National Athletes and Coaches Incentives Act

Policy, purpose, and guiding principle

The State promotes excellence in sports by looking after the welfare of national athletes and coaches competing for the country.
The State provides benefits and incentives for national athletes and other athletes who win in international sports competitions and bring honor and recognition to the country.
The Act is directed to the welfare of athletes and coaches and the encouragement of international sporting success.

Key definitions established by the Act

“Athletes with disabilities” means persons with disabilities under Republic Act No. 7277 who are Filipino citizens, recognized and accredited by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and the National Paralympic Committee of the Philippines (NPC PHIL), and who have represented the country in international sports competitions.
“International sports competitions” means international competitions falling within:
- regular major competitions, including the Summer Olympic Games, Winter Olympic Games, Asian Games, Asian Winter Games, Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, Youth Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Asian Park Games, Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, Asian Beach Games, and ASEAN Para Games;
- world-level championships held at least every two (2) years with at least forty-five (45) countries participating by sport;
- Asian-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least twenty-five (25) countries participating by sport; and
- qualifying competitions for world-level games with at least ten (10) countries participating.
Prize money competitions are excluded from the meaning of “international sports competitions.”
“National athletes” includes athletes with disabilities and means Filipino citizens who are members of the national training pool and are recognized and accredited by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and the PSC, including athletes with disabilities who are recognized and accredited by NPC PHIL and the PSC, and who have represented the country in international sports competitions.
“National coaches” means coaches of national athletes who are Filipino citizens, members of the national coaches training pool, and recognized and accredited by the PSC and the POC; coaches of athletes with disabilities are recognized and accredited by the PSC and NPC PHIL; and they must have represented the country as official coaches to national athletes in international sports competitions.

Coverage: who is entitled

Any national athlete and coach who is currently registered as such is entitled to the benefits and privileges in Section 4.
Scholarship benefits under Section 5 apply to a national athlete who wins in a regular major international sports competition.
Retirement benefits under Section 6 apply to any national athlete and coach who wins in an international competition or has coached such winning national athlete.
Death benefits under Section 7 apply upon the death of any national athlete and coach.
Cash incentives for athletes under Section 8 apply to national athletes and other athletes who are not members of the national training pool but who have otherwise represented the country in international sports competitions and win gold, silver, and bronze medals.
Cash incentives for coaches under Section 9 apply to coaches of national athletes who have personally trained and rendered service to athletes or teams that win at least six (6) months prior to the international competition.
Benefits and privileges availment under Section 10 applies to national athletes and coaches who present a valid PSC identification card.

Benefits and privileges for national athletes/coaches

National athletes and coaches who are currently registered are entitled to a twenty percent (20%) discount from all establishments relating to transportation services, hotels and other lodging establishments, restaurants and recreation centers, and purchase of medicine and sports equipment, nationwide for actual and exclusive use or enjoyment.
National athletes and coaches who are currently registered are entitled to a minimum of twenty percent (20%) discount on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema houses and concert halls, circuses, carnivals, and other similar places of culture, leisure and amusement for actual and exclusive use or enjoyment.
National athletes and coaches who are currently registered are entitled to free medical and dental consultations in government hospitals and similar establishments anywhere in the country.
National athletes and coaches are entitled to coverage in the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) of PHILHEALTH through the sponsored program of the PSC.
The Act requires the Social Security System to formulate a comprehensive social security program within one hundred eighty (180) days from approval of the Act.
National athletes and coaches are entitled to priority in existing government livelihood programs, subject to the implementing body’s guidelines and qualifications.
National athletes and coaches are entitled to priority in national housing programs, affordable abahabaya loans, and other housing opportunities, subject to guidelines and qualifications set by the National Housing Authority (NHA) or the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF).
National athletes are entitled to the use of living quarters and training centers set up and maintained by the PSC for the exclusive use of national athletes while preparing and training for international competitions.
Privately-owned establishments enjoy tax deductions equivalent to the discounts extended under the Act’s Section 4(a) and (b), subject to rules and regulations issued by the Secretary of Finance, as recommended by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, within ninety (90) days from the Act’s effectivity.
Failure of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to promulgate the rules and regulations does not prevent implementation of the benefits.

