25 August 2023, Seoul - The Philippine Embassy in Seoul together with the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Social Security System (SSS) organized a series of Townhall Meetings on the 2019 Philippines' ROK Social Security Agreement (SSA) with the Filipino Community in South Korea from June to August 2023.

The meetings were aimed to widely disseminate information and consult with the Filipino community and OFWs in Korea about the renegotiated and amended SSA which was signed between the Philippines and Korea on 29 November 2019, and ratified by then President Rodrigo R. Duterte in 2020. The amended SSA provides for equal treatment and continued coverage of Filipino workers in South Korea under the National Pension System (NPS) and their eligibility to receive the lump-sum-benefits on the same terms as Korean nationals. In addition, it extends special benefits to OFWs such as totalization of creditable period for purposes of old-age pension, portability of claims, and mutuality of assistance for SSS and NPS members wherever they are.

According to Philippine Ambassador Theresa De Vega, the town hall meetings were organized in line with the ongoing deliberation at the Philippine Senate for concurrence on the bilateral agreement. "The sessions in both online and offline formats were undertaken to ensure the widest possible dissemination of information about the amended agreement," the Ambassador said. Thus, in order to reach out to as many OFWs as possible, the Embassy, DMW and SSS organized several townhall meetings in partnership with the Filipino community organizations in Korea, starting in Seoul on 04 June, in Incheon/ Gyeonggido on 09 July, in Cheonan/ Asan/ Chungcheong-do on 16 July, and in Busan/ Daegu/ Ulsan/ Gimhae/Geoje/Gyeongsangnam-do on 23 July.

The culminating Town Hall was held at the Philippine Embassy on 13 August 2023 and live-streamed on FB. Officials from the Social Security System were also present which include Social Security Commissioners Anita B. Quitain and Jose C. Julio, SSS Executive Vice President Voltaire Agas, SSS Department Manager Francis Paolo Lazaro, SSS Service Representative Lester Paul Mata, and DMW Assistant Secretary Mario T. Zinampan who joined online.
SSC Commissioner Quitain emphasized the importance of continued social security coverage of OFWs and their families, while EVP Agas highlighted the advantages of the 2019 SSA which was actually renegotiated in response to the clamor from and for the benefit of OFWs in Korea. He emphasized that the amended SSA does not only guarantee continued protection and special lump-sum refund benefits for Filipinos under the NPS, but more importantly, it also extends totalization, portability, and mutual administrative assistance benefits for OFWs.
In his presentation, Mr. Lazaro expounded on each of the SSA provisions, and responded to the frequently asked questions from OFWs to clarify common misunderstanding or misinformation on the agreement. The SSS emphasized that the SSA does not allow any transfer of funds between the SSS and NPS, and that existing procedures on claims will remain. In closing, Asst. Secretary Zinampan urged the Filipino community in South Korea to lend support to the efforts of the government to strengthen and expand the social security protection of OFWs by ushering the entry into force of the PH-ROK bilateral agreement on social security.

After the discussion on the SSA, SSS representative Mata made a presentation on the membership benefits of OFWs and assisted the OFWs in their online registration and other membership record concerns.


For more information, the copy of the SSA may be requested from labor@philembassy-seoul.gov.ph and the public may also refer to the Frequently Asked Questions on the SSA available at http://www.philembassy-seoul.com/ph-rok-ssa.asp -END.