Manila: A total of 431,000 members and pensioners have so far qualified for the Government Service Insurance System's (GSIS) Balik Ginhawa refund program, with PHP6.2 billion already released as of April 8 this year.

According to Philippines News Agency, the state pension fund announced that the rollout marks the start of crediting refunds to qualified beneficiaries, with proceeds expected to be received within three working days upon approval of applications submitted through the GSIS Touch app.

GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso stated that the initiative was intended to provide immediate financial relief to members and pensioners. 'Nagsimula na po ang pag-credit ng refunds sa ating mga miyembro. Layunin ng programang ito na makapagbigay ng agarang ginhawa, at sinisiguro natin na sa loob ng tatlong working days matapos maaprubahan ang aplikasyon ay matatanggap na ang kanilang refund (The crediting of refunds to our members has begun. The program aims to provide immediate relief, and we ensure that within three working days after approval, they will receive their refund),' Veloso said in a news release.

The GSIS earlier indicated that the Balik Ginhawa (Loan Moratorium Through Refund) program will release over PHP19 billion and is expected to benefit about 1.37 million qualified members and pensioners. Under the program, GSIS continues regular loan deductions but refunds up to three months' worth of loan amortizations in a lump sum, covering payments made from December 2025 to February 2026.

The program is application-based and limited to borrowers with active loan accounts that are not in default, have no arrears, and have recorded payments during the covered period. Participation is voluntary and carries no additional interest or penalty charges. The refunded amount corresponds only to months with actual payments and results in a corresponding extension of the loan term.

Applications may be filed exclusively through the GSIS Touch mobile app until Oct. 31.