Social Security System (SSS) members and pensioners in Bicol can now avail of the Calamity Assistance Package (CAP) approved for the victims of Typhoon Tisoy which ravaged vast areas of the region last month.
In an interview on Thursday, Jeanette Mapa, SSS-Legazpi communication officer, said beneficiaries of the CAP are those from Naga City, Albay, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate and Sorsogon.
She added that the CAP includes Calamity Loan, Direct House Repair and Improvement Loan, and Advanced Three-Month Pension for qualified pensioners.
The Calamity Loan and Advanced Three-Month Pension may be availed of from Dec. 20, 2019 to Mar. 19, 2020, and the House Repair and Improvement Loan from Dec. 20, 2019 to Dec. 19, 2020.
The CAP is a loan assistance program that is separate from the regular salary loan.
Mapa said members can borrow up to PHP20,000 in calamity loan depending on the average of their monthly salary credit in the last 12 months. It is payable in two years in equal monthly installments with an annual interest rate of 10 percent and a 1-percent penalty for late payments. To eliminate additional expenses on the part of member-borrowers, SSS waived the 1-percent service fee.
Applicants under the Advance Three-Month Pension whose present address differs from the address in the SSS database should submit a barangay certification to prove that they reside in a declared calamity area.
“Members who would like to avail of the Calamity Assistance Package are required to be registered in the My.SSS application to facilitate their billing requirements in the future,” she added.
However, members who still have outstanding loans under the Loan Restructuring Program (LRP) and previous CAPs, as well as those receiving pensions for total permanent disability and retirement, and those who have availed of the Pension Loan Program (PLP) are not qualified to avail of the Calamity Loan.
Aside from the Calamity Loan, members with damaged properties can also avail of the Direct House Repair and Improvement Loan with six months moratorium in amortization and interest payments.
Members can borrow up to a maximum of PHP1 million under this program which will run for one year. To qualify, the applicant must not be more than 60 years old and with at least 24 monthly contributions, of which three were remitted within the last 12-month period prior to the month of filing.
For more information, members and pensioners can visit the nearest SSS branch, contact the SSS Call Center hotline at 1455, or send an email to member_relations@sss.gov.ph. All application forms are downloadable from the SSS website at www.sss.gov.ph. (PNA)