Scholarships and retirement benefits

A national athlete who wins in a regular major international sports competition is entitled to scholarship benefits consisting of full tuition fees from state colleges or universities for a college or university degree.
The winning athlete is given priority in state college or university scholarship grants.
CHED and TESDA must give priority to winning national athletes who seek scholarship grants and study under their programs, subject to CHED and TESDA regulations and policies and qualifications applicable to all applicants.
Private colleges and universities are encouraged to adopt a similar program for winning national athletes.
Retirement benefits: any national athlete and coach who wins in an international competition or has coached such winning national athlete receives a lump sum equivalent to twenty-five percent (25%) of total cash incentives computed from the start of active sports career as a national training pool or national coaches training pool member up to the last day of retirement from active competition or training as certified by the PSC.
The retirement lump sum is released sixty (60) days from the filing of the retirement papers.

Death benefits for athletes/coaches

Upon the death of any national athlete and coach, the primary beneficiaries receive a lump sum of thirty thousand pesos (P30,000.00) to cover funeral services.
If the athlete and coach has no primary beneficiaries, the secondary beneficiaries receive the same P30,000.00 funeral benefit.
Primary beneficiaries are the legitimate spouse and legitimate or illegitimate children.
Secondary beneficiaries are the parents, and in their absence, the brothers or sisters.
Death benefits under this section operate without prejudice to other similar benefits the athlete and coach may receive from other sources.

Cash incentives for athletes

National athletes and other qualified athletes who win gold, silver, and bronze medals in international sports competitions receive cash incentives according to the Act’s prescribed amounts.
Individual events—Gold medalists receive: P10,000,000.00 for Summer Olympic and Winter Olympic Games; P5,000,000.00 for Youth Olympic Games and Paralympic Games; P2,000,000.00 for Asian Games, Asian Winter Games, and Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games; P1,000,000.00 for Asian Para Games and world-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least forty-five (45) countries participating by sport; P500,000.00 for Asian Beach Games and Asian-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least twenty-five (25) countries participating by sport, and qualifying competitions for world-level and Asian-level games; P300,000.00 for SEA Games; and P150,000.00 for ASEAN Para Games.
Individual events—Silver medalists receive: P5,000,000.00 for Summer Olympic and Winter Olympic Games; P2,500,000.00 for Youth Olympic Games and Paralympic Games; P1,000,000.00 for Asian Games, Asian Winter Games, and Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games; P500,000.00 for Asian Para Games and world-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least forty-five (45) countries participating; P250,000.00 for Asian Beach Games and Asian-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least twenty-five (25) countries participating, and qualifying competitions for world-level and Asian-level games; P150,000.00 for SEA Games; and P75,000.00 for ASEAN Para Games.
Individual events—Bronze medalists receive: P2,000,000.00 for Summer Olympic and Winter Olympic Games; P1,000,000.00 for Youth Olympic Games and Paralympic Games; P400,000.00 for Asian Games, Asian Winter Games, and Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games; P200,000.00 for Asian Para Games and world-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least forty-five (45) countries participating; P100,000.00 for Asian Beach Games and Asian-level competitions held at least every two (2) years with at least twenty-five (25) countries participating and qualifying competitions for world-level and Asian-level games; P60,000.00 for SEA Games; and P30,000.00 for ASEAN Para Games.
Team events are compensated as follows:
- for competitions with less than five (5) participants per team, the team receives the same cash incentives for individual medal winners and the amount is divided equally among team members actually present during the competition;
- for competitions with five (5) or more participants per team, each team member receives twenty-five percent (25%) of the cash incentives for individual medal winners.
For demonstration and exhibition sports events in the Olympics, the winning athlete receives twenty-five percent (25%) of the cash incentives stated for Olympic medalists.
Athletes who surpass Philippine record or ranking in any measurable international sports competition receive cash incentives whose amount is determined by the PSC.
All cash incentives stated may be adjusted by the PSC upon consultation with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), based on studies, consultations and public hearings with relevant agencies, to reflect economic needs of the athletes no later than three (3) years after effectivity and every three (3) years thereafter.

