Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) parents and guardians will now be allowed to borrow money – as much as PHP150,000 per student – to pay for the tuition of their children, GMA News reported.
In its program named ‘Interim Students’ Loan for Tuition toward Upliftment of Education for the Development of the Youth (i-STUDY)’, the bank will allow Filipino students to borrow an amount equivalent to one school year.
“This program will not only help families who have kids they want to send to school, but will also assist private schools and downstream industries to sustain and continue their operations,” LandBank president and chief executive officer Cecilia Borromeo told GMA News.
LandBank said that the maximum loan amount per student will be at PHP150,000 while borrowers (parents and guardians) will be allowed up to PHP300,000, which will bebased on the school-issued Enrollment Assessment Form with the schedule of assessment fees. The loans wil also be released lump sum and will be transferred directly to the account of the school.
GMA News added in its report that the bank’s loan comes at an interest rate of 5 percent per annum, which will be fixed for the entire term. The penalties, meanwhile, will be at 24 percent per annum.
The bank will also allow short-term loans payable within a year through a 360-day promissory note, as well as a term payable up to three years—inclusive of a one-year grace period on the principal.
Those who are qualified to avail of the program include parents, guardians, and benefactors of the students, who must present proof of PHP20,000 combined net pay per student after loan amortization.
Students who are qualified, meanwhile, include those below 30 years old, incoming students eligible under the admission and retention requirements, and those studying at schools and technical vocational institutions recognized by the Commission on Higher Education, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, or the Department of Education. The students should also not be a current beneficiary of any scholarship programs, such as the Universal Access for Quality Tertiary Education Act of 2017.
