House Speaker Martin Romualdez (Speaker’s office)

A big relief for students, particularly those living in disaster-hit areas.

That's how Speaker Martin Romualdez described the Student Loan Payment Moratorium During Disasters and Emergencies Act, which President Marcos signed on Friday morning, Dec. 6 in Malacañang.

As the name of the bill implies, it seeks to provide for a moratorium on the payment of student loans during disasters and other emergencies.

“The moratorium will be a big relief to students, both in public and private schools, including those run by local government units, in times of calamities, disasters, and similar emergency situations,” Romualdez said.

The leader of the 300-plus strong House of Representatives said the envisioned freeze on student loan payments would relieve students and their families of an added financial burden at a time when they would be focused on rehabilitating their homes, livelihood and lives.

“This assistance, together with other forms of support the government would extend to them, would make recovery and return to normal life easier and faster for them,” said the Speaker ,who witnessed the siging of the law.

He added that the moratorium promotes the achievement of the government’s goal of providing all learners with equal opportunity to avail themselves of quality education.

Under the newly-signed law, the deferment of student loan payments would cover students enrolled in state universities and colleges, local universities and colleges, private higher education institutions and public and private technical-vocational institutions whose residence is located in barangays, towns, cities, provinces or regions under a state of calamity or state of emergency declared by the President or the local Sanggunian in accordance with relevant laws, rules and regulations.

The calamities, disasters, crisis situations and other kinds of emergencies are either be national in scope or local in scope, such as regional, provincial, city or municipal, barangay and community levels.

The law provides that the payment postponement shall apply to all fees, interests and other charges on loans for higher education and technical-vocational education and training incurred by students for up to 30 days after the declaration of a state of calamity or a state of emergency.

The legislation sets the following conditions for the grant of a student loan deferment: declaration of a state of calamity or emergency; the area in which the student temporarily or permanently resides is affected by a disaster, calamity, emergency, or crisis situation; and said student or his family has sustained injury or damage in the course of such calamity, disaster, emergency or crisis situation.

Within 60 days from the effectivity of the law, the Commission on Higher Education and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority shall, in consultation with the Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges, the Association of Local Colleges and Universities, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations of the Philippines, or their equivalent institutions, and other non-government stakeholders, shall issue implementing rules and regulations.

The statute shall take effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation.