Late last year, when someone in our extended family passed away, I became familiar with some of the death benefits available for beneficiaries in the Philippines. In my extended family’s case, some of these benefits were claimed successfully while the others were denied for various reasons.

Here are some death benefits in the Philippines:

SSS – SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM (For employees of private companies)

- Funeral benefit of 20,000 pesos regardless of number of monthly contributions, given to the person who spent for the funeral
- Monthly pension or lump-sum cash benefit for the legal spouse and legitimate, illegitimate or legally adopted children younger than 21 years old (up to 5 children), and older children with permanent disabilities

Pension is for the primary beneficiaries of deceased members who have contributed at least 36 monthly contributions before the semester of death.
Lump-sum is for primary beneficiaries of members who contributed less than 36 monthly contributions before the semester of death.

If there are no primary beneficiaries (no spouse and no children), the dependent parents receive the lump-sum cash benefit).

Pension amount or lump-sum amount depends on the number of credited years of membership and average monthly salary credit.

- For members who died in a workplace accident or due to an occupational illness, additional Employee Compensation benefits are given to beneficiaries.

Note:  File your claim at the SSS branch nearest where you live.

PAG-IBIG or HOME DEVELOPMENT MUTUAL FUND (HDMF)

- The death benefit amount is a percentage of the Total Provident Benefits.  The Provident total is the sum of the member’s monthly contributions, employers’ contributions for the member and dividends. Yong death benefit sabay na ibinibigay sa Total Provident Benefit. Isang claim form lang siya.

Note:  File your claim at the branch where the member’s records are kept.

OWWA (For OFWs)

- Burial benefit of 20,000 pesos
- Insurance benefit of 100,000 pesos if death is due to natural cause or 200,000 pesos if death is due to accident

OWWA
Insurance & Health Care Benefits Division
7th Street cor. FB Harrison St. Pasay City
Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm
(or go to your OWWA Regional Welfare Office)

Note: If you’re an OFW, make sure your membership is always current. My relative paid his OWWA membership for the almost 30 years he worked abroad, but because he worked for two straight years during his last contract, he was not able to pay his OWWA membership, so his family’s claims were denied by OWWA.

You pay your OWWA when you pay your OEC or Overseas Exit Clearance or Balik-Manggagawa (BM) papers at the POEA or at any accredited OEC payment center or service. The OWWA membership fee is 25 US dollars, payable in pesos.

PRIVATE INSURANCE

-  This refers to life insurance policies purchased from private insurance companies such as Philam, Insular Life, and BPI-Philam Life (formerly Ayala Life), Sun Life, Manulife, PNB Life and others.

PRIVATE INSURANCE linked to BANK ACCOUNTS

-  There are life and accident insurance policies offered by banks as added benefits to certain special bank accounts and time deposits.

- An example is the BPI Get Started Savings Account with Life Insurance. The account comes with a free BPI-Philam Life insurance equivalent to 5 times the account’s balance, up to 2 million pesos.
Balance means the average month-to-date average daily balance of the past three calendar months prior to the death ofthe insured.

PRIVATE INSURANCE linked to CREDIT CARDS

- This is for credit cardholders who have purchased credit life insurance and life insurance policies from or through their credit card issuers.

- Examples are the Assure and Saver life insurance programs of Axa Philippines, a joint venture between Metrobank and Global AXA Group of France.

INSURANCE linked to MEMORIAL PLANS

- Some memorial companies give financial assistance or death benefits to the beneficiaries of those who pass away while still paying their memorial plans in monthly, quarterly or yearly installments.

- For instance, the St. Peter Life Plans with Return of Premium policy gives cash assistance to beneficiaries if the planholder dies during the paying period or within 5 years after full payment. There’s also additional benefit for death or loss of limbs or eyes due to accident.

HMO

- HMOs provide primarily hospitalization benefits, but most of them also provide death benefits to HMO members’ beneficiaries.

