Devos v. Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe and Belgium

The case arose from an employment dispute between a Belgian national and the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), an international military headquarters established under the North Atlantic Treaty framework. The applicant, employed in Belgium by SHAPE, sought a declaration that her employment relationship was governed by Belgian labour law, arguing that, as a national of the receiving State, she could not possess an international legal status exempting her from domestic employment legislation. SHAPE contested the claim, maintaining that the applicant formed part of its international civilian staff and that the employment relationship was governed exclusively by the international legal regime applicable to NATO and its bodies.

The Labour Court of Mons rejected the applicant’s claim, holding that her employment was not subject to Belgian law. It found that she did not fall within the categories of ‘force’, ‘civilian component’, or ‘local personnel’ under the 1951 NATO Status of Forces Agreement and the 1952 Paris Protocol, but instead had the status of an international civil servant. This conclusion was based on her letter of engagement, her administrative classification, her remuneration under NATO salary scales, and her continuous exemption from Belgian taxation. The applicant appealed to the Supreme Court.

Before the Supreme Court, Belgium raised a preliminary objection of inadmissibility, which was upheld, as the Belgian State bore no responsibility for SHAPE’s management or employment relations. The Court then examined the merits of the appeal against SHAPE. Central to the dispute was whether the Paris Protocol on the Status of International Military Headquarters allowed for the existence of international civilian personnel who were nationals of the receiving State and, if so, whether such personnel were excluded from the application of national labour law.

The Court held that Article 7(2) of the Paris Protocol extended the tax exemption given to international civil servants to employees of Allied headquarters belonging to categories agreed by the North Atlantic Council, without excluding nationals of the receiving State. Interpreted in conjunction with the 1951 NATO Agreement on the Status of the Organization, its National Representatives and its International Staff, and the NATO Civil Staff Regulations applicable to SHAPE, this provision confirmed the existence of an international civil service within SHAPE distinct from locally recruited personnel. The Court emphasized that only local civilian workers recruited to satisfy local labour requirements, through the mechanisms of the receiving State, were subject to domestic labour legislation. The Court recognised that the applicant’s employment relationship was governed by an international legal regime rather than national law and dismissed the appeal.