Alex Trelinski
A 69-YEAR-OLD Spaniard has lost his entitlement to a state pension because he did not make social security payments for three years.
The man named Zahid worked for 46 years but a lengthy legal battle has ended in a defeat after an appeal was rejected by the Madrid High Court.
The state pension can be paid out after a minimum contribution period of 15 years, with two continuous years of work before applying for it.
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He was refused the benefit and decided to sue the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) and the General Treasury of Social Security (TGSS).
Zahid lost the original case at a Madrid Labour Court in October 2023 on the grounds that he did not meet the specific waiting period requirement of two years and also was not up to date with his contributions.
The bench said Zahid worked a total of 16,945 days of which 2,566 days was under a self-employed status.
His pension application was submitted in November 2020 and before that, the INSS told him to pay some contributions that were still outstanding.
Those dates were between May 2008 to September 2010 and from January 2011 to August 2012.
The Madrid High Court threw out his appeal and confirmed the judgment of the lower court.
The rulings send out a clear message about the importance of keeping up with contributions to qualify for the state pension.
