OWWA Benefits: Every Published Amount in One Place
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration · benefits
Quick answer
OWWA's published benefit amounts: death ₱100,000.00 natural or ₱200,000.00 accidental, plus a ₱20,000.00 burial gratuity; disability ₱2,500.00 to ₱25,000.00 partial and ₱50,000.00 to ₱100,000.00 total or permanent; MEDPLUS up to ₱50,000; and Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay ₱5,000.00 to ₱20,000.00.
Last verified
Where these figures come from
About these figures: the numbers below come from OWWA's official published sources: Overseas Workers Welfare Administration | Citizen's Charter 2026 (1st Edition) (https://owwa.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/OWWA_CC_2026v3-1.pdf, retrieved 2026-08-31); OWWA | OWWA eCard FAQs (https://ecard.owwa.gov.ph/faqs/, retrieved 2026-08-31). Agencies change fees and rates without notice, so confirm with OWWA before you rely on them. Last verified: 2026-08-31.
OWWA runs under RA 10801, the OWWA Act of 2016, and is an attached agency of the Department of Migrant Workers under RA 11641, s. 2021. Its 2026 Citizen’s Charter puts a peso figure on most of what it pays.
Death and burial
| Case | Amount |
|---|---|
| Death due to natural causes | ₱100,000.00 |
| Accidental death | ₱200,000.00 |
| Burial gratuity, a funeral grant, in addition | ₱20,000.00 |
| Worked total, natural death with burial gratuity | ₱120,000.00 |
| Worked total, accidental death with burial gratuity | ₱220,000.00 |
Claimable by the deceased OFW member’s qualified dependent. The two worked totals are arithmetic on OWWA’s published lines.
Disability
| Case | Amount |
|---|---|
| Partial disability | ₱2,500.00 to ₱25,000.00 |
| Total or permanent disability | ₱50,000.00 to ₱100,000.00 |
Medical
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| MEDPLUS, Supplementary Medical Assistance | Up to ₱50,000 per OFW-member |
| Who may avail | OFW member or qualified dependents |
Livelihood after coming home
| Programme | Who | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay | Non-active member OFWs with one contribution | ₱5,000.00 |
| Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay | Non-active member OFWs with more than one contribution | ₱10,000.00 |
| Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay | Active OWWA members | ₱20,000.00 as start-up or additional capital |
| Tulong Puso | OWWA member groups, for start-up, expansion or restoration | ₱150,000.00 to ₱1,000,000.00, over a maximum of 3 programme phases |
| EDLP | OFW members, with Land Bank of the Philippines | A loan facility; no amount published on the pages read |
Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay is for repatriated, displaced and distressed OFW members, and the charter publishes a total of 7 days. The OWWA loan guide covers Tulong Puso and EDLP.
Repatriation
| What OWWA publishes | |
|---|---|
| Programme | Repatriation Assistance Program |
| What it covers | Bringing back distressed OFWs and human remains |
| Emergency repatriation | Carried out in the event of political unrest or natural calamities |
| Services on arrival | Airport assistance; temporary shelter at the OWWA Halfway Home; psycho-social counselling; stress debriefing; transport services or fares for onward travel to the province |
| Who may avail | OFW members and other Overseas Filipinos |
Education and training
| Programme | Published amount | Published total |
|---|---|---|
| EDSP, Education for Development Scholarship Program | ₱60,000 | 14 days |
| ODSP, OFW Dependents Scholarship Program | ₱20,000 | 7 days |
| SESP, Skills for Employment Scholarship Program | ₱14,500 | Published separately |
| SUP, Seafarers Upgrading Program | ₱7,500 | Published separately |
| ELAP, for dependents of deceased OFW members | Tiered | 15 days |
| PDOS, in-house | Covered under membership | 1 day |
| CPDEP | Covered under membership | 16 days |
The OWWA scholarship guide covers the education programmes, and the PDOS guide the pre-departure seminar.
Note the contradiction this site has already flagged: OWWA states the ODSP salary ceiling as US$1,000.00 on its Baccalaureate Courses page and US$600.00 in its Citizen’s Charter. Both are printed in the scholarship guide rather than resolved.
