Article 156Labor and Agrarian Laws and Social Legislation, p. 156

LABOR LAWS AND SOCIAL LEGISLATION SPECIAL LAWS AND IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS

(4) on medical and dental services, diagnostic and

laboratory fees in all private hospitals, medical facilities,

outpatient clinics, and home health care services, in

accordance with the rules and regulations to be issued by

the DOH, in coordination with the Philippine Health

Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth);

(5) in actual fare for land transportation travel in

public utility buses (PUBs), public utility jeepneys (PUJs),

taxis, Asian utility vehicles (AUVs), shuttle services and

public railways, including Light Rail Transit (LRT), Mass

Rail Transit (MRT), and Philippine National Railways (PNR);

(6) in actual transportation fare for domestic air

transport services and sea shipping vessels and the like,

based on the actual fare and advanced booking;

(7) on the utilization of services in hotels and similar

lodging

establishments,

restaurants

and

recreation

centers;

(8) on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema

houses

and

concert

halls,

circuses,

leisure

and

amusement; and

(9) on funeral and burial services for the death of

senior citizens;

(b) exemption from the payment of individual income

taxes

of

senior

citizens

who

are

considered

to

be

minimum wage earners in accordance with Republic Act

No. 9504;

(c) the grant of a minimum of five percent (5%)

discount relative to the monthly utilization of water and

electricity supplied by the public utilities: Provided, That

the

individual

meters

for

the foregoing utilities are

registered in the name of the senior citizen residing

therein: Provided, further, That the monthly consumption

does not exceed one hundred kilowatt hours (100 kWh) of

electricity and thirty cubic meters (30 m3) of water:

Provided, furthermore, That the privilege is granted per

household regardless of the number of senior citizens

residing therein;

(d) exemption from training fees for socioeconomic

programs;

(e) free medical and dental services, diagnostic and

laboratory

fees

such

as,

but

not

limited

to,

x-rays,

computerized tomography scans and blood tests, in all

government facilities, subject to the guidelines to be

issued by the DOH in coordination with the PhilHealth;

(f) the DOH shall administer free vaccination against

the

influenza

virus

and

pneumococcal

disease

for

indigent senior citizen patients;

(g) educational assistance to senior citizens to pursue

pot

secondary,

tertiary,

post

tertiary,

vocational and

technical education, as well as short-term courses for

retooling in both public and private schools through

provision of scholarships, grants, financial aids, subsides

and other incentives to qualified senior citizens, including

support

for

books,

learning

materials,

and

uniform

allowances, to the extent feasible: Provided, That senior

citizens shall meet minimum admission requirements;

(h)

to

the

extent

practicable

and

feasible,

the

continuance of the same benefits and privileges given by

the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the

Social Security System (SSS) and the PAG-IBIG, as the

case may be, as are enjoyed by those in actual service;

(i) retirement benefits of retirees from both the

government and the private sector shall be regularly

reviewed to ensure their continuing responsiveness and

sustainability, and to the extent practicable and feasible,

shall be upgraded to be at par with the current scale

enjoyed by those in actual service;

(j) to the extent possible, the government may grant

special discounts in special programs for senior citizens

on

purchase

of

basic

commodities,

subject

to

the

guidelines

to

be

issued

for

the

purpose

by

the

Department

of

Trade

and

Industry

(DTI)

and

the

Department of Agriculture (DA);

(k) provision of express lanes for senior citizens in all

commercial

and

government

establishments;

in

the

absence thereof, priority shall be given to them; and

(l) death benefit assistance of a minimum of Two

thousand pesos (Php2, 000.00) shall be given to the

nearest surviving relative of a deceased senior citizen

which amount shall be subject to adjustments due to

inflation in accordance with the guidelines to be issued

by the DSWD.

In the availment of the privileges mentioned above,

the

senior

citizen,

or

his/her

duly

authorized

representative, may submit as proof of his/her entitled

thereto any of the following:

(1) an identification card issued by the Office of the

Senior Citizen Affairs (OSCA) of the place where the senior

citizen resides: Provided, That the identification card

issued

by

the

particular

OSCA

shall

be

honored

nationwide;

(2) the passport of the senior citizen concerned; and

(3) other documents that establish that the senior

citizen is a citizen of the Republic and is at least sixty (60)

years of age as further provided in the implementing

rules and regulations.

In the purchase of goods and services which are on

promotional discount, the senior citizen can avail of the

promotional discount or the discount provided herein,

whichever is higher.

The establishment may claim the discounts granted

under subsections (a) and (c) of this section as tax

deduction based on the cost of the goods sold or services

rendered: Provided, That the cost of the discount shall be

allowed as deduction from gross income for the same

taxable

year that the discount is granted: Provided,

further,

That

the

total

amount

of

the

claimed

tax

deduction net of VAT, if applicable, shall be included in

their gross sales receipts for tax purposes and shall be

subject to proper documentation and to the provisions of

the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), as amended.

(as amended by RA No 9994)

SECTION

5.

Government

Assistance .

–The

government shall provide the following:

(a) Employment

Senior citizens who have the capacity and desire to

work, or be re-employed, shall be provided information

and matching services to enable them to be productive

members of society. Terms of employment shall conform

with the provisions of the Labor Code, as amended, and

other laws, rules and regulations.

Private entities that will employ senior citizens as

employees, upon the effectivity of this Act, shall be

entitled to an additional deduction from their gross

income, equivalent to fifteen percent (15%) of the total

amount paid as salaries and wages to senior citizens,

subject to the provision of Section 34 of the NIRC, as

amended: Provided, however, That such employment

shall continue for a period of at least six (6) months:

Provided, further, That the annual income of the senior

citizen does not exceed the latest poverty threshold as

determined

by

the

National

Statistical

Coordination

Board

(NSCB)

of

the

National

Economic

and

Development Authority (NEDA) for that year.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE),

in coordination with other government agencies such as,

but

not

limited

to,

the

Technology

and

Livelihood

Resource Center (TLRC) and the Department of Trade

and Industry (DTI), shall assess, design and implement

training programs that will provide skills and welfare or

livelihood support for senior citizens.

(b) Education

The Department of Education (DepED), the Technical

Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and

the

Commission

on

Higher

Education

(CHED),

in

consultation

with

nongovernmental

organizations

© Compiled By RGL

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