A/RES/63/252 3. Endorses the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions,4 subject to the provisions of the present resolution; I Administrative arrangements, revised budget and longer-term objectives of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund 4. Takes note of the information set out in paragraphs 180 to 197 of the report of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board1 on the revised budget estimates for the biennium 2008–2009; 5. Approves the increase of 2,204,000 United States dollars in total additional resources for the biennium 2008–2009, noting that the revised estimates for the biennium would amount to a total appropriation of 153,199,100 dollars; II Benefit provisions 6. Endorses the decision taken by the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board in 2007, in which it reaffirmed its earlier decision maintaining that the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund should determine entitlements to pension benefits, in particular under articles 34 and 35 of the Regulations of the Fund, which cover spousal benefits, in accordance with the personal status of a participant as recognized and reported to the Fund by the participant’s employing organization, on the understanding that the final verification that the personal status has remained the same will be done by the Fund at the time of granting such pension benefits; Approves the changes in the benefit provisions that would streamline the 7. application of the relevant provisions governing family members or former family members under articles 35 bis, 35 ter and 36, as set out in annex XIV to the report of the Board;1 8. Also approves the amendment to article 24 (b) of the Regulations of the Fund, as set out in annex XIV to the report of the Board, which would allow participants who return to active contributory service after a period of disability to count such periods of disability as contributory service without requiring the participant to pay contributions for that period; Further approves the agreement of the Board to clarify that the scope of 9. the revision in 2006 of article 24, concerning the elimination of the limitation on the right to restoration based on years of prior service, did not cover only those participants who had received a withdrawal settlement, but also those who had elected a deferred retirement benefit (full or partial) as long as no periodic benefit payments of their deferred benefit had been made, as set out in paragraphs 329 and 330 of the report of the Board, and as clarified in the technical amendments to the Regulations of the Fund, set out in annex XIV to the report of the Board; III Other matters 10. Welcomes the information that all the committees of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund had been presented and the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board had approved a declaration of conflict of interest, which referred to the mandate and the focus of each committee and covered the status, conduct and 2