The High Court of Justice of Galicia has annulled a 29,382 euro Social Security repayment order issued against a disabled pensioner's legal guardian. The ruling by the tribunal's Social Chamber in A Coruña resolved that citizens cannot be forced to pay for long standing administrative errors made by public agencies.
Under ruling 936/2026, issued on February 27, judges set aside an administrative resolution from Spain's National Social Security Institute that demanded the return of 29,382.56 euros in family assistance paid between June 1, 2019, and June 30, 2023.
The case stems from payments dating back more than two decades. The woman had been acting as guardian for a man receiving an orphan's pension with a disability supplement since September 2004. In April 2010, the National Social Security Institute explicitly granted the guardian an additional child dependency benefit intended to cover the needs of a vulnerable person.
Chain of state errors
State officials maintained both payments simultaneously for over a decade without detecting any incompatibility between the two benefits. The court noted there was no evidence that the guardian hid information, submitted false documentation, or acted in bad faith when receiving the funds.
The situation escalated in May 2023 when the agency opened a review procedure, identified the payments as improper, and demanded four years worth of reimbursements. However, the agency then annulled its own demand in October 2023 after realizing it had failed to follow proper legal procedures.
Despite this procedural error, a social court in the Galician city of Lugo initially ruled in favor of the social security agency. The guardian then lodged an appeal with the regional High Court in A Coruña.
Court reasoning and legal context
Overturning the Lugo court's decision, the High Court of Justice of Galicia concluded that demanding full repayment of nearly 30,000 euros was disproportionate. Judges stated that public authorities acted without required diligence, and that the financial burden of systemic public errors should not fall on individual beneficiaries.
The High Court of Justice of Galicia serves as the highest judicial authority within the autonomous region of Galicia in northwestern Spain. The National Social Security Institute is the state body tasked with administering social security benefits, pensions, and welfare coverage across the country.
In Spain, social assistance programs like orphan's pensions and child dependency allowances are designed as essential financial safety nets for vulnerable citizens and households supporting dependents with severe disabilities.
