Metro Manila, Philippines – Human Settlements and Urban Development Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling, who also chairs the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees, announced the approval of a special Pag-IBIG Fund benefits package for repatriated OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) from the Middle East, allowing them to access their savings and receive temporary relief on housing loan payments as they recover and rebuild their lives back home.
Qualified OFW members may apply to withdraw up to 100 percent of their regular savings, including their employee share, employer share, and dividends earned, even before its 20-year maturity; withdraw up to 100% of their Modified Pag-IBIG II or MP2 savings, inclusive of returns earned, even before its five-year maturity; or avail of a three-month moratorium on housing loan payments, free from interest and penalties, with the loan term extended by three months.
“In adherence to the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Pag-IBIG Fund stands ready to extend practical and immediate assistance to our OFWs affected by the situation in the Middle East,” Aliling said. “Through this benefits package, qualified members may access their Pag-IBIG savings and receive temporary relief on housing loan payments, giving them more room to provide for their families and meet urgent needs during this difficult time.”
As of February, Pag-IBIG Fund has 891,427 registered OFW members in the Middle East, including 86,234 MP2 savers and 40,024 housing loan borrowers, with the largest numbers in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait. These approved relief measures are intended to help affected members meet urgent family and household expenses through early access to their savings, while also giving qualified housing loan borrowers breathing room from monthly payments as they recover and begin rebuilding their lives in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, Pag-IBIG Fund CEO Marilene C. Acosta said the agency is ready to deliver the approved financial assistance package in a manner that is prompt, accessible, and responsive to the needs of affected OFW members.
“We recognize that for this assistance to be truly responsive, it must be made available to qualified members in a manner that is fast, clear, and accessible,” Acosta said. “That is why we will make applications for these benefits available online through Virtual Pag-IBIG, while also ensuring that our more than 200 branches, OFW Centers, and service offices are ready to assist members and their families. In doing so, Pag-IBIG Fund also supports the assistance and reintegration efforts being carried out by the Department of Migrant Workers and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration for affected OFWs. Our goal is to make sure that qualified OFW members can turn to Pag-IBIG Fund for immediate and practical support as they recover.”
Pag-IBIG Fund said members may access services from Monday to Friday in office-based branches and from Tuesday to Saturday in mall-based branches, as well as through its digital service channel, Virtual Pag-IBIG, even as it supports the government’s energy conservation measures.
