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Do Bilateral Social Security Agreements Deliver on the Portability of Pensions and Health Care Benefits? A Summary Policy Paper on Four Migration Corridors Between EU and Non-EU Member States

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  • Holzmann, Robert

    (University of New South Wales)

Abstract

This policy paper summarizes four corridor studies on bilateral social security agreements (BSSAs) between four EU Member and two non-Member States, draws conclusions on their results, and offers recommendations. BSSAs between migrant-sending and migrant-receiving countries are seen as the most important instrument to establish portability of social security benefits for internationally mobile workers. Yet only about 23 percent of international migrants profit from BSSAs and their functioning has been little analyzed and even less assessed. The four corridors studied (Austria-Turkey, Germany-Turkey, Belgium-Morocco, and France-Morocco) were selected to allow for comparison of both similarities and differences in experiences. The evaluation of these corridors' BSSAs was undertaken against a methodological framework and three selected criteria: fairness for individuals, fiscal fairness for countries, and bureaucratic effectiveness for countries and migrant workers. The results suggest that the investigated BSSAs work and overall deliver reasonably well on individual fairness. The results on fiscal fairness are clouded by conceptual and empirical gaps. Bureaucratic effectiveness would profit from ICT-based exchanges on both corridors once available.

Suggested Citation

  • Holzmann, Robert, 2016. "Do Bilateral Social Security Agreements Deliver on the Portability of Pensions and Health Care Benefits? A Summary Policy Paper on Four Migration Corridors Between EU and Non-EU Member States," IZA Policy Papers 111, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izapps:pp111
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alain Jousten, 2015. "The Retirement of the Migrant Labor Force: Pension Portability and Beyond," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 61(2), pages 416-437.
    2. United Nations (UN), 2016. "International Migration and Development," Working Papers id:11048, eSocialSciences.
    3. Martin Werding & Stuart R. McLennan, 2015. "International Portability of Health-Cost Cover: Mobility, Insurance, and Redistribution," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 61(2), pages 484-519.
    4. Bernd Genser & Robert Holzmann, 2016. "The Taxation of Internationally Portable Pensions: Fiscal Issues and Policy Options," CESifo Working Paper Series 5702, CESifo.
    5. Avato, Johanna & Koettl, Johannes & Sabates-Wheeler, Rachel, 2010. "Social Security Regimes, Global Estimates, and Good Practices: The Status of Social Protection for International Migrants," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 455-466, April.
    6. R. Holzmann & P. Dale & Florence Legros, 2015. "Assessing Benefit Portability for Migrant Workers," Post-Print hal-01507860, HAL.
    7. Lazear, Edward P, 1979. "Why Is There Mandatory Retirement?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 87(6), pages 1261-1284, December.
    8. Robert Holzmann & Johannes Koettl, 2015. "Portability of Pension, Health, and Other Social Benefits: Facts, Concepts, and Issues," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 61(2), pages 377-415.
    9. Robert Holzmann & Martin Werding, 2015. "Portability of Social Benefits: Research on a Critical Topic in Globalization," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 61(2), pages 335-345.
    10. Holzmann, Robert & Koettl, Johannes & Chernetsky, Taras, 2005. "Portability regimes of pension and health care benefits for international migrants: an analysis of issues and good practices," The Social Policy and Labor Discussion Paper Series 32750, The World Bank.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Alvaro Gonzalez & Luc Christiaensen & David Robalino, 2019. "Migration and Jobs," World Bank Publications - Reports 31807, The World Bank Group.
    2. Giulia Bettin & Eralba Cela & Tineke Fokkema, 2018. "Return intentions over the life course: Evidence on the effects of life events from a longitudinal sample of first- and second-generation Turkish migrants in Germany," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 39(38), pages 1009-1038.
    3. Holzmann, Robert & Wels, Jacques, 2018. "Status and Progress in Cross-Border Portability of Social Security Benefits," IZA Discussion Papers 11481, IZA Network @ LISER.
    4. Robert Holzmann & Jacques Wels, 2020. "The cross‐border portability of social security benefits: Status and progress?," International Social Security Review, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 73(1), pages 65-97, January.
    5. Mauro Testaverde & Harry Moroz & Claire H. Hollweg & Achim Schmillen, 2017. "Migrating to Opportunity," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 28342, April.
    6. Michael Fuchs & Robert Holzmann & Secil Pacaci Elitok & Pamela Dale, 2016. "Assessing Benefit Portability for International Migrant Workers," World Bank Publications - Reports 24733, The World Bank Group.
    7. Robert Holzmann, 2018. "The portability of social benefits across borders," World of Labour, LISER, pages 452-452, October.
    8. Anwarul Hoda & Durgesh K. Rai, 2019. "Totalisation/Portability of Social Security Benefits: Imperatives for Global Action," Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) Working Paper 379, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), New Delhi, India.
    9. Perna, Roberta & Cruz-Martínez, Gibrán & Moreno Fuentes, Francisco Javier, 2022. "Patient mobility within national borders. Drivers and politics of cross-border healthcare agreements in the Spanish decentralized system," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(11), pages 1187-1193.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D69 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Other
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • I19 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Other
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion

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