- An example is the INTELLICARE corporate HMO program of Asalus Corp. This HMO plan gives cash assistance of 10,000 pesos for natural death and 20,000 pesos for accidental death to the beneficiaries of principal HMO cardholders.

LOCAL EMPLOYER

- Separate death benefits for employees of companies with retirement, incentive or insurance programs for their employees. Usually ang mga big local companies and some foreign multinationals ang merong ganitong Death Benefits in the Philippines.

I looked at Book 4 of the Labor Code of the Philippines (titled Health, Safety and Social Welfare Benefits) and I saw that the only mandatory employee benefit related to death is that given by SSS. Mandatory for employers na tapatan nila ang SSS contribution ng employees. And later, naging mandatory rin yong employers’ share sa PAG-IBIG contributions.

OFW EMPLOYER

- Some OFW employers give death benefits, especially to the beneficiaries of long-time employees. If the OFW passes away while on vacation, the primary beneficiary should email the employer, together with a copy of the death certificate and a copy of marriage or birth certificate, and request for any financial benefit.

COOPERATIVES

- There are some cooperatives that provide death benefits or financial assistance to the beneficiaries of members. An example is the Center for Community Transformation (CCT), which has a group insurance partnership with Philam Life.

BARANGAY ASSOCIATIONS

- In our barangay and nearby barangays in our province in the North, there is an association called SARANAY. Whenever someone in the barangay dies, each family in the barangay contributes a certain amount of money (the same amount for all families) to accumulate money for the bereaved family. A total of 10,000 pesos (50 pesos times 200 families) is already a big help in the province.  I am proud of my mother, who is now in her 80s, because she and her friend were the ones who started this program years ago in our rural area, and now this program has spread out into other barangays.

May death benefit ba na nakukuha sa PHILHEALTH?
Sori, WALA, kasi hospitalization or medical treatment cost assistance ang focus ng Philhealth.

GSIS, AFP, PNP

Note:  We are not familiar with death benefits provided by the GSIS, AFP or PNP, so we will not be able to answer questions about these benefits.

GSIS (For government employees)

- Burial benefit of 20,000 pesos, given to the spouse or to the children (if spouse is already deceased)
- Survivors’ monthly pension or cash benefits to primary beneficiaries (legal spouse and minor children up to 5). If there are no spouse and children, death benefits are given to secondary beneficiaries.
- For members who died in the course of work or due to an occupational illness, additional Employee Compensation benefits are given to beneficiaries.
- Proceeds of compulsory and/or optional life insurance policies and/or educational policies and/or accident insurance policies for beneficiaries of members who participated in these optional programs.

Note:  GSIS has several retirement and life insurance options, kaya iba-iba ang pag-compute ng amounts of death benefits received by beneficiaries.

If you’re in the Muntinlupa area,  and you would like to purchase a St.  Peter Life Plan or St. Peter Memorial Plan, just make a comment below, and I’ll email you the name and cell phone no. of a St. Peter agent.  Sabi ng agent na ito, bibigyan daw ako ng referral fee or konting deduction sa monthly payment ko sa plan ko kung meron akong mai-refer.

Sa dami ng pre-need na naba-bankrupt, bakit ako nagre-refer ng memorial plan?  Baka sakali lang na naghahanap ka ng ganitong plan at meron kang tiwala sa St. Peter.  Hindi naman sila na-bankrupt noong kasagsagan ng pre-need collapse. At hindi naman sila focused sa pera, kundi sa memorial chapels, caskets at memorial services. Meron daw silang malawak na taniman ng mga trees (forgot the tree name) which they use to make caskets.

Hindi natin alam, baka ma-bankrupt din ang St. Peter, kung ma-mismanage (of course, hindi sana), pero nakita ko kasi yong hirap nang namatayan, kaya kumuha rin ako ng plan, para hindi mahirapan ang anak ko, lalo na at only child siya. Pero lagi kong ipinagdarasal na pahiramin pa ako ng Panginoon ng mahaba-habang buhay para mapagtapos ko pa siya sa college, at makatulong pa ako sa extended family members.

