DBM hastens retirement benefits for gov’t workers

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) issued new guidelines to make the processing and releasing of benefits for retiring government employees more efficient.

In a circular dated April 12, the agency said that all government retirees would receive their benefits within 30 days of their date of retirement. This provision only goes into effect if retiring employees submit all necessary requirement 90 days before their date of retirement. 

According to Budget and Management Secretary Florencio Abad, the new guidelines ensure faster processing of retirement pension for government retirees.

The DBM said that as mandated by Republic Act No. 10154 of 2011, government employees should receive retirement benefits within 30 days of their retirement date. In some cases, however, the processing of benefits for retired government workers took a year or more.

“We understand the great inconvenience this has caused our retirees, and the implementation of the modified guidelines should assure the quick release of their perks as mandated by law,” Abad said.

The new guidelines prescribe a maximum period of 120 days for the submission, processing, release and payment of benefits for retired workers. Upon submission of all necessary requirements, the Budget department is expected the benefits within a 30-day period.

The DBM said that the new guidelines do not cover retirement benefits for Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) employees. The AFP’s pension system is still under review for possible rationalization. – Rappler.com