More than 600,000 government pensioners are getting broader protection from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), with recent reforms removing restrictions on survivorship benefits and making pension transactions easier without requiring trips to its offices.
The pension fund highlighted the changes in a news release Friday as the country observes Filipino Elderly Week from Oct. 1 to 7, shifting its focus from simply paying pensions to reducing rules and processes that could prevent retirees and their families from fully accessing benefits.
Among the most significant changes is the removal of the cap on survivorship pensions, allowing qualified surviving spouses to receive the full 50 percent of their deceased partner’s pension regardless of the amount.
GSIS also scrapped the cohabitation restriction, meaning a survivorship pension will no longer be terminated merely because the beneficiary lives with another partner. The benefit will end only upon remarriage.
“Our responsibility to our pensioners does not end when they retire. We must continue to protect their benefits and make our processes easier to navigate,” GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso said.
The state pension fund has also relaxed its Christmas cash gift rules. Pensioners who miss the April deadline for their Annual Pensioners Information Revalidation (APIR) will no longer automatically forfeit the benefit, provided they eventually complete the requirement.
Another adjustment took effect July 13, when GSIS raised its funeral benefit to PHP50,000 from PHP30,000 to help cover burial and funeral expenses of deceased members or pensioners. Claims may be filed within four years.
Qualified uniformed personnel of the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and Bureau of Fire Protection are covered by a PHP10,000 funeral benefit.
GSIS has likewise moved more pension services online, allowing retirees to apply for pensions, complete APIR, apply for loans, and access other services through the GSIS Touch mobile application.
“Technology should make government transactions simpler, not more complicated,” Veloso said.
Pensioners may also update their contact information through the app, GSIS offices, Agency Authorized Officers, or by submitting a Member Request Form through mail, courier, or email.
Those who still need face-to-face transactions may use the GSIS Appointment Buddy, which allows clients to secure a queue number through a QR code and receive a text message when their turn approaches.
“For our pensioners, ginhawa (comfort) should mean more than receiving a pension. It should also mean clearer rules and transactions that respect their time and circumstances,” Veloso said.
GSIS has said it safeguards the benefits of more than 600,000 pensioners nationwide.
Filipino Elderly Week is observed annually under Presidential Proclamation No. 470, series of 1994. (PNA)