The membership that unlocks all of it
| Figure | |
|---|---|
| Contribution | USD $25.00 |
| Validity | Until the employment contract expires, or 2 years from contract effectivity, whichever comes first |
| Renewal | Requires proof of active employment |
| Renewal channels | OWWA Mobile App, overseas jobsites, or a Regional Welfare Office through next-of-kin |
| Registration routes | Compulsory on contract processing; voluntary at job sites; or electronic registration |
| Proof of membership | The OWWA eCard, free on first issuance |
The OWWA membership guide and the OWWA eCard guide cover both.
Central office services
| Service | Published total |
|---|---|
| Repatriation Assistance Program | Published in the charter |
| Facilitation of Single Entry Approach (SEnA) for OFWs | Published in the charter |
| Recognition of PDOS providers | 5 days, fee None |
| 24/7 Operations Center | Published in the charter |
| Membership collection | Published in the charter |
How OWWA sits beside the other agencies
| Agency | What it pays or costs | Where it is covered |
|---|---|---|
| OWWA | Death ₱100,000.00 to ₱200,000.00; disability up to ₱100,000.00 | This page |
| SSS | Funeral ₱12,000 to ₱60,000; death pension floors ₱1,000, ₱1,200, ₱2,400 | SSS death and funeral benefit |
| SSS | Disability pension floors ₱1,000, ₱1,200, ₱2,400, plus ₱1,000 additional and ₱500 supplemental | SSS disability benefit |
| Pag-IBIG | Provident savings claimable at 240 monthly savings | Regular Savings |
| DMW | OEC valid 60 days | OEC guide |
An OFW member can hold OWWA and SSS cover at the same time; the two are separate systems with separate contributions. The SSS for OFWs guide covers the SSS side at ₱760.00 to ₱5,280.00 a month.
Contacts
| Channel | Detail |
|---|---|
| Hotline | 1348 |
| Head office | OWWA Building, F.B. Harrison Street, Pasay City |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm |
| App | OWWA Mobile App, free on Google Play and the App Store |
| Renewal satellites | DMW Ortigas, NAIA Terminal 1, NAIA Terminal 3 |
What this page does not cover
OWWA does not publish, on the pages read for this guide, how the disability and death ranges are graded into specific amounts, the documentary checklist for each benefit in full, the claim prescription period, or the AKAP and other special programmes’ current amounts. None of those are stated here.
Related
The OWWA membership guide covers eligibility, the OWWA eCard guide the ID that proves it, and the OWWA loan guide the livelihood facilities.
Frequently asked questions
- How much is the OWWA death benefit?
- ₱100,000.00 for deaths due to natural causes and ₱200,000.00 for accidental death, paid to the deceased OFW member's qualified dependent. A burial gratuity of ₱20,000.00 is given in addition as a funeral grant.
- What does the disability benefit pay?
- OWWA publishes a range: ₱2,500.00 to ₱25,000.00 for partial disability, and ₱50,000.00 to ₱100,000.00 for total or permanent disability.
- What is MEDPLUS?
- Supplementary Medical Assistance, published at up to fifty thousand pesos, ₱50,000, per OFW-member, available to an OFW member or qualified dependents.
- What is Balik Pinas, Balik Hanapbuhay?
- A livelihood grant for repatriated, displaced and distressed OFW members. Published amounts are ₱5,000.00 for non-active member OFWs with one contribution, ₱10,000.00 for non-active member OFWs with more than one contribution, and ₱20,000.00 for active OWWA members, as start-up or additional capital. The charter publishes a total processing time of 7 days.
- Are there repatriation services?
- Yes. The Repatriation Assistance Program brings distressed OFWs and human remains back to the country, with emergency repatriation in the event of political unrest or natural calamities. Workers receive airport assistance, temporary shelter at the OWWA Halfway Home, psycho-social counselling, stress debriefing and transport or fares for onward travel to their provinces.
- Who do I have to be to claim any of this?
- An OWWA member, or in the case of death benefits the deceased member's qualified dependent. Membership is USD $25.00 and stays active until the employment contract expires or 2 years from contract effectivity, whichever comes first.
- Is there a 24/7 channel?
- The charter lists a 24/7 Operations Center among OWWA's central office external services, alongside the Repatriation Assistance Program, the Single Entry Approach facilitation for OFWs, recognition of PDOS providers, and membership collection.
- What about scholarships?
- OWWA publishes EDSP at ₱60,000, ODSP at ₱20,000, SESP at ₱14,500 and the Seafarers Upgrading Program, plus ELAP for dependents of deceased OFW members. Those are covered in the scholarship guide.