Cash incentives for coaches

Coaches of national athletes are entitled to cash incentives if they personally trained and rendered service to athletes or teams that win at least six (6) months prior to the international competition.
For team events, certification of the six (6) months condition must be in writing, duly attested by the respective athlete or team captain, and attested through their respective national sports associations (NSAs).
Coach incentives equal fifty percent (50%) of the cash incentives granted to gold, silver, and bronze medalists.
If there is more than one (1) coach, cash incentives are divided among themselves.

How benefits are availed

National athletes and coaches avail themselves of the benefits and privileges by presenting a valid identification card issued by the PSC.
The PSC identification card is renewable every year.
National athletes and coaches cannot avail the benefits and privileges under Section 4 in combination with similar benefits and privileges under other existing laws.

Penalties and enforcement consequences

Any person violating Section 4(a) and (b) faces:
- for a first violation, a fine of not less than P50,000.00 but not exceeding P100,000.00 or imprisonment of not less than six (6) months but not more than two (2) years, or both, at the discretion of the court; and
- for any subsequent violation, a fine of not less than P100,000.00 but not exceeding P200,000.00 or imprisonment of not less than two (2) years but not more than six (6) years, or both, at the discretion of the court.
Any national athlete or coach who abuses the privileges granted is punished with imprisonment of not less than six (6) months or a fine of not less than P5,000.00 but not more than P50,000.00, or both, at the discretion of the court.
If the violator is a corporation, partnership, or any juridical person, penalties are imposed upon the president, owner or any responsible officer.
If the violator is an alien or a foreigner, the person is deported immediately after service of sentence without further deportation proceedings.
After filing of an appropriate complaint and after due notice and hearing, proper authorities may cancel or revoke business permits, permits to operate, franchises, and other similar privileges granted to a business entity that fails to abide by the Act.

Funding and dedicated sports fund setting aside

Cash incentives and retirement benefits are funded from the net cash income of PAGCOR, remitted directly as a special account to the National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) of the PSC.
The PAGCOR funding is in addition to the regular income share of the PSC under Republic Act No. 6847.
Additional funding requirements to implement increased cash incentives and retirement benefits are sourced from the fifty percent (50%) national government share in PAGCOR gaming revenue under Presidential Decree No. 1869, as amended.
A separate fund equivalent to not less than sixty percent (60%) of the existing NSDF is automatically set aside for the training and preparation of national athletes covered by the Act.

Transitory rules for past achievers

National athletes who have won and availed of benefits and privileges under Section 9 (Benefits, Privileges and Incentives for Past Achievers) of Republic Act No. 9064 are considered to have fully claimed their cash incentives.
National athletes who have not availed cash incentives under that prior provision must claim within three (3) years from effectivity of this Act.
Failure to claim within three (3) years results in ineligibility for the claim and waiver of rights thereafter.

Implementing rules, monitoring, and reports

The PSC must promulgate and issue the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) within sixty (60) days from approval of the Act.
The IRR is issued in consultation with the POC, NPC PHIL, Department of Health (DOH), Department of Education (DepED), CHED, TESDA, Department of Finance (DOF), BIR, PAGCOR, PHILHEALTH, and other concerned agencies.
Failure of the PSC to promulgate the IRR does not prevent implementation of the Act upon its effectivity.
The PSC must submit a report on benefits, privileges, and incentives granted under the Act to the DOF, DBM, PAGCOR, the Senate Committee on Games, Amusement and Sports, and the House of Representatives Committee on Youth and Sports Development.
The report is due not later than three (3) years from effectivity and every three (3) years thereafter.

Repeal, separability, and consolidation

Republic Act No. 9064 (the “National Athletes, Coaches and Trainers Benefits and Incentives Act of 2001” / “Sports Benefits and Incentives Act of 2001”) is repealed.
All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations, or parts thereof inconsistent with the Act are repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
If any provision or part is declared unconstitutional, the remainder of the Act or provisions not affected remain in full force and effect.