By Brian Campued
For the first time, pro-rata and Portability Law retirees have been included in the release of P3.93 billion in Christmas cash gifts from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to its eligible pensioners.
According to GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso, some 411,692 eligible pensioners are expected to receive cash gifts equivalent to one month’s pension or P10,000, whichever is lower, on Thursday.
Veloso said that they expanded the coverage of the cash gift to include an additional 14,992 pro-rata and Portability Law pensioners who were previously excluded from the annual benefit.
Pro-rata pensioners are members who rendered at least 15 years of service but with less than 15 years of paid premiums, while Portability Law pensioners are those whose GSIS and SSS contributions were combined to qualify for social insurance benefits.
Moreover, the December monthly pension will also be credited on Dec. 5, from the regular schedule of Dec. 8, to give pensioners more time to prepare for the holidays.
“Ito ay paraan para maipadama ang aming pasasalamat sa inyong mahabang paglilingkod sa bayan,” Veloso said in a video statement.
Eligible recipients include old-age, retirement, and disability pensioners under Republic Act (RA) No. 8291, RA 660, RA 7699, and Presidential Decree No. 1146 who are in active status, receiving their regular or pro-rata pension, and are living as of Nov. 30, 2025.
On the other hand, those who are not eligible for the cash gift include survivorship and dependent pensioners and those who availed of a five-year lump sum and will resume their pension after Dec. 31, 2025.
Retirees from 2021–2025 who took the 18× cash payment and immediate life pension under RA 8291 (eligible five years after retirement) and members separated from service from 2006–2025 before age 60 who began receiving their regular pension in 2021–2025 (eligible after five years as a regular pensioner) are also excluded from the Christmas benefit.
Meanwhile, the GSIS reminded pensioners to accomplish their Annual Pensioners’ Information Revalidation (APIR), which may be completed through the facial recognition feature of the GSIS Touch mobile app.
Pensioners with suspended status due to APIR non-compliance as of Dec. 31, 2025, may still claim their cash gift once their accounts are reactivated, the agency assured.
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