Death Benefits in the Philippines

Your deadline for payment for a particular month or quarter is the 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th or last day of the following month, depending on the last digit of your SSS no.

If the last digit of your SSS no. ends in:

1 or 2 — your payment deadline is the 10th day of the following month
3 or 4 — 15th day of the following month
5 or 6 — 20th day of the following month
7 or 8 — 25th day of the following month
9 or 0 – last day of the following month

For example, your SSS no. is 08-7878780-5, your last digit is 5, so your payment deadline is the 20th day of the following month.

Kung ang babayaran mo is for the month of June, your deadline is July 20.
Kung quarterly ka nagbabayad, at ang babayaran mo ay 1st quarter (Jan, Feb, Mar), ang deadline mo is April 20.
Kung ang babayaran mo ay 2nd quarter (April, May, June), ang payment deadline mo ay July 20.

If the payment deadline falls on a holiday, Sunday or Saturday, you can still pay on the next working day, but not later.

Sa pagbabayad, you use the SSS RS-5 form — Contributions Payment Return. Hingin mo ito sa any SSS branch. You can pay over-the-counter at SSS cashier counters, Bayad Centers and accredited banks.

Mas gusto mo bang isagot ng cashier ay DENIED at hindi matuloy ang transaction? Or mas gusto mong matuloy yong transaction and then later on, ma-charge ka ng 700 pesos over credit limit fee?

This happened to me, with my Metrobank MFree, but this time, hindi sa store o sa shop, kundi sa Internet. When I checked, malaki pa ang aking available credit limit, so I charged $10 to buy a domain name from GoDaddy. Later, when I got my statement, I was surprised to see an over-credit-limit fee of 700 pesos! Yong $10, mga 400 plus lang, pero ang penalty ko 700!

I checked my statement kasi bakit ako over credit limit, and I was further surprised to find a big posting — merong amount na hindi pala na-post na noong September pa dapat na-post. I checked din my old statements of account, baka nadoble ang posting, at hindi naman. Delayed by 3 months ang posting!

I thought about bakit in-approve ng Metrobank Card system yong online payment kung wala na pala akong credit, kasi ang ibang cards naman usually DENIED ang response kapag over the limit na. Siguro maraming cases na sa Metrobank na nagreklamo ang mga cardholders nila about failed business transactions dahil DENIED ang payments nila due to OVER CREDIT LIMIT.

Sa BPI Classic, walang over-the-limit fee because BPI denies purchases when the credit is used up. Sa statement of account ng BPI card ko, nakalagay na “BPI reserves the right to disappove any purchases or cash advance that exceeds your credit limit.”

Anyway, I called Metrobank Customer Service about it, and the customer officer was very nice. I will know next week if my 700 over credit limit fee was reversed. I think I have a good chance because it’s my first time to be charged with over limit fee, and that there was a much delayed big posting.

Someone asked about crossed and open checks, so I’ll describe them first before going to the main topic.

CROSSED CHECK:  Yong may 2 parallel slant lines sa left top corner ng check. This means this check CAN NOT BE ENCASHED over the counter. Ide-deposit siya to the account of the person whose name is on the check.

Yong ibang issuer, nag-i-stamp ng FOR DEPOSIT ONLY or FOR PAYEE ACCOUNT ONLY sa check.

Merong company-issued checks na pre-printed at naka-design na sa check yong FOR PAYEE ACCOUNT only.

OPEN CHECK or UNCROSSED CHECK:  Walang 2 parallel slant lines, at walang FOR DEPOSIT ONLY or FOR PAYEE ACCOUNT ONLY. This can be encashed immediately over the counter on date of check at the drawee bank branch (yong bank branch ng nag-issue ng check).

To avoid troubles and stress, don’t do the following:

DON’Ts

1. Huwag mong ipagkalat na meron kang checking account. You are opening yourself up for abuse by friends, neighbors, officemates and relatives na mahilig manghiram pero hindi responsable.

