The following is a press release from Social Security.
The Social Security System (SSS) will offer a disaster assistance package to members and retirees affected by Typhoon Odette from January 14.
SSS President and CEO Aurora Ignacio said the Disaster Assistance Program includes the Disaster Assistance Program (CLAP) and the Direct Loan for Repair and Improvement of the house for members, as well as the three-month early pension for retirees in areas affected by Typhoon Odette, as declared by the National Council for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (NDRRMC).
Members and retirees from Mimaropa, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao and Caraga, as well as other areas that may be declared by the NDRRMC to be in a state of calamity due to Odette, can benefit from the SSS Calamity. Assistance package.
“It is unfortunate that the recent typhoon affected the daily lives and livelihoods of our members and retirees in these different regions. Through the SSS Disaster Assistance Program, we can extend financial assistance to our members and retirees as they attempt to recover from the effects of Typhoon Odette, ”said Ignacio.
SSS will offer the CLAP to its members and the three-month early retirement pension to its retirees until April 13, 2022. During this time, the direct loan for home repair and improvement will be open to qualified members for one year at from the issue and entry into force of SSS Circular No. 2021-020.
Disaster Loan Assistance Program
Under CLAP, qualified members can benefit from a loan amount equivalent to one month’s salary credit calculated on the basis of the average of their last 12 MSCs rounded to the nearest thousand or the amount requested, depending on the lowest amount.
To be eligible, affected members must meet the following requirements:
- A My.SSS account on www.sss.gov.ph
- At least 36 monthly contributions, six of which must be paid within the 12 months preceding the month in which the application is submitted
- Resident of a disaster area declared by the NDRRMC and having suffered damage or loss of their properties due to Typhoon Odette
- not have received any definitive benefit such as permanent total disability or retirement;
- Have no current loan restructuring program (LRP) or CLAP
- If employed, the member’s employer must certify the CLAP request via the online installation My.SSS
Interested members can apply for CLAP using their respective My.SSS account.
Proceeds from the approved loan will be credited to the borrower member’s account through members’ registered Unified Multi-Use Identification (UMID) ATM card from their active accounts with a participating bank in the system. Philippine Electronic Funds Transfer and Operations Network (PESONet), or their Union Bank of the Philippines (UBP) Quick Cards registered in the Disbursement Account Enrollment Module (DAEM), which can be found at their My.SSS accounts.
The loan is payable in equal monthly installments for 24 months or two years, at an interest rate of 10% per annum. The service charge of 1% of the loan amount is already waived.
The first loan amortization will begin within the second month from the date of loan approval. For example, if their loan was approved on January 21, 2022, they will start paying the amortization of their loan in March 2022. If the loan payment deadline is the last day of the month following the applicable month, if it falls on a weekend or public holiday, payment can be made on the next business day. Late payments will result in a penalty of 1% per month.
Three-month early pension
Social Security (SS) Program Retirement, Disability and Survivor pensioners and Employee Compensation Program (EC) Disability and Survivor pensioners can apply for a three-month early pension. Interested SS and EC retirees should reside in typhoon affected areas declared by NDRRMC.
To apply, they must submit a completed Disaster / Disaster Assistance Request Form, duly certified by their Barangay President; or said form accompanied by an attestation from the Department of Social Protection and Development (DSWD) or NDRRMC at any branch of the SSS. They can download the application form from www.sss.gov.ph or click on this link: bit.ly/AdvancePensionForm.
However, retirees who have existing loans under the Pension Loan Program (PLP) cannot qualify for the three-month early pension.
Direct loan for home repair and / or improvement
SSS also provides financial assistance to its members whose homes were damaged or destroyed due to Typhoon Odette. Qualified SSS members can apply for the direct home repair and / or improvement loan. Under this, they can borrow a maximum loanable amount of up to 1 million pesos.
To be eligible, affected members must meet the following requirements:
- Have a total of 24 monthly contributions, three of which must be mailed in the last 12 months preceding the month in which the application is submitted;
- No more than 60 years old at the time of filing the application;
- Not having previously obtained a home repair and / or improvement loan from the SSS; and
- Have not received final SSS benefits and have not been reimbursed for SSS contributions.
- The member and his or her spouse must be up to date in the payment of all other existing loans with the SSS.
It has an interest rate of 8% for loans up to 450,000 pesos, while for those over 450,000 pesos the interest rate is 9%. SSS has also waived the processing fees for the said loan.
The borrowing member will benefit from a six-month moratorium on monthly loan amortization and interest payments. They will not start paying the amortization of their loan until the 7th month of its approval and are payable in equal monthly installments.
The loan term will be five, 10, 15 or 20 years, plus the six-month moratorium. However, the duration should not exceed the economic lifespan of the house or improvement after the introduction of the repair and / or improvement (to be determined by the SSS) as well as the difference in age. of the applicant and 65 years old.
Interested applicants can submit their loan applications to the Loans Department to Members of the SSS Main Office for those in the NCR, or to the Housing and Acquired Asset Management Sections located at SSS San Pablo for those in South Luzon, SSS Cebu for those in central Visayas, SSS Bacolod for those in the Western Visayas, SSS Davao for those in southern Mindanao, SSS Cagayan De Oro for those in northern Mindanao and SSS Zamboanga for those in western Mindanao.
The SSS has allocated 2.18 billion pesos for the implementation of the disaster assistance program, which will benefit approximately 236,509 active and retired members in the areas affected by the typhoon.
For more information, visit the uSSSap Tayo portal at crms.sss.gov.ph, follow the SSS on Facebook on “Philippine Social Security System – SSS”, Instagram and YouTube on “mysssph”, Twitter on “PHLSSS” or join its Viber community on “MYSSSPH Updates”. – Rappler.com
