Coverage: who may claim posthumous pension
- A deceased veteran’s estate, or a deceased pensioner’s widow/er’s estate, is entitled to old age, disability, and death pensions under Republic Act No. 6948, as amended by Republic Act No. 7696, only when the deceased veteran or his/her widow/er had duly approved an application for that pension benefit.
- Legal heirs must claim the accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension in due form by filing with PVAO.
Core policy on handling uncollected pensions
- Applications for posthumous pensions are processed by PVAO through verification of documentary requirements, legal evaluation, and finance certification of the total uncollected pension.
- PVAO requires basic documentary proof in every case, regardless of the amount involved.
- PVAO requires additional requirements depending on the amount of the accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension.
Definitions and referenced pension rights
- The memorandum recognizes pension entitlements for old age, disability, and death pensions under Republic Act No. 6948, as amended by Republic Act No. 7696, and its implementing rules and regulations.
Basic requirements for every claim
- Regardless of the amount of accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension, claimants must submit:
- a Certified True Copy of the Death Certificate of the deceased pensioner (veteran/surviving spouse pensioner), issued by NSO, with the corresponding Official Receipt of payment;
- Evidence of filiation/relationship of the person/s claiming the accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension (e.g., birth certificates and marriage certificates), with NSO-certified true copies and corresponding Official Receipts of payment; and
- an Application form duly accomplished and filed by qualified claimant to the posthumous pension, marked as PVAO PP Form A.
Application processing and internal review
- Applications for Posthumous Pensions must be:
- received and docketed by designated frontline officers; and
- transmitted for verification of the due execution and authenticity of the submitted basic requirements.
- After verification, the file folder must be officially transmitted to the Legal Division for evaluation and determination of the legal sufficiency of the documents.
- At the same time the file is transmitted to the Legal Division, the transmittal must be furnished to the Finance Division for certification of the total amount of uncollected pensions.
- Upon receipt of the Finance Division’s statement of uncollected pension, the Legal Division must:
- advise the claimant of additional requirements depending on the amount; and
- after reviewing the legal sufficiency, recommend for approval to the Administrator.
Additional requirements by pension amount
Claims must include additional requirements depending on the amount of accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension:
Less than PHP 10,000.00
- The claimant must submit a Notarized Affidavit of Claim with Waiver of Rights and Deed of Indemnity, signed by all the heirs of the decedent (PVAO Form C).
PHP 10,000.00 or more but less than PHP 20,000.00
- The claimant must submit a Notarized Affidavit of Claim with Waiver of Rights and Deed of Indemnity signed by all heirs of the decedent.
- The claimant must also submit a Certificate of Indemnity executed by two (2) solvent persons, preferably PVAO pensioners (PVAO Form), unless the claimant is the surviving spouse (in which case, the Certificate of Indemnity by solvent persons is no longer required).
- The indemnity consideration must be double the amount certified as uncollected pension.
- The Deed of Indemnity must be enforceable for a period of two (2) years from the date of release/payment of the accrued/uncollected/posthumous pension.
PHP 20,000.00 or more but not exceeding PHP 50,000.00
- The claimant must submit a Notarized Affidavit of Claim with Waiver of Rights and Certificate of Indemnity by all heirs and two solvent persons (PVAO Form C).
- The claimant must also submit Heirs’ Bond that may be:
- a cash Bond, or
- a Surety Bond secured by the heirs from a reputable Surety Company acceptable to PVAO,
- PVAO must be named as beneficiary, and the bond must be:
- callable on demand, and
- enforceable for a period of two (2) years from date of release/withdrawal of the accrued/posthumous pension.
More than PHP 50,000.00
The decedent pensioner’s heirs must proceed through either of the following options:
Option (i): Court proceeding
- The heirs may institute intestate proceeding in court.
- If the decedent veteran’s heir/s file testate/intestate proceedings in court, payment release of the accrued/posthumous pension claim is allowed on the basis of the court’s order, regardless of the decedent veteran’s accrued/posthumous pension amount.
- If the court appoints an Administrator (whether or not special) or an Executor, the appointee may withdraw and receive the accrued/posthumous pension upon submission of:
- the original/certified true copy of the Administrator’s/Executor’s appointment authorizing withdrawal and receipt from PVAO; and
- if the appointment papers do not authorize withdrawal and receipt, a court order authorizing the Administrator/Executor to withdraw and receive the accrued/posthumous pension.
Option (ii): Extra-judicial settlement
- The heirs may execute an Affidavit of Self-Adjudication or Deed of Extra-Judicial Settlement in the manner provided under Rule 74 of the Rules of Court.
- An Affidavit of Self-Adjudication or Deed of Extra-Judicial Settlement is treated as executed in accordance with Rule 74 if all of the following are complied with:
- it is embodied in a public instrument;
- it is published once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the province where the estate is located;
- it is registered with the Register of Deeds of the City/Province where the properties are located; and
- a bond is filed with the Register of Deeds in an amount equal to the value of the personal properties of the estate.
Reporting and performance monitoring
- The Legal Division must submit a monthly performance report covering:
- pending applications for posthumous claims; and
- those approved by the Administrator, including the corresponding amount and the total amount.
Authorized PVAO forms
- The memorandum adopts the following forms:
- Annex A: Application Form
- Annex B: Transmittal
- Annex C: Affidavit of Claim, Waiver of Rights and Certificate of Indemnity
Repeal and effectivity rule
- Memoranda, orders, and circulars inconsistent with these guidelines are repealed or modified accordingly.
- The guidelines were adopted on 12 Oct. 2005.
- The Administrator who adopted the memorandum is ROGELIO A. DAYAN.