2. Iwasan ang pag-issue ng check na Pay to CASH.  Ginagamit lang ito sa maramihang issue ng checks for awards, rewards, etc. Kapag merong name ang check, meron kang proof of payment at mas accurate ang financial records mo.

3. Do not issue a check if there’s no money or not enough money in your account to cover check encashment.

Huwag mong isiping dahil crossed check ay safe pa…dahil clearing rules have changed. You can no longer fund your account upon presentation of the check ( for stricter banks).  Penalty agad.

Merong banks that allow more time, but funding should be done within the day of check presentation. Some banks also offer options, such as automatic transfer arrangement or electronic funding. Before 7:30 am the next day, banks are required by BSP to return unfunded checks. Pag returned check, surely kasabay ang penalty.

Eh kung open check pa at dinala agad sa bank mo for encashment, may penalty ka agad.

Penalties for unfunded checks and returned checks are costly. Hindi na lang 2k ngayon. Iba-iba rin ang penalty policies — puedeng merong penalty imposed by the drawee bank and another by the payee bank.

So, basahin mo yong check clearing policies ng bank mo, at kung magkano ang penalties, at kung ano yong mga penalties.

4. Do not issue post-dated checks if you are not sure where money will come from, especially if these are big amounts.

Payees can use the checks to sue you for violating the Bouncing Check Law or for committing Estafa.

Usually, car dealers, real estate developers, housing loan providers, and rental property owners require post-dated checks. Ask these people if you have the option, in case of some problems in the future, to notify them and request for a grace period before they deposit the check, so you can avoid the costly penalties.

5.  Do not bring your checkbook anywhere you go.

Parang credit card din ang checkbook. Kapag nawala, puedeng gamitin ng iba lalo na kung meron kang pirma doon na matutularan nila.

6. Do not issue a signed blank check.  Puedeng malayong malaking amount ang isusulat ng binigyan mo.

Sulatan mo muna ang date, name, and amount bago mo pirmahan.

7.  In writing the amount in words, huwag kang mag-iwan ng malaking space between sa printed na “PESOS” at yong amount na isusulat mo, para nang sa ganon, wala nang maidagdag pa ng mga gustong manloko.

Puede kasing gawing “Twenty Nine Thousand Pesos” yong “Nine Thousand Pesos” kapag merong space.

Ganon din sa amount in number, puedeng 29,000 yong 9,000 lang. Dapat konting-konti ang space between the Peso sign and the amount. Yong iba, gumagamit ng dash o asterisk before and after the amount in number and amount in words.

8. Don’t forget your maintaining balance.

Kung nahatak pati maintaining balance to fund a check, remember to replace it ASAP. Dagdagan mo pa para mahila pataas yong monthly average daily balance at umabot sa required balance.

9. Punuin mo ng XXXXX ang check na merong error para hindi magamit ng iba.

10. Gamitin mo yong bookkeeping pages ng checkbook mo. Fill-up the DATE, CHECK NUMBER, PARTICULARS, DEPOSIT WITHDRAWAL, BALANCE after you write every check para ma-check mo ang balance mo at ma-monitor mo ang pera mo. Mache-check mo rin kung merong nawawalang check.

DOs

1. If your bank has Internet banking, enroll your account para mas madaling mag-monitor ng account. Madali ring mag-transfer ng money from your savings account to your checking account.

2. Keep the phone number of your bank branch, so you can call if you have questions.

3. Know your bank’s other branches and their locations, so you know where to deposit money in case you’re somewhere else.

Checking account in the Philippines

Related Article:

Cheapest Checking Account in the Philippines

Philippine Checking Accounts with Low Maintaining Balance Requirements

Okay lang ba sa inyo ang pagtaas ng monthly Philhealth contribution or Philhealth premium for Individually Paying members from 1,200 to 2,400 pesos a year and for OFW members from 900 to 2,400 pesos a year?

At magsisimula na ito next year, 2012, kung walang wave of opposition from the public and from government authorities higher than Philhealth.

