President signs SSS condonation law

President Gloria Arroyo signed on Thursday Republic Act 9903 condoning penalties on delinquent remittances of premium contributions to the Social Security System (SSS).

The government hopes that condoning the penalties would lead to higher collections for the pension fund of employees working in private corporations.

Unremitted premium contributions are estimated at P109 billion, with accumulated penalties placed at P280 billion.

President Arroyo said that raising the penalties would be a big help to small companies, especially those struggling to survive the global financial crisis. It will also encourage them to resume their remittances, thus giving their employees the benefits due to them under the law.

“For 2009 alone, the penalties amount to P68 billion, which we do not expect to collect anyway since a lot of companies are so hard-up, and this is our way of helping them survive,” said Romulo Neri, the president of the Social Security System.

“But they must pay their share of the premiums so that their employees can avail themselves of the other benefits from the system,” Neri added.

Payment schedule

Under the premium payment schedules, a down payment of 5 percent of total contribution delinquency is made upfront, with the balance paid in equal monthly installments within 48 months from the time the proposal is approved by the SSS.

The installments carry a 3-percent annual interest.

The penalty condoned by this law will, however, be reimposed in case the employer fails to remit in full the required delinquent contributions or defaults in the payment of any installment under the approved proposal within the availment period. –Angelo S. Samonte, Reporter, Manila Times