Galician court rules on Minimum Vital Income repayments

The High Court of Justice of Galicia has issued rulings regarding the repayment of the Minimum Vital Income (IMV) in two separate cases involving residents of the region.

In one case, the court ruled in favor of a widow who was ordered to return over 2,500 euros. The Ministry of Inclusion and Social Security had claimed the funds were improperly received due to income exceeding eligibility limits in 2020 and 2021. However, the court applied the "Cakarevic" doctrine, originating from the European Court of Human Rights, which stipulates that errors attributable solely to public authorities should not be corrected at the expense of the affected individual. The court found that the beneficiary had not acted in bad faith, as the error stemmed from incorrect fiscal data provided by the Tax Agency (AEAT) rather than false claims by the recipient.

In a different case, a woman was ordered to repay 4,775 euros after the court sided with the National Social Security Institute. The administration discovered that an incomplete residency certificate had been submitted, failing to disclose another person living in the household. This information was critical for determining the correct household unit for benefit calculations. Unlike the first case, the court determined that the beneficiary had provided incomplete documentation after being expressly asked for residency details, leading to the incorrect calculation of the aid.