Remittance of pension now faster with new eCard Plus
Old-age pensioners of the GSIS can now enjoy the prompt receipt of their monthly pension — thanks to the eCard Plus.
Through the eCard Plus, pensioners can receive their monthly pension on the first working day of every month. With the ATM feature of the eCard, the pension can be readily withdrawn from any of the 6,000 Megalink, Bancnet, and Expressnet ATMs all over the country.
Prior to the introduction of the eCard system, pensioners had to wait for weeks to have their checks mailed, deposited, cleared and encashed.
Worse, pension checks were likewise often subjected to pilferage. Unreported changes in addresses to the GSIS had also resulted in checks being returned and cancelled.
The GSIS introduced the eCard system to its old-age pensioners in December 2005, in preparation for the electronic crediting of monthly pensions beginning January of this year.
As early as October 2006, or during the time when the eCard Plus and the GW@PS were first launched, old-age pensioners were among the first enrollees in the Radio Frequency-enhanced eCard Plus.
Aside from functioning as an ATM card, the eCard Plus also serves as a Pensioner’s ID, debit card and hospitalization discount card. Most importantly, it allows pesioners to comply with the yearly reporting requirement of the GSIS using the GW@PS.
The GSIS requires old-age pensioners based here and abroad to make a personal appearance in any servicing GSIS office in the Philippines once a year, during their birth month.
This policy addresses the problems of fraud through misrepresentation and overpayment to deceased pensioners.
Failure to report results in the temporary suspension of their monthly pensions.
To comply with this requirement using the eCard Plus and the GW@PS, pensioners only need to go to the nearest GSIS servicing office or other government establishments were the GW@PS is installed, place their eCard Plus on the kiosk’s card holder and have their fingerprints scanned and revalidated through the biometric scanner of the GW@PS.
Source: GSIS Kawani, Vol. 1 No. 2, May - August 2007.