The state-run Social Security System (SSS) anticipates collecting an estimated P9 billion over the next five years from overdue loan payments of its member-borrowers who availed of its Loan Restructuring Program (LRP).
According to the SSS, the pension fund has already collected more than P5.22 billion in overdue loan payments under the LRP the past 12 months and expects to collect nearly P9 billion more in the next five years.
“We are expecting P8.6 billion in collections till the end of the five-year installment term,” SSS President and CEO Emmanuel F. Dooc said.
Dooc added the total condoned amount from more than 850,000 members who availed of the LRP reached P13.83 billion on the first year the program was offered.
“We are very much overwhelmed with the huge volume of applicants, especially during the last few days before the deadline [of the LRP]. We hope they are more persistent in paying their monthly obligations so they could avail themselves of the condonation of penalties as soon as they have paid in full their outstanding loan,” he added.
The LRP was launched on April 28, 2016, which aims to provide relief to delinquent borrowers and encourage them to settle their unpaid SSS loans through flexible payment terms of up to five years at a low interest rate of 3 percent per annum. Members are given the option to pay their past due loans in full within 30 days with no additional interest, or through installment basis of up to five years with a minimal interest rate of 3 percent per annum.
“We would like to remind our LRP availees that loan penalties will be completely waived after full payment of total loan principal and interest under the restructured loan. So they are advised to pay their financial obligations on time to prevent an additional penalty of 0.5 percent per month,” he said.
As part of the program’s terms and conditions, members who are included in the program are already excluded from future condonation programs. However, members can apply for another SSS loan six months after they have fully paid their financial obligation.
The SSS said the majority of the LRP applicants were employee members who contributed P3.23 billion worth of collections for the agency, while voluntary members who represented 27 percent of the overall total paid an initial P1.38 billion.
Over 39,000 self-employed members availed themselves of the LRP with an equivalent collection of P194.37 million, while more than 46,000 overseas Filipino workers benefited from the program with a total remittance of P412.76 million.
Based on SSS data, the National Capital Region received the largest volume of LRP applications, with 372,469.
The areas of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao received a total of 258,916, 103,329 and 96,609 applications, respectively. While foreign offices processed 25,515 LRP applications for the year.