The Social Security System (SSS) has announced revisions to its Calamity Loan Program (CLP) guidelines amid the declaration of a state of calamity in some areas of the country due to tropical storm “Crising” and the southwest monsoon or “habagat.”
In a press statement issued Wednesday, July 23, SSS President and CEO Robert Joseph De Claro said that it will reduce interest rates for salary and calamity loans from the current 10 percent per annum to seven percent for calamity loans and eight percent for salary loans.
Such a reduced interest rate is for members with good credit records, or those without availment of penalty condonation for the past five years.
Also, the revised guidelines have been liberalized to allow calamity loan renewal after six months provided that the existing CLP is not past due.
The activation process of the CLP has also been streamlined, allowing its activation within seven working days from the declaration of the state of calamity.
“SSS Branch Operations Sector and International Operations Group units will have a more active role in the activation process when they endorse State of Calamity declarations to the SSS Member Loans Department within two calendar days from date of issuance,” De Claro added.
To avail of the CLP, members must have at least 36 monthly contributions, six of which must be posted within the last 12 months prior to the month of filing.
For individually paying members, they must also have at least six posted contributions under their current membership type (self-employed, voluntary, or land-based OFW).
Member must have no past due loan accounts and no outstanding restructured loan, have not been granted any final benefit, must be of legal age and under 65 years of age at the time of application for loan, and must have not been disqualified due to fraud committed against the SSS.
Employers, on the other hand, must be updated in payment of contributions and loan remittances.
A member may file / submit the calamity loan application online through the SSS website by accessing his / her My.SSS account or through the SSS Mobile App.
Loan proceeds shall be released through active UMID ATM card or active single account in any PESONet participating bank in the name of the member which must be enrolled in the Disbursement Account Enrollment Module (DAEM) of the member-borrower’s My.SSS account.
The loan shall be payable within two years in 24 equal monthly amortizations. The loan amortization shall start in the second month following the month of approval of the loan.
“With the issuance of the revised CLP guidelines, SSS will provide emergency financial relief to mitigate impact of natural disasters to members and help get them toward the path of recovery under liberalized terms and conditions,” De Claro said.
In 2024, the SSS disbursed nearly P10 billion in calamity loans to over 560,000 affected members.
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