GSIS reopens COVID-19 emergency loan program

by Daphne Galvez, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 28 Sep 2020

MANILA, Philippines — The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has reopened its COVID-19 emergency loan program to its members and pensioners.

In a statement on Monday, the GSIS said the reopened loan program will run from Sept. 28 to Dec. 27, 2020, following President Rodrigo Duterte’s extension of the state of calamity in the country due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as stated under Proclamation No. 1021.

GSIS said some 700,000 members have yet to file their emergency loan application.

“Hopefully, the three-month application period will give them ample time to prepare the requirements and submit them to us,” GSIS President and General Manager Rolando Ledesma Macasaet said.

“We are mobilizing our resources to help members and pensioners who need financial assistance. Of the Php43.01 billion that we have set aside for this loan facility, we have already released Php18 billion to nearly 600,000 of them,” he added.

Under the loan program, qualified borrowers with existing emergency loan can borrow up to P40,000 to pay off their previous loan balance and still receive a maximum net amount of P20,000.

Those without an existing emergency loan may borrow P20,000. However, those who have already availed of the COVID-19 emergency loan are no longer qualified to apply.

GSIS members in active service and not on leave of absence without pay, have no pending administrative or criminal case and have a net take-home pay of now lower than P5,000 after all required obligations have been deducted, are are qualified under the loan program.

The agency said that those who have due and demandable (have arrears of over six months) loan accounts are now allowed to renew their previous emergency loan from a different calamity (excluding under the COVID-19 emergency loan program).

Members with only three months of paid premiums prior to application date instead of six months may also apply.

GSIS said all emergency loan applications will still be subjected to the approval of a member’s employer.

Meanwhile, old-age and disability pensioners are qualified to apply if their resulting net monthly take-home pension after loan availment is at least 25% of their basic monthly pension.

The application form for the program may be downloaded from https://www.gsis.gov.ph/downloadable-forms.

Members and pensioners must file their applications through contactless methods, GSIS said.

They may submit their emergency loan application through the pension fund’s web-based facility, the Electronic GSIS Member Online (eGSISMO).

To register in eGSISMO, members should initially sign up for their eGSISMO account by accessing http://egsismo.gsis.gov.ph/ and keying in their GSIS business partner (BP) number.

BP numbers may be obtained from their office’s agency authorized officer or electronic remittance file handler; any GSIS office; or GSIS Contact Center (8-847-4747).

Emergency loan application may also be filed by e-mailing the requirements to the designated email addresses of branch offices covering the agencies of active members and place of residence of pensioners in

Borrowers, except for pensioners, may also opt to file their loan application through the GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System (GWAPS) kiosks located in all GSIS branches, Department of Education offices, provincial capitols, city halls, Robinsons Malls and selected SM Supermalls.

Once the loan is approved, the loaned amount will be directly credited to the borrower’s Unified Multi-Purpose ID (UMID) card or temporary eCard account.

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