Exciting legal dispute

Man wants to retire earlier than woman: new details

The stirring case about the change of gender went all the way to the Supreme Court

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/APA/Roland Schlager)

The Supreme Court's decision - which is available to the "Krone" - brings new, juicy details to light. According to the ruling, the 62-year-old Viennese man, who had his gender changed to female in 2023 and then applied for retirement, has already applied for a pension several times without success. The pension insurance institution has a suspicion ...

"My dog feels like a cat. No more dog tax at last," reads a post by a "Krone" reader on a report about a Viennese woman who wants to retire early. The legal dispute, which went all the way to the Supreme Court, is stirring things up.

Notarized gender change
As a reminder: In March 2023, a Viennese man born in 1962 had his gender changed from "male" to "female" in the Central Civil Status Register in order to apply for an old-age pension shortly afterwards, which he could start earlier than his original age due to the lower standard retirement age. Because the pension insurance institution rejected this, the man filed a lawsuit (we will stick to the male form of address for the sake of clarity).

The plaintiff has often applied unsuccessfully for the granting of a pension and has never mentioned a sense of belonging to the female sex.

Aus der OGH-Entscheidung

The decision of the Supreme Court, which is available to the "Krone", reveals new, juicy details about the case: According to the PVA, the plaintiff "has often unsuccessfully applied for the granting of a pension and has never mentioned a sense of belonging to the female gender." There were also no medical or other reports that could confirm this.

Insurance carrier must provide evidence
The insurance provider therefore suspects that the applicant is "merely abusively claiming a sense of belonging to the female sex in order to benefit from an old-age pension before reaching the standard retirement age for men. - "She has felt like a woman for several years," replies the plaintiff. The dispute will soon return to the Labor and Social Court. There, the PVA can now provide evidence as to why the registration as a woman does not correspond to the facts. According to the Supreme Court, if the proof is not successful, the insured person is to be treated as belonging to the female gender from the time of the change of gender entry in the Central Civil Status Register.

Re-registration without a medical certificate
Incidentally, the responsible municipal department of the City of Vienna originally did not want to approve the change to female because the man did not submit a medical certificate. However, the administrative court took the view that this was not a legal requirement. The transfer took place after all, but the magistrate lodged an official appeal. These proceedings are now pending at the Administrative Court, as was confirmed to the "Krone".