SSS unveils provident fund for members


The Social Security System (SSS) has opened a voluntary provident fund program that offers its members an additional way of saving for their retirement.
SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr said the new retirement savings scheme called the SSS Personal Equity and Savings Option (SSS PESO) fund is an alternative and tax-free investment that would help members accumulate adequate income in retirement and earn a reasonable rate of return.
“SSS PESO savings can be used to supplement the benefits available under the regular SSS program. It offers guaranteed earnings based on rates higher than those at brick-and-mortar banks.” De Quiros said.
The SSS PESO fund is open to all members below 55 years old with six consecutive SSS contributions within the last 12 months prior to enrollment and have not yet filed final claims with the SSS.
Qualified members can participate for a minimum contribution of P1,000 up to a maximum of P100,000 per year.
“One's membership will start upon receipt of first contribution. Succeeding SSS PESO Fund contributions can be made anytime as long as there is a corresponding SSS contribution on the month of contribution,” De Quiros said.
De Quiros said self-employed, voluntary and OFW members should be paying the maximum SSS contribution to qualify. “They will also need to pay the maximum SSS contribution for the month they are to save in the SSS PESO Fund,” he added.
Savings in the SSS PESO Fund are invested in sovereign guaranteed investments, where 65 percent of the total fund is allocated for retirement, and 35 percent is for medical and general purposes. SSS PESO accounts will be charged a one-percent administration fee annually.
“The portion for retirement is guaranteed to earn income based on interest rates of five-year Treasury yields, while earnings of the fund allotted for medical and general purposes will be based on 364-day Treasury bill rates,” De Quiros said.
Aside from the guaranteed earnings, De Quiros said SSS PESO Fund members may also get excess earnings, which will be credited automatically to their accounts, depending on the actual year-end performance of the SSS PESO Fund.
Savings in SSS PESO fund can be withdrawn upon the member’s effective date of retirement or total disability with the SSS either in monthly pensions over a minimum period of 12 months and P1,000 payment per month, in lumpsum, or combination of both.
“In case they incur a need to withdraw funds early, they may only touch the portion of their equity allocated for medical and general purposes, and it will be subject to penalties and service fees if withdrawn earlier than five years,” De Quiros said, adding that if a member died before the maturity of his SSS PESO savings or expiration of the pension period, the member’s beneficiaries will receive the savings in the form of death benefit to be paid in lumpsum.
Launched on September 25, the SSS PESO Fund was created in accordance to Sec.4(a)(2) of the Social Security Law.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more