Dear PAO,

A month after my husband died, I went to the Social Security System (SSS) to apply for a survivorship pension. To my surprise, my application was denied. The SSS reasoned that I became my husband’s legitimate wife only after the date of his permanent total disability; hence, I could not be considered his primary beneficiary. Is the decision of the SSS correct?

Pharsa

Dear Pharsa,

No, the Social Security System (SSS) erred in denying your application for a survivorship pension on the ground that you became your husband’s legitimate spouse only after his permanent total disability.

The Supreme Court addressed a similar situation in Belinda D.R. Dolera v. Social Security System, GR 253940, Oct. 24, 2023, penned by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul Inting, where it declared that the unqualified denial of claims for benefits filed by surviving legitimate spouses who contracted their marriages to the pensioner-spouses after the latter’s disability evidently discriminates against common-law relationships, which are common and even recognized by the Family Code of the Philippines as a family unit and union.

In said case, the SSS invoked Section 13-A(c) of Republic Act (RA) 8282, or the “Social Security Act of 1997” (Social Security Law), which provides that “upon the death of the permanent total disability pensioner, his primary beneficiaries as of the date of disability shall be entitled to receive the monthly pension xxx.” The same provision was carried over to Republic Act (RA) 11199, otherwise known as the “Social Security Act of 2018,” the present law governing the social security system.

However, the Court declared the phrase “as of the date of disability” under the afore-mentioned provision void for being violative of the equal protection and due process clauses of the Constitution. It further explained that “where the employee retires and meets the eligibility requirements, he [or she] acquires vested right to the benefits that is protected by the due process clause and that retirees enjoy protected property interest whenever they acquire a right to immediate payment under pre-existing law. Significantly, considering that the dependent spouse is entitled to survivorship pension, a widow’s [or widower’s] right to receive pension following the demise of her [or his] spouse is also part of the [latter’s] contractual compensation.”

Therefore, the fact that you only became a legitimate wife after the date of your husband’s permanent total disability is of no moment and is not a valid ground for the denial of your application. Even if your marriage was celebrated after the permanent total disability of your husband, you are still entitled to claim survivorship pension from the SSS accruing from the death of your husband, who was a member-pensioner of the SSS during his lifetime.

We hope that we were able to answer your query. This advice was solely based on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.

Thank you for your trust and support.

Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to [email protected]