Attention retirees! Your pension could be forfeited: SGK issues statute of limitations warning
The Social Security Institution (SGK) has warned citizens regarding legal time limits, stating that retirement, disability, and survivor pensions that remain unclaimed for a long period may be subject to a statute of limitations.
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The Social Security Institution (SGK) has called on citizens to be vigilant, reminding them that payments related to social security rights—such as retirement, disability, incapacity income, and survivor pensions—may be subject to a statute of limitations.
For income and pensions that remain unclaimed for a long time, statute of limitations periods that vary according to insurance status and payment type are applied.
5-YEAR REQUIREMENT FOR PENSIONS BEFORE 2008
According to a column by İsa Karakaş from Türkiye newspaper, payments that are not collected within 5 years are subject to a statute of limitations, particularly for income and pensions granted under SSK and Bağ-Kur before October 2008.
In such cases, when a payment request is received, the SGK first checks whether the statute of limitations has expired. If the period has expired, payment for that period is not made.
On the other hand, no such statute of limitations is applied to pensions granted after 2008. Citizens who became entitled to receive income and pensions after this date do not lose their rights to payments, even if they remain unclaimed for a long time.
5-YEAR RULE ALSO APPLIES TO CIVIL SERVANTS
A similar situation applies to civil servants insured under the 4/1-c category. For these individuals, a 5-year statute of limitations period begins as of the first day of the month following the date of death for duty-related disability and survivor pension applications.
In the case of delayed applications, payments can only be made for the 5 years preceding the application date. There is no right to payment for periods outside of this timeframe.
In cases of disappearance (missing person), beneficiaries must apply to the SGK within 5 years from the date the court decision becomes final. Otherwise, only 5 years of retroactive pension payments can be made. Furthermore, lump-sum payments and other similar rights are also evaluated within the scope of the same statute of limitations.