shall have exclusive jurisdiction to :-
- assess the degree of disability for entitlement to non-employment disability pensions; or compensation and pensions for employment disability
- determine the nature of injury or occupational disease and the degree of disability
- decide any other relevant matter provided for in this Law
The General Organisation, the insured person or any of the heirs may, within thirty days from the date of notifying the challengeable decision to the party concerned by register letter, object to the decisions of the Medical Board before the Appellate Medical Board to be set up by an Order of the Minister for Health.
The Order of the Minister for Health shall specify after agreement with the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, the formalities before the Medical Boards and the Appellate Medical Board as well as the remuneration of members.
PART 4: Interruption of Limitation and Lapse of Right
Article 107
The period of limitation shall be interrupted by reminding the employer to pay the sums due to the General Organisation under this Law by registered reply-paid letter indicating the amount of such sums.
Such limitation shall not operate against the General Organisation in respect of an employer who has not participated in the social insurance for all or some of his workers except from the date on which the General Organisation learns of their entering his employ. Such limitation shall not operate also in respect of the payment of contributions on the basis of false wages returns except only from the date on which the General Organisation learns of such fact.
Article 108
All rights of the General Organisation against employers, insured persons, pensioners and heirs shall lapse after the passage of fifteen years from the date on which such rights fall due without being claimed previously by registered reply-paid letter.
The right of an insured person or his heirs to daily allowances for an injured and to funeral expenses shall lapse after the passage of one year from the date of the injury or death without making any previous claim therefor. The right to other grants, compensations and pensions shall lapse after the elapse of five years from the date on which such grant, compensation or pension falls due without making a previous claim therefor.
A claim for any of the foregoing sums shall involve a claim for the remainder of the sums due from the General Organisation. Where the operation of the period of limitation provided for in the preceding paragraph is interrupted by one of the heirs who makes a claim within the time-limit, it shall be interrupted for all of the heirs.