The state pension fund has extended its COVID-19 emergency loan program until December 27 to its members and pensioners in line with the extension of the country’s state of calamity due to the pandemic.
Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president and general manager Rolando Ledesma Macasaet said that the reopening of the emergency loan aims to help the state pension fund’s active members, old-age and disability pensioners affected by the current pandemic.
“Gusto namin mabigyan ng ginhawa ang ating active members at old-age at disability pensioners na apektado nitong pandemya at hindi pa nakikinabang sa pribilehiyong ito. To date, there are still 700,000 of our 1.3 million qualified members and pensioners who have yet to file their emergency loan application. Hopefully, the three-month application period will give them ample time to prepare the requirements and submit them to us,” Macasaet said.
Macasaet added that GSIS is mobilizing the resources to help its members and pensioners who are in need of financial assistance. The state pension fund has already released P18 billion to nearly 600,000 members and pensioners out of P43.01 billion amount which has been set aside for the loan facility.
According to its statement, qualified borrowers with existing emergency loans may borrow up to P40,000 to pay off their previous emergency loan balance and still receive a maximum net amount of P20,000.
Those without existing emergency loan may apply for P20,000. However, those who have already availed of the COVID-19 emergency loan are no longer qualified to apply, GSIS stated.
GSIS said that members who are qualified to apply are those in active service and not on leave of absence without pay; have no pending administrative or criminal case; and have a net take-home pay of not lower than Php5,000 after all required monthly obligations have been deducted.
Those that have due and demandable or have arrears of over six months, loan accounts are now allowed to renew their previous emergency loan from a different calamity, excluding under the COVID-19 Emergency Loan Program. Members with only three months of paid premiums prior to application date instead of six months may already apply.
All emergency loan applications will still be subject to the approval of the respective agency authorized officers of the members’ employer. Meanwhile, old-age and disability pensioners are qualified to apply if their resulting net monthly take-home pension after loan availment is at least 25% of their basic monthly pension.
The loan application form may be downloaded from https://www.gsis.gov.ph/downloadable-forms; members and pensioners must file their applications through contactless methods to ensure public health and safety.
Borrowers may submit their emergency loan application through GSIS’ web-based facility, the Electronic GSIS Member Online (eGSISMO). To register in eGSISMO, members should initially sign up for their eGSISMO account by accessing http://egsismo.gsis.gov.ph/ and keying in their GSIS business partner (BP) number. BP numbers may be obtained from their office’s agency authorized officer or electronic remittance file handler; any GSIS office; or GSIS Contact Center (8-847-4747).
