Pinoy war veterans get US benefits

MANILA, Philippines - The US Embassy’s Veterans Affairs Office has approved more than 10,000 applications of World War II Filipino and Filipino-American veterans and has given them part of the P5.8-billion budget allocated for this purpose.

These one-time payments are new benefits paid out under a law passed by the US Congress and signed by President Barack Obama in February 2009 to recognize the service of qualified veterans.

All claims for this one-time benefit filed by Feb. 16, 2010 will be adjudicated, and every application is handled expeditiously so that qualified veterans receive their payments as quickly as possible.

Recipients of the nearly P5.8 billion in one-time benefits paid out so far are equally divided between American citizen veterans and non-US citizen veterans.

The one-time benefits are available to eligible veterans and widows of eligible veterans who applied before their death. 

Any change in the law to provide these additional benefits to other survivors would require new legislation in the US Congress.

There is no master list of eligible veterans for this new, one-time benefit. Each claim is unique and decided on its own merits. All veterans who feel they may be eligible are encouraged to apply. 

The application process is free and simple, and there is no need to pay anyone for assistance in completing the form, which can be mailed to the US Embassy. 

Additional outreach activities will be conducted around the country to ensure that all eligible veterans have an opportunity to apply.

These new payments are in addition to previous and continuing payments for these same veterans, and many others, including family members.

Overall, the Embassy’s Veterans Affairs office pays more than P800 million per month in benefits to veterans in the Philippines. Nearly half of that goes to Filipino WWII veterans or their survivors.

Application instructions for the one-time benefits are on the US embassy website: http://manila.usembassy.gov.