DZP's success in CT – ruling on pensions of Customs Service officials

In a ruling of 3 March 2015, the Constitutional Tribunal found that Customs Service officials not being covered by the pension system is contrary to the constitutional principle of equality. The Tribunal stated that, given the tasks entrusted to customs officials, i.e. to recognise, disclose, prevent and combat specified offences and misdemeanours, the legal situation of Customs Service officials shows a striking similarity to that of police officers, who are entitled to a uniformed service personnel pension – on conditions that are more favourable than in the general pension system.

According to the Tribunal's ruling "article 1, article 18a(1) and article 18b(1) of the Act of 18 February 1994 on Providing Pensions to Police, Internal Security Agency, Foreign Intelligence Agency, Military Counterintelligence Service, Central Anti-corruption Bureau, Border Guards, Government Protection Bureau, State Fire Service and Prison Service Officials and their Families under article 32 of the Polish Constitution in the scope in which Customs Service officials who perform the tasks listed in article 2(1)(4)-(6) of the Customs Service Act of 27 August 2009 are omitted from the list of persons entitled to a pension”.

Proceedings in the case were initiated by, inter alia, applications from the Association of Trade Unions of the Polish Customs Service and the Federation of Customs Service Trade Unions represented by Tomasz Zalasiński. The applications were prepared by Marcin Matczak and Tomasz Zalasiński in DZP's Regulatory Advisory Team, which also includes Piotr Najbuk and Anna Hlebicka-Józefowicz.

For the purpose of the proceedings before the Constitutional Tribunal and work on amendments to the  Customs Service Act, in July 2013 the Team also drew up a Regulatory Report on the scope of protection of the pension rights of Customs Service officials and the preferred direction of normative changes to adapt the scope of protection to the requirements of the Polish Constitution that was attached to the constitutional applications.