Technical Standards for the Granting of Old-Age Monetary Benefits in the Public Pension System

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

THE COMMITTEE OF STANDARDS OF THE CENTRAL BANK OF RESERVE OF EL SALVADOR,

CONSIDERING:

I. That by Legislative Decree No. 614, of December 20, 2022, published in Official Journal No. 241, Volume No. 437 of December 21 of the same year, the Comprehensive Pension System Law was approved.
II. That Article 149 of the Comprehensive Pension System Law establishes that the Public System, which includes the Pension Unit of the Salvadoran Institute of Social Security and the Salvadoran Institute of Pensions, must provide benefits in accordance with the aforementioned Law and their own creation laws.
III. That Article 152 of the Comprehensive Pension System Law establishes that from the validity of the aforementioned Law, Administrators and Public Institutes will calculate the benefits to be granted in accordance with what is established in the aforementioned Law. Likewise, it is stipulated that for affiliates referred to in Article 184 of Legislative Decree No. 927 of December 20, 1996, and its respective modifications, the pension will be calculated in accordance with what is established in Article 201 of said Decree; likewise, for affiliates included within Article 186 of Legislative Decree No. 97 aforementioned, their pension will be calculated in accordance with what is established in Article 198 of said legal body.
IV. That Article 159 of the Comprehensive Pension System Law establishes that the Central Bank of Reserve of El Salvador will issue the Technical Standards necessary to allow the development of what is established in the aforementioned Law.

THEREFORE, by virtue of the regulatory powers conferred by Article 99 of the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System, AGREES to issue the following:

TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM

CHAPTER I
OBJECT, SUBJECTS AND TERMS

Object
Art. 1.- These Standards aim to establish the procedures to be followed by the Salvadoran Institute of Social Security and the Salvadoran Institute of Pensions regarding benefits and other old-age benefits in the Public Pension System.

Subjects
Art. 2.- The subjects obliged to comply with the provisions established in these Standards are:
a) Salvadoran Institute of Social Security; and b) Salvadoran Institute of Pensions.

Terms
Art. 3.- For the purposes of these Standards, the terms indicated below have the following meaning:
a) Affiliate: Worker registered in one of the Disability, Old Age, and Death Regimes, administered by the Salvadoran Institute of Social Security, the National Institute of Pensions of Public Employees, or the Salvadoran Institute of Pensions, who participated or participates in the financing of one or both Regimes, through contributions; a) Central Bank: Central Bank of Reserve of El Salvador; b) CCI: Disability Assessment Commission; c) CIAP: Individual Savings Account for Pensions; d) Identity Document: It may be the Unique Identity Document, Minor's Card, Passport, or Resident's Card, as applicable; e) Legal Age: Completed age that enables an affiliate to opt for an old-age benefit, in accordance with what is established in Article 96 of the Comprehensive Pension System Law; f) IBC: Contribution Base Income; g) INPEP: National Institute of Pensions of Public Employees prior to the entry into force of the Law Creating the Salvadoran Institute of Pensions; h) Previsional Institute: Salvadoran Institute of Social Security or Salvadoran Institute of Pensions; i) ISSS: Salvadoran Institute of Social Security; j) SAP Law: Law on the Pension Savings System, repealed by Legislative Decree No. 614, of December 20, 2022, published in Official Journal No. 241, Volume No. 437, of December 21 of the same year; k) SP Law: Comprehensive Pension System Law; l) INPEP Affiliation Number: Number granted by the National Institute of Pensions of Public Employees to its affiliates, prior to the entry into force of the Law Creating the Salvadoran Institute of Pensions; m) ONEC: National Office of Statistics and Censuses; n) EMRP Regime: Disease, Maternity, and Professional Risks Regime administered by the ISSS;

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

o) IVM Regime: Disability, Old Age, and Death Regime, administered by the ISSS or by the INPEP; p) SAP: Pension Savings System; q) SBM: Monthly Base Salary, used as the basis to determine benefits of the IVM regime in the ISSS; r) SBR: Regulation Basic Salary; s) SBR-INPEP: Regulation Basic Salary, used for the calculation of benefits of the IVM Regime in the INPEP; t) SP: Pension System; u) SPP: Public Pension System; and v) Superintendence: Superintendence of the Financial System.

CHAPTER II
ON OLD-AGE BENEFITS IN THE SPP

Old-Age Pension
Art. 4.- It is a monetary benefit granted to affiliates of the SPP who have reached sixty years of age, men, and fifty-five years of age, women, and have a registered contribution time of twenty-five years or more, whether continuous or discontinuous, since their affiliation with the ISSS or the INPEP.

Old-Age Allowance
Art. 5.- It is a monetary benefit granted to affiliates of the SPP, who having reached the legal age to obtain the old-age pension, do not meet the requirement of twenty-five years of continuous or discontinuous contribution time established in Article 4 of these Standards. This benefit will be granted provided that the affiliate declares to the corresponding Previsional Institute their inability to continue contributing. The minimum number of contributions that an insured person requesting this benefit must register is twelve contributions, whether registered in the ISSS or in the INPEP, or in both.

Minimum Old-Age Pension
Art. 6.- It is a monetary benefit granted when the calculated amount of the old-age pension is below the minimum amount established in the SP Law. The granting of said pension will proceed provided that affiliates of the SPP have met the requirements established in Article 4 of these Standards.

On Contribution Time
Art. 7.- Contribution time must be considered in exact years and fractions of a year.

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

Contributed periods to the ISSS can be accumulated with contribution times to the INPEP and vice versa, when the independent times in each of the Previsional Institutes are insufficient to grant a pension. In the case where there are periods in which contributions were made simultaneously to both Previsional Institutes, these will be counted only once. When the times registered in the ISSS or in the INPEP are sufficient for the granting of an old-age pension, the accumulation of periods that the affiliate registers in the other Previsional Institute will not be used. This provision will give rise to the generation of two independent benefits, a pension in one Previsional Institute and an allowance in the other, prior to meeting requirements. In these cases, the insured person must request the respective benefits independently.

Regarding the service times provided to the State prior to the creation date of the INPEP, whether by affiliates of the ISSS or the INPEP, they will be recognized and accumulative provided they meet the following provisions:
a) If it concerns affiliates, contributors, and non-