A 54-year-old man became the first person in Costa Rica to receive the pension of his partner with who he lived many years and passed away in February 2016.

The man, Roy Calderon, presented his request to receive the benefit to the National Direction of Pensions; however, the same was rejected back in December claiming that it did not fulfill the requirements as established in Article 8 of the Pension Law and Article 9 of the regulations of the Disability, Old Age and Death Insurance of the Social Security Service (CCSS).

Calderon then appealed this resolution to the Ministry of Work and Social Security and it was resolved positively applying the conventionality control, which establishes that the norms and actions of the national authorities must comply with the standards of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

“It gives me great satisfaction and pride to be able to deliver this resolution that marks a milestone in the public administration by recognizing this right, protected in the conventionality control, complying with the respect of human dignity and sexual orientation, the equality, gender identity and the principle of no discrimination”, highlighted the Minister of Work, Steven Nuñez.

Back in April 12 the former Minister of Public Work, Alfredo Hasbum, had signed the directive to include the benefit of pension for death for same sex couples covered under the National Transitory Regimen of Distribution for Educators.