SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG for seafarers (sea-based OFW)
This is for a Filipino seaman or seafarer on foreign ships, or a family member checking your contributions. At the end you will know who pays what, which SSS table your contribution comes from, and what to check while you are home between contracts. Land-based workers follow different rules: see SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG while working abroad. This is not legal advice; for a case that does not fit, ask the agency.
Who pays: your manning agency is your employer
- SSS: coverage is compulsory for sea-based OFWs, and manning agencies are the employers of sea-based OFWs (SSS: OFW members). The implementing rules make the manning agency do the employer's work: report you for coverage, remit the contributions regularly and advance short-term benefits (IRR of RA 11199, Rule 14, sec. 3). Your coverage starts on the first day of your employment (IRR, Rule 15, sec. 4). - PhilHealth: sea-based workers are named among overseas Filipino direct contributors, and the premium of employed members, "including household help and sea based OFWs", is computed on the monthly basic salary and shared equally between employee and employer (PhilHealth Circular 2020-0005, III.B). - Pag-IBIG: membership is compulsory for "Filipinos employed by foreign-based employers" (RA 9679, sec. 6). We found no Pag-IBIG page saying whether a manning agency remits it for you, so ask the agency and check your record on the Pag-IBIG website.
So you do not pay SSS yourself with a PRN the way a land-based OFW does. SSS says it plainly: contributions of sea-based OFWs are remitted by their employers, the manning agencies (SSS: OFW members).
How much: the employer and employee table
For sea-based OFWs, SSS says the employer deducts your share from your monthly pay according to the schedule and pays the employer's share (SSS: OFW members). SSS publishes separate schedules: Circular 2024-006 is for all business employers and employees, and Circular 2024-010 is for land-based OFW members only (SSS circulars). The land-based minimum salary credit of ₱8,000 is not yours (SSS: OFW members).
SSS does not name a seafarer schedule on its pages. The table for all business employers and employees reads like this; ask your manning agency which monthly salary credit it reports for you.
From January 2025 (business employers and employees) · Amount · Source; Contribution rate · 15% of the monthly salary credit · SSS Circular 2024-006; Lowest monthly salary credit · ₱5,000 · SSS Circular 2024-006; Highest monthly salary credit · ₱35,000 · SSS Circular 2024-006
The SSS contribution calculator works out the employer and employee shares from a monthly pay by that table ("A business or office employee"). For PhilHealth, direct contributors including OFWs pay 5% of monthly income from January 2025, at least ₱500 a month (PhilHealth Advisory 2026-0042); for you that premium is shared with your employer (Circular 2020-0005).
If you have no number yet
Agency · Form; SSS · Apply for an SS number online; the paper route is the SSS E-1. SSS lists the seaman's book among the documents you may upload (SSS: OFW members); PhilHealth · PMRF; Pag-IBIG · Membership registration form, OFW category (Pag-IBIG forms)
If you registered with SSS before and forgot the number, do not apply for a new one (SSS: OFW members).
Between contracts
- Check what was posted: My.SSS, the PhilHealth Member Portal or the eGov PH app (PhilHealth Advisory 2026-0042), and your Pag-IBIG record. A missing month is a question for the manning agency first. - After your overseas employment ends you may keep paying SSS voluntarily to keep your rights to full benefits (SSS: OFW members). - OWWA is separate: membership stays active until your contract ends or two years from its start, whichever comes first, then it is renewed with proof of active employment (OWWA Citizen's Charter 2026).
The seafarer pack lists the rest in order: the SRB and SID that replace the SIRB, COC and COP in MISMO, the medical exam, the DMW contract and an SPA for your family.
Questions
Magkano ang SSS ng seaman? Your manning agency deducts your share and pays its own "according to the schedule" (SSS: OFW members); SSS's pages do not say which table that is for a seafarer. The table for all business employers and employees is 15% of the monthly salary credit, from ₱5,000 to ₱35,000 (Circular 2024-006), and the calculator shows both shares on that table — ask your manning agency which salary credit it reports, and check My.SSS.
Do I pay my own SSS with a PRN like a land-based OFW? No. Your manning agency is your employer and remits your contributions (SSS: OFW members). Between contracts you may pay voluntarily.
Is Pag-IBIG required for a seafarer? Yes: RA 9679 makes membership compulsory for Filipinos employed by foreign-based employers (RA 9679, sec. 6).
Does PhilForms remit my contributions? No. It fills the registration forms; the agencies and your manning agency do the rest.
Last checked 2026-10-23. Not affiliated with BIR, SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG or any government agency.