The Social Security System (SSS) in the Philippines plays a crucial role in the lives of millions of Filipinos by providing financial security and assistance during various life events, including sickness, maternity, disability, and retirement. One of the vital aspects of SSS benefits is the Funeral Benefit, which is designed to ease the financial burden on families when they lose a loved one.
Funeral expenses can be a significant financial burden for many Filipino families. The cost of a decent funeral, including burial or cremation services, casket, transportation, and other associated expenses, can be substantial. This often leaves grieving families in a tough spot, struggling to cover these costs while dealing with the emotional and psychological trauma of losing a loved one.
Hence, the Social Security System (SSS) announced that it has raised the maximum funeral benefits to P60,000 for its members.
SSS reported that on Friday, October 20, it started putting the new rules into effect for its Social Security (SS) Funeral Benefit Program.
The amount of SS funeral benefits that claimants of deceased members with 36 or more monthly payments may get under the revised standards varies from P20,000 to P60,000, based on the member's average monthly salary credit and the number of paid contributions.
Members who contributed at least once but fewer than thirty-six times a month until the month of their passing will get a fixed funeral benefit of P12,000.
SSS President and CEO Rolando Macasaet stated in a statement that the new guidelines provided under SSS Circular 2023-009 aim to streamline the provision of funeral benefits to claimants, especially for surviving legal spouses, and to incentivize active membership by raising the maximum amount of funeral benefit to P60,000.
SSS stated that the increased funeral benefit would cover the following: embalming services, burial transfer services and permits, cremation or interment services, funeral services (including church fees or their equivalent in other religions), purchase or rent of a coffin, purchase or rent of a cemetery, memorial lot, or columbarium, and memorial or funeral insurance plan.
The funeral costs, as stated in the evidence of payment, would also be paid back, but the amount would not go above the estimated funeral benefit that is owed.
Funeral benefit applications must be submitted within a predetermined 10-year window from the member's or pensioner's month of death, subject to any restrictions that the SSS may impose.
In addition, Macasaet noted, they want to emphasize that actively paying SSS contributions will not only enable their members to qualify or remain qualified to their benefit and loan programs, but will also allow them to attain higher and better benefits as they continue to pursue the provision of meaningful social security protection through simpler, faster, and more convenient processes.
How to file applications for the funeral benefits?
Applications for funeral benefits from SSS members must be submitted online via their account at www.sss.gov.ph. Claimants who are not members, however, can submit their applications to any SSS branch.
Source: Social Security System
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