On December 18th, through proclamation No. 1186, the President declared a national state of calamity after the country was hit by typhoon Nona.
The Social Security System (SSS) extends a helping hand to their members who reside in those areas that were massively affected by the said typhoon. Starting January 4th next year, members can apply for a calamity relief package that includes early renewal of salary loans, advance disbursement of pensions and preferential terms for house repair and improvement loans.
“In this time of need, we offer our assistance to our calamity-stricken members and pensioners so that they can cope and move on faster from the effects of this recent disaster,” Boobie Angela A. Ocay, SSS assistant Vice President for Member Loans Department said.
For the Salary Loan Early Renewal Program (SLERP), SSS waives the required 50 percent completion of loan payment, which means that members who have only paid for several months will be allowed to apply for this loan as a special consideration. The one percent service fee has been waived as well to increase the loan proceeds of members applying for SLERP. Salary loans of one month or two months are payable in two years. Members can claim from P16, 000 up to P32, 000.
For eligible members who want to apply for Direct House Repair and Improvement Loan Program, they can borrow up to P1 million with a maximum loan term of 20 years for those who are working in the country, while 15 years for OFWs. Ocay said that SSS offers a lower interest rate for this type of loan to help affected members restore their homes damaged by the heavy rains and floods. “SSS is providing a lower interest rate of 6 percent for home repair and improvement loans as part of the calamity relief package.”
Meanwhile, pensioners can apply for advance pensions up to three months, according to SSS. However, only members residing in calamity declared areas can apply. For members it can take 3 days and pensioners up to 1 week to receive the checks that can be claimed in the SSS branch where they have applied. Unclaimed checks will be forwarded to the member’s or pensioner’s home address.
The following areas were greatly affected by typhoon Nona:
- Nueva Ecija
- parts of Quezon
- Bulacan
- Tarlac
- Northern Samar
Sources: Inquirer.net, Manila Times, Philippine Information Agency