Sa inilabas na Circular No. 22 s-2011 noong December 16, signed by Philhealth President and CEO Eduardo P. Banzon, ang annual Philhealth contributions ng lahat ng klase ng Philhealth members ay tataas effective next year, with certain increases effective January 2012, and others effective July 2012 and January 2013.

Sa Individually Paying Member, tataas ang annual Philhealth contribution from 1,200 to 2,400 pesos.

Sa OFW member, tataas from 900 to 2,400 pesos.

Sa Self-Employed Professionals with a family income of more than 25,000 pesos a month, tataas din from 2,400 pesos to 3,600 pesos a year (pero na-declare na ito sa isang circular last 2010.)

Sa Sponsored Members, premiums to be paid by sponsors, such as DSWD and LGUs, will also increase to 2,400 pesos.

Pero nagbigay sila ng pampadulas or a way to smooth the transition to higher rates — 1,200 pesos a year pa rin kung bayaran mo agad yong 1,200 pesos for 2012 or 2,400 pesos for 2012 and 2013 within January to June 2012.

Sa Employed Members, mag-increase from 2.5% to 3% of monthly salary base, at effective ito January 2013. Ang lowest monthly premium ay 210 pesos (105 from employee, 105 from employer) at ang highest ay 1,500 pesos (750 pesos from employee and 750 pesos from employer). The lowest salary base is 7K pesos and the highest salary base is 50K pesos. An employee earning 15,000 pesos a month would pay 225 pesos a month and his/her employer would pay 225 pesos a month.

Sa Lifetime Members, wala itong effect kasi libre na sila for the rest of their lives. Available itong Lifetime membership sa lahat ng Philhealth members na 60 years old and above at nakapagbayad ng at least 120 monthly Philhealth contributions (kasama ang monthly premiums noong Medicare pa).

Philip C. Tubeza reported on Inquirer.net on December 21 that migrant rights groups including the Blas F. Ople Center, Kabalikat ng Migranteng Pilipino, Kalahi-Advocate for Overseas Filipinos and Filipino Migrant Workers’ Group are protesting the imposition of the Philhealth contribution increase without public consultations and that Philhealth has scheduled a meeting with the OFW advocates.

Paano kaya tayo na Individually Paying Members? Sinong advocates natin? Tayo-tayo rin. Mag-comment tayo sa OWP-Philhealth sa Facebook at sa comment sections ng news articles about Philhealth sa Inquirer.net, philstar.com, gmanetwork.com/news, abs-cbnnews.com at iba pang news networks.

I’m now looking for another money transfer service that my U.S. employers can use to send me my salary as a virtual assistant and SEO writer. And it must be an online service, as my employers are busy. There are cheaper remittance alternatives, but my employers don’t have time to go to remittance outlets. They prefer paying online with their credit cards and debit cards.

Currently, they’re using Paypal. All they need is my email address linked to my Paypal account. But I now think I’m losing money because of the lower Paypal dollar-to-peso conversion rate. Also, I have to wait for 3 days before the money is credited to my account. And I have to pay 150 pesos to BPI for the transfer to my BPI account. They say other banks charge 200 pesos for the transfer.

It’s good my employers are the ones paying the Paypal transfer fee, which is 3.4 % of the remittance amount plus 15 pesos.

Now, let’s compare four services that offer online money transfer to Philippines from the U.S.

PAYPAL

Money transfer fee: 3.4 % plus 15 pesos for credit card payments (paid by either the sender or recipient) plus 150 or 200 pesos for withdrawal into a local bank account

For remittance amount of $500, transfer fee is $17 plus 15 pesos, plus 150 pesos for withdrawal into a BPI account or 200 pesos if withdrawn into a BDO account.

For $850, fee is $28.9 plus 15 pesos, plus 150 pesos for withdrawal into a BPI account or 200 pesos into a BDO account.

Dollar-peso exchange rate:
On Dec 17, the Paypal exchange rate was 1 US$ = 42.6354 pesos
BDO exchange rate was 1 US$ = 43.50 pesos

Although the payment appears immediately on Paypal account, the actual money transfer takes 2 to 5 days or more. So far, the transfer to my BPI account takes 3 business days. Visa, MasterCard and American Express credit cards or debit cards can be used.

