Pag-IBIG is an acronym for Pagtutulungan sa Kinabukasan: Ikaw Bangko, Industriya, at Gobyerno and is also known as the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF). It is one of the government’s agencies that aims to provide housing loans, savings, and other financial services, maternity leave grants, and death and disability insurance to all Filipino workers. And in the past few years, it started extending help to small business owners by giving them small business loans and SME financing.
Pag-IBIG is one of the most popular government agencies because of its wide range of financial products and services. It is also one of the easiest and most convenient ways to save money for the future. If you are not a member yet, this is the sign to be one. The Pag-IBIG membership provides a lot of ways to save money such as regular savings programs, MP2 saving programs, and best of all, the housing loan program.
Who can be a member of Pag-IBIG?
Pag-IBIG membership is mandatory according to Republic Act No. 9679:
- All employers, employees, professionals, and officers,
- Uniformed personnel
- Judiciary and constitutional commission members.
- Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW)
- Filipino workers with foreign-based employers.
What are the programs and benefits of Pag-IBIG?
The main objective of Pag-IBIG is to help all Filipino workers save for their future and to provide shelter for them and their families. Here’s the list of benefits and programs you can receive from Pag-IBIG.
- Housing Loan. This program provides Filipino workers the opportunity to have their own houses. With the help of the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) and local real estate developers, we can now loan money to buy affordable houses. HDMF also offers loans with lower rates (as low as 4.5%) and for a longer period of time (up to 30 years) than the market rate.
- Overseas Pag-IBIG Members Services Desk. This program has twenty-three (23) posts all over the world to provide services such as member registration, remittance of membership savings and loan amortizations, assist in giving provident claims and loan benefits.
- Death Benefits. For deceased Pag-IBIG members who did not claim their saving benefits before they die, their beneficiary can claim his/her benefits. However, Pag-IBIG does not have funeral or burial benefits, unlike SSS.
- Pag-IBIG Fund Loyalty Card. When applying for Multi-Putpose Loan (MPL), Housing Loan (HL), or Provident Benefits Claim, a member is required to have Pag-IBIG Fund Loyalty Card as this also serves as Pag-IBIG Fund Transaction Card. It provides discounts on some of Pag-IBIG Fund’s partner institutions such as medicine, university fees, travel, cosmetic and wellness services, and reward advantages on groceries and gasoline.
- Pag-IBIG MP2. Modified Pag-IBIG 2 (MP2) is an optional savings program from the government that gives higher tax-free annual dividends than the regular membership. It has a minimum capital requirement of Php 500 with no maximum limit and has a five-year term.
- Pag-IBIG Mortgage Redemption Insurance. This non-life insurance protects your mortgage in the event of death or grave illness. It is required when you take out a Pag-IBIG Housing Loan and must be paid by the member.
- Provident Savings. This is one of the fastest, easiest, and most affordable way for a member to save money. The member’s contribution together with his/her employer’s will be accredited to his/her savings called Tot
- .al Accumulated Value (TAV) to which a member can withdraw upon maturity of the fund.
- Short-Term Loan. Like other government agencies, Pag-IBIG also provides short-term loans for its members. It has two types of loans:
- Calamity Loan. This program aims to help Pag-IBIG members affected by natural disasters such as floods, fires, tropical cyclones/typhoons, volcanic eruptions, and so on.
- Multi-Purpose Loan (MPL). This program is for members who want to improve or repair their houses, tuition or educational fees, health and wellbeing, and livelihood.
Pag-IBIG Online Services
To give better services, Pag-IBIG has a series of online services to its members such as:
- Housing Online Services
- Housing Loan Interest Re-pricing Application. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/repricing/
- Developer’s Online Housing Loan Application. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/HLDeveloper/Account/Login.aspx
- Housing Loan Online Application. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/virtualpagibig/HL/Reminder.aspx
- Housing Loan Payment Viewer. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/OnlineHLVerification/
- Membership Online Services.
- Employer Registration. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/EmployerRegistration_Public/
- Membership Registration. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/PubReg/NewReg_Page.aspx
- Kasambahay Membership Registration. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/kasambahay/default.aspx
- OFW Member’s Contribution Verification. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/OFWMCVerification/
- Other Online Services.
- Electronic Submission Remittance Schedule (eSRS). https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/esrsemployer/default.aspx
- MP2 Savings Enrolment. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/MP2Enrollment/
- Online Payment Facilities. https://www.pagibigfundservices.com/virtualpagibig/PayOnline.aspx
Video: How to Set up a Virtual Pag-IBIG Account Online for OFWs
If you are an OFW or you simply don’t have the time to go out, you can still reach out to Pag-IBIG by simply creating an account. Watch this video and follow the steps:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Pag-IBIG?
Pag-IBIG is one of the government’s agencies that aims to provide housing loans, savings, and other financial services, maternity leave grants, and death and disability insurance to all Filipino workers.
How much is the Pag-IBIG contribution?
The initial monthly contribution is Php 200.
What are the benefits of being a member of Pag-IBIG?
Pag-IBIG members can get savings, short-term loans, and housing loans.
Can a member use Pag-IBIG when applying for Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC)?
Yes. A member can present the latest monthly contribution receipt.
How to create a Virtual Pag-IBIG account for OFWs?
For Overseas Filipino Workers, they must choose “Account Creation for OFWs” option when creating an account.
Summary
Every one of us dreamt and still dreamed of having our own house. For most Filipino workers, this is difficult if one will only rely on his/her salary. Fortunately, there is Pag-IBIG Fund to help us. This government agency gave light to those workers who wanted to have a decent shelter for their families and to save for their future.