State-run Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has expanded benefits and moved more services online for retirees as the Philippines marks Filipino Elderly Week, the pension fund’s top executive said.
The changes, already in effect, include lifting caps on survivorship pensions, increasing funeral benefits, easing requirements for annual cash gifts and shifting more application processes to mobile platforms.
“Our responsibility to our pensioners does not end when they retire. We must continue to protect their benefits and make our processes easier to navigate,” GSIS president and general manager Wick Veloso said in a statement.
Under the new rules, surviving spouses can receive a full 50% survivorship pension without payout caps. GSIS also scrapped a policy that suspended benefits for beneficiaries who were cohabiting with a new partner, allowing payments to continue unless the surviving spouse remarries.
Funeral benefits for deceased members and pensioners were increased to P50,000 ($885) from P30,000, while qualified uniformed personnel are entitled to a P10,000 benefit.
GSIS has also made retirement applications and annual revalidation available through its mobile app, reducing the need for pensioners to visit branches in person.
Filipino Elderly Week is observed annually from Oct. 1 to 7 under a 1994 presidential proclamation.
