THE Social Security System will expand its overseas presence in 2026, while rolling out another round of pension increases and continuing emergency loan support, building on reforms that strengthened social protection for millions of Filipinos in 2025.
In a statement sent, SSS president and chief executive officer Robert Joseph Montes De Claro said the agency plans to open foreign representative offices in Madrid, San Francisco and Macau next year to improve access to services for overseas Filipino workers, alongside the establishment of 10 new local branches nationwide.
The overseas expansion coincides with the second tranche of the Pension Reform Program, which will grant another increase to all pensioners in September 2026. Under the three-year program launched in 2025, 3.8 million pensioners receive annual increases, with retirement and disability pensioners getting a 10 percent hike and survivor pensioners five percent.
SSS will also continue implementing its Emergency Loan Program until Dec. 9, 2026, or until calamity declarations are lifted, providing affected members with low-interest loans and repayment moratoriums. The program capped a year in which SSS expanded loan access while cutting interest rates for salary and calamity loans, benefiting more than 1.2 million borrowers.
Beyond pension and loan reforms, SSS widened coverage through partnerships with cooperatives, government agencies and subsidy providers, bringing hundreds of thousands of job order workers and informal earners into the system.
In early 2026, SSS expects to launch a microloan program offering short-term loans with lower interest rates through partner institutions, aimed at providing members with safer alternatives to informal lenders. The agency also plans to hire about 1,800 personnel to address service gaps and strengthen frontline operations, both in branches and digital platforms.
“Looking forward to 2026, we will continue expanding our footprint at home and abroad while enhancing benefits and services,” De Claro said, as SSS seeks to deepen its role in the working lives of Filipinos worldwide. / KOC