The Social Security System (SSS) said it is working to improve services for pensioners, reduce the interest rate on its salary/calamity loan programs and pursue self-employed coverage.
“We are reviewing our guidelines on the Annual Confirmation of Pensioners (ACOP) Program to simplify requirements and other verification processes for the convenience of our pensioners,” SSS president and chief executive Robert Joseph De Claro said.
De Claro ordered the review to address the sentiments of Philippine-based retirement pensioners who are above 80 years old to ensure their continuous receipt of pension benefits. By the end of 2024, there were 157,493 such pensioners of SSS.
“Our review of the current guidelines include the analysis of age and geographical distribution of pensioners, authorizing additional means for ACOP compliance and using available SSS resources to facilitate compliance such as by conducting home visits to pensioners through our branch or office personnel,” De Claro said.
Also the pipeline for 2025 is the reduction of interest rate on the salary loan and calamity loan programs of SSS. The interest rate for such loan programs is at 10 percent per annum.
“Given the consistent, solid performance of SSS’ investment portfolio, it is now timely to revisit the interest rate of our salary and calamity loan programs toward reducing it to increase the cash proceeds from loan applications by qualified SSS members,” De Claro said.
SSS’ annualized return on investment (ROI) from 2021 to 2024 ranged between 5.8 percent and 6.6 percent, performing well even through the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We will also pursue better collection compliance from other groups of workers, particularly self-employed professionals such as accountants, doctors and engineers by meeting with the Professional Regulation Commission to discuss opportunities for cooperation and ensure SSS coverage of such workers. Our goal is to make them continue paying SSS contributions while they are gainfully self-employed even if they have reached 120 contributions already,” De Claro said.
“These plans and programs reiterate our message last month prioritizing service excellence first and foremost while ensuring financial discipline and sustainability through an empowered SSS workforce,” he said.
The SSS management and the Social Security Commission (SSC) will discuss these plans/programs and ensure implementation within 2025.