XOOM

On Dec 17, the Xoom exchange rate was 1 US$ = 42.88 pesos
while the BDO exchange rate was 1 US$ = 43.50 pesos.

The minimum amount to send is $50. The service fee is $5.99 if paid thru bank account and $8.99 if paid thru credit or debit card. Fees start at $5.99.

For $500, transfer fee is $13.99 if paid thru credit card or debit card. For $850, the fee is $17.99. For $1,000, the fee is $18.99.

If payment is made via bank account, money transfer fee is $5.99.

WESTERN UNION

On Dec 17, the Western Union exchange rate was 1 US dollar = 42.6494157 pesos
while the BDO exchange rate was US dollar = 43.50 pesos.

For a remittance amount of $500, transfer fee is $25. For $850, fee is $30. For $1,000, fee is $30. Sender can use Visa, MasterCard or Discover.

If bank account is used to send, money transfer takes 3 business days, but it’s cheaper — only $8 for a remittance amount of $500.

MONEYGRAM

For remittance amount of $500, transfer fee is $28. For $850, fee is $55.
The system calculates only up to $899.99, can’t find why. Moneygram does not disclose its currency exchange rate before actual processing.

If bank account is used to send, remittance takes 3 business days and the money transfer fee is $14.99 for a remittance amount of $500.

From the above chart, it looks like XOOM is the best.  I’ll check again and then ask my employers to pay through XOOM.

Disclaimer:  If you’re also analyzing which service to use to make online money transfer to Philippines, please double-check my computations.  I made careful research, but I might have missed something.

What are the advantages of Modified Pag-ibig II?

1.  Guaranteed by the Philippine government.

Hindi nawawala parang bula, kagaya ng nangyari sa maraming pre-need firms na mismanaged by families na hindi na naawa sa mga planholders nila.

2.  The interest rate is much higher.

As of April 2010, the annual interest rate for Modified Pag-ibig II was 5.5%, walang tax, and much higher than savings account rates na usually ay between 0.5% to 1.75% lang. Bukod sa mababa na ang interest ng savings account, mababawasan pa ng withholding tax.

The Pag-ibig board can also declare an interest rate of more than 5.5%.

Sa time deposits naman, rates range from only 1.75% for deposits of at least 10,000 pesos to 2.75% for at least 5 million pesos.
Merong 5% na interest rate, pero ito ay ibinibigay sa mga at least 1 million pesos na hindi gagalawin for 5 years.

Isa pa, sa savings account, instead na saving money, ang ilan ay nalulugi pa, kasi madalas nababawasan ang savings dahil nagwi-widro sa ATM ng ibang bank at hindi name-maintain ang required balance.

The interest rate can go up, if the Pag-ibig board finds time to feel more generous dahil lumaki ang kita ng Pag-ibig.

Yong recent Pag-ibig table of expected earnings, 6% ang ginamit nila na interest rate:

3.  Tax-free ang interest earnings ng MP2. Walang bawas.

Ang time deposit, merong 20% withholding tax sa interest income, except lang sa mga 5-year tax-free time deposits. Ang savings account, meron ding 20% withholding tax sa konting na na-earn na interest.

4.  Low monthly minimum savings amount, which is 500 pesos per month. Puede mong dagdagan.

5.  Your savings are still yours, even if you’re unable to continue contributing to the program.
Sa pre-need, mawawala ang 50k, 100k, 150k mo kung hindi mo naituloy kahit valid ang dahilan, kasi pinirmahan mo yong contract na ganon.

6.  You CANNOT withdraw your Pag-ibig savings anytime. Maganda ito, in the sense, na hindi mo siya magagasto sa kung anu-ano lang. Hindi mo rin siya puedeng iwidro at ipahiram sa nakikiusap. “Ay sori talaga, nasa Pag-ibig kasi savings namin eh, hindi puede iwidro.”

