MANILA, Philippines – The Home Development Mutual Fund, or Pag-IBIG Fund, again postponed its contribution hike in 2023. 

In an announcement on Monday, March 6, the state savings agency said it will maintain its current contribution rates for the share of employees and employers, citing the “continuing recovery of both workers and business owners from the pandemic.”

The contribution rate is 1% for those with a monthly basic salary of P1,500 and below. The contribution rate goes up to 2% for those earning between P1,500 and P5,000. For those earning more than P5,000 a month, the maximum contribution is currently capped at P100 per month.

Pag-IBIG Fund’s contribution rates have remained unchanged since 1986. In 2019, the agency approved an increase in its members’ monthly contributions starting 2021 to prevent the amount of loans disbursed from exceeding total collections from loan payments and members’ contributions. 

However, in light of the effects of the pandemic, Pag-IBIG Fund deferred its contribution rate hike in 2021, 2022, and now 2023. The scheduled rate increase will instead take effect in January 2024. 

“After consulting with our stakeholders, we have officially approved the deferment of the increase of Pag-IBIG members’ monthly contributions for another year. This is in line with the call of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to alleviate the financial burden of our fellow Filipinos due to the prevailing socio-economic challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development Secretary Jose Acuzar, who, along with the Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees, approved the hike deferment.

According to Pag-IBIG Fund Chief Executive Officer Marilene Acosta, the agency can still withstand members’ growing loan demands even without a contribution rate, given its strong fiscal standing and collections.

“We are happy to report that even without any increase in our rates, we were able to post record-highs in 2022 with our membership savings collections reaching nearly P80 billion, loan payment collections amounting to P127.42 billion, short-term loan releases at P57.69 billion, and home loan takeout amounting to P117.85 billion,” Acosta said. – Rappler.com