Contribution liability of voluntary public-service supplementary pensions as pension benefits where employer participation in establishing claims is lacking

**BSG, Judgment of 05 March 2026 – B 12 KR 5/24 R** **Outcome:** The Federal Social Court (BSG) upheld the decision of the lower instance, dismissing the plaintiff's appeal and confirming that the pension received from a voluntary insurance with a public service supplementary pension scheme constitutes a contribution-liable pension benefit (*Versorgungsbezug*) subject to health and nursing care insurance contributions. **Dispute and Facts:** The case concerned a retired individual who received a pension from a voluntary pension scheme operated by a carrier of the public service supplementary pension system. The dispute centered on whether this pension income was subject to social insurance contributions, specifically whether the nature of the voluntary scheme and the lack of significant employer involvement in establishing the pension entitlement excluded it from the definition of a pension benefit (*Versorgungsbezug*). **Legal Basis:** The decisive legal doctrine rests on the interpretation of "pension benefit" (*Versorgungsbezug*) within the Social Code (SGB), particularly focusing on the requirement that the benefit be based on an employment or service relationship. The court determined that even in the absence of significant employer participation in the *establishment* of the pension claims (*Begründung der Rentenansprüche*), the payment still qualified as a contribution-liable pension benefit under the relevant statutory provisions for health and nursing care insurance, thereby affirming the obligation to make contributions.