LOS ANGELES – Top officials of the Philippine Social Security System (SSS) kicked off their US outreach mission with a community briefing at the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles on Friday, October 11.
Headed by SSS President and CEO Emilio S. De Quiros, Jr., the SSS delegation consisted of Vice President Maria Lourdes N. Mendoza and Senior Vice President Judy Frances A. See. Roberto Roldan of SSS Hong Kong also joined the group for their West Coast leg of the outreach mission.
De Quiros said that the main objective of their outreach mission is to extend social protection to the Filipino community, wherever they may be in this world.
“A good number of them are overseas Filipinos, and that’s one big market na nakita namin na kailangan bigyan ng opportunity para-ma cover ng social protection,” De Quiros said.
De Quiros cited the Filipinos in the Middle East as an example. Many of the OFWs there are working hard to provide for their families, in spite of not receiving any social protection from the local governments there. Should anything untoward happen to these OFWs without social coverage, they would not be able to receive any form of assistance or pensions because they are not covered.
De Quiros also said that fortunately, here in the United States, many Filipinos are covered under the Social Security Administration (SSA). However, there are also a good number of Filipinos who had previously enrolled with the SSS when then were still in the Philippines. Even if some of those members had already stopped sending in their contributions to the SSS, De Quiros said that it’s still not a bad idea to outreach to them.
He said that those members, should they decide to continue their contributions to the the Philippine agency, these US-based Filipinos would be entitled to two social coverage policies under two agencies: the SSA of the United States, and the SSS of the Philippines.
De Quiros also revealed that another key objective of their outreach mission is to evaluate the feasibility of re-establishing their bureau here in North America. De Quiros revealed that the SSS previously held an office here in the US, but it was closed down ever since. For now, the SSS officials are looking at the needs of the Filipino community in the US in terms of what kind of services the agency can offer, and what kind of personnel they would need to bring in if they eventually open up shop here.
Right now there are 15 offices in 11 countries across the world, spread in three major regions that are considered as top destinations of Filipnos abroad. In Asia, the SSS holds office in Hong Kong, Taipei, Brunei, Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur. In the Middle East, they have sites in Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar, Kuwait, Doha, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. In Europe, their offices can be found in Rome, Milan, and London.
According to Maria Mendoza, the SSS is specifically assessing the “economics” of where it is most feasible to establish their US office. Unlike in private companies that are highly aggressive in setting up their new branches, the government-owned-and-controlled corporation needs to undergo a thorough process of analysis before they can finally open up in the US.
Briefing on services
Although the briefing in LA was the SSS officials’ first stop in their outreach mission, De Quiros said that there was already a sizable degree of interest coming from the community. He said that the sheer number of inquiries regarding various SSS membership issues are a good indication of the community’s eagerness for the SSS services.
During Judy See’s presentation, she explained the key objectives of their outreach mission: enjoining Filipinos to register with SSS, encourage existing members to continue their contributions, and evaluate their resources for setting foreign territory operations.
As far as registering is concerned, Filipinos abroad only need to go online and use the SSS Form OW-1 to enlist. According to See, the SSS does not require any OFW documents for membership. Even if an individual is an undocumented immigrant in the US, they can still avail of an SSS membership. They only need to present a valid ID and a birth certificate that indicates their nationality as Filipinos or Filipino American.
Dual layer of protection
Currently, overseas Filipinos can make a minimum monthly contribution equivalent to Php520 or $12 USD. The maximum monthly contribution an Overseas Filipino can make is equivalent to Php1,560 or $36 USD. Filipnos abroad have a longer deadline to file their payment contributions. For the period of January to September, the deadline is December 31 of each year. For the October to December period, the annual deadline is January 31. Payments are accepted thru accredited financial entities and agents.
According to See, another key characteristic of the SSS program for OFW is the ‘dual layer’ of social protection that they can offer to members. The basic “layer” is the Regular Coverage Program or the basic pension plan. This is offered to all members across the board. The second layer is the Flexi-Fund Program or the pension-savings plan. This is exclusive to overseas Filipino SSS members.
To qualify for the Flexi-Fund Program, a member must first pay the max SSS contribution of Php1,560 or $36 USD per month. From then on, the member can make an addition contribution of at least Php200 or greater. There is no maintaining balance requirement. The payment can be made anytime depending on the capacity of the OFWs to save for the Flexi-Fund Program.
Highlights of this program include tax-free interest earnings on their contributions, early withdrawal, and an annual incentive benefit to active members.
The SSS outreach team will also head out to key cities in North America to connect with the Filipino communities there. Target destinations include San Francisco, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, New York, New Jersey, and Washington, DC. For more information regarding the SSS outreach mission, you may contact your local consulates regarding the community briefing schedules.
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Midweek October 16-18, 2013 Sec A pg.1)