7. You CANNOT borrow it. Hindi puedeng mag-loan dito. Yong sa mandatory Pag-ibig I, doon ka mag-loan. Advantage itong hindi mo ma-loan, kasi hindi mo magagalaw.

8. Available for withdrawal after 5 years. Oh ayan, puede nang iwidro! Pang-tuition, o pang-down sa house and lot, or pambili na ng bahay.

Kung ayaw mo pa, at gusto mo pang dagdagan, you can keep on saving money by renewing it for another 5 years.

Who can save with Modified Pag-ibig II?

Anyone who is already a member of Pag-ibig I. Dapat mag-member muna sa Pag-ibig I kasi ito ay mandatory. Ang Pag-ibig II ay voluntary. Puede sa OFW, sa seaman, at sa employee, self-employed or business owner dito.

How do we start saving with Pag-ibig II?

Visit any Pag-ibig branch with your IDs and apply for Modified Pag-ibig II membership. Fill out a Modified Pag-ibig II Registration Form (MP2RF). You can start with 500 pesos, or go ahead with 5,000 pesos.

Saving Money with Modified Pag-ibig II

However, you can file a claim if you’re an authorized representative with a Special Power of Attorney (SPA), or a member’s court-appointed administrator or executor.

Pag-ibig death benefits consist of only two:

1. Provident Benefit. The amount of this is equal to the member’s Total Accumulated Values (TAV). TAV is the total of the following:

- all contributions made by the member
- all contributions made by the member’s employers for the member
- all dividends credited by Pag-ibig to the member’s account

Note: Salary loan balances or due housing loan amortizations will be deducted from the TAV.

2. Death benefit. The amount of this benefit depends on the TAV total and membership status at the time of death.

List of primary legal heirs or beneficiaries:

- Spouse (wife or husband)
- Children, whether legitimate, illegitimate, or legally adopted
- Parents of member

List of secondary legal heirs or beneficiaries:

- Grandparents of member (father’s side and mother’s side)
- Brothers and sisters of member
- Nephews and nieces of member
- Other nearest relatives

Note: For the distribution or sharing of benefits, the intestate succession rules contained in the New Family Code is followed.

Documents required to file a death benefit claim:

1. Application for Provident Benefits (APB) Claim (FPC010)
2. Death certificate of Pag-ibig member, issued by NSO or Certified True Copy by the Civil Registrar
3. Funeral receipt or payment certification from the funeral service provider
4. Notarized Proof of Surviving Legal Heirs (FPC011)
5. Notarized Affidavit of Guardianship (FPC012)
(if children are 18 years old and younger, or physically/mentally handicapped children)
6. Birth certificates of all children, issued by NSO, or Certified True Copy by the Civil
Registrar, or baptismal or confirmation certificates
7. Marriage certificate, issued by NSO, or Certified True Copy by the Civil Registrar, if
member is married
8. Birth certificate of member, if claimants are the parents or siblings
9. Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR), issued by NSO, if member is single
10. Two valid ID cards of claimant
11. Other documents required by Pag-ibig Fund upon filing of claim

Valid IDs: passport, driver’s license, voter’s ID, postal ID, SSS card, company ID, PRC ID, GSIS e-Card, AFP ID, IBP ID, OWWA ID, OFW ID, and SIRB seaman’s ID.

You can download the required Pag-ibig claim forms from the following:

Application for Provident Benefits Claim

Proof of Surviving Legal Heirs

Affidavit of Guardianship

Where to file your claim:

File your Provident benefit claim at the Pag-ibig Fund branch where the Pag-ibig member or employer has remitted the most or latest contributions. If the member had multiple employers, check if the member’s contributions are already consolidated in the branch where you are filing.

Note: Pag-ibig Fund says DO NOT HIRE a THIRD PARTY to follow-up your claim.

If the legal heirs or beneficiaries are unable to file the Pag-ibig Fund Death Benefit themselves, the claim can be filed by their authorized representative, their appointed court administrator or executor.

Any authorized representative is required to present a Special Power of Attorney (SPA) (Use Pag-ibig Fund SPA Form FCP014), his or her valid IDs, and the valid IDs of the member and beneficiaries.

I’m really happy that she inherited part of my passion for writing, although it manifested only now in her late teens. She’s indeed a late bloomer in many ways — even her understanding of Math came only later. I was frustrated during her primary school years, when she could not solve very simple Math problems. Now, Math is one of her fave subjects as she now excels in it.

It’s through my daughter’s search for various affordable but effective beauty products that I’m discovering products I didn’t know existed (you see, I only use Johnson’s baby powder on my face, nothing else).

Here are some beauty products I didn’t know existed, and that she has blogged about in her BeautyofYouth.net blog:

Double Eyelid Tape from The Face Shop

This beauty product instantly puts folds into smaller eyes, narrower eyes, or slit eyes. It’s also my first time to know that the terms double eyelids and mono eyelids are used to describe the lack or presence of folds on the eyelids.

Nail Art Water Decals

You can make your nails attractive and unique in minutes with these decals.

For more information about these products, just visit BeautyofYouth.net or click products above.

In most cases, the success of married OFWs depends on the
wife or the husband of the OFW. 

It’s the spouse in the Philippines who receives the salary of the OFW, and it is he or she who’s the one deciding how the money will be spent.

Woe to the OFW whose wife or husband is a mallgoer, a philanderer, a man-eater, a libre-dito-libre-doon, a madamot sa kamag-anak ng OFW, a pasikat, a tamad, or one who does not find ways to supplement the OFW salary.

If you’re an OFW wife or a husband, and you no longer have small kids to take care of, and you know that your OFW spouse might be terminated because of his/her illness, would you not find ways to supplement the OFW income?

Or lalo ka bang mangutang ng mga 5-6 para sa motorcycle o bagong cellphone ng anak?

I have a personal in-law problem related to this kind, and many times I rebel. Ito yong kasong nagtatrabaho ka, nagtitipid ka, tapos itutulong mo lang yong natipid mo sa pamilya na hindi naman lumingon sa iyo noong nagtatamasa sila ng OFW money? Na hindi man lang binayaran yong 100k plus at pluses pa na inutang sa iyo sa kanilang pag-apply sa abroad, at pag-solbar ng mga problema nila. Na meron pang nagawa sa abroad na ikinasama ng trabaho ng mismong tumulong sa kanya.

Now, this former OFW person is alone, in his dilapidated low-cost amortization-never-paid 19-square-meter house. Was forced to return back home for good because of a heart-related illness. The wife and the children are gone.

Who will help him? Again, yong mga taong lagi na lang tumutulong sa kanya kahit walang kapalit — paano kasi, hindi matiis dahil kadugo.

OFW wives and husbands, maawa kayo sa mga asawa ninyo na naghihirap sa abroad. I-explain ninyo sa mga anak ninyo ang hirap at sakripisyo ng mga asawa ninyo. Sabi dati ng isa kong nakausap na seaman, “Akala ng asawa at mga anak ko, sitting pretty ako sa barko. Hindi nila alam na nakababad ako sa tubig at nagkikiskis ng kalawang ng barko.”

Yong isa naman, sabi niya, “Hindi alam ng pamilya ko, natutulog ako sa double-deck. Para kaming sardinas sa isang kuarto. Agency lang kasi yong napasukan ko.”

Pag wala nang maliit na inaalagaan, maghanap ng legal na pagkakakitaan, na kaya ninyo at walang kalugihan.

Ngayon-ngayon lang, nagbigay na naman ako dito sa in-law na former OFW na ito. Wala na siyang pambili ng gamot at pagkain. Ang payat-payat na. Sana hindi ganito ang kahihinatnan ng OFW na kamag-anak ninyo.

Photo top right: by Ed Yourdon, CC BY-SA 2.0, flickr.com/photos/yourdon/2626864976

Photo top left: by Joe Szilagyi, CC BY-SA 2.0, flickr.com/photos/rootology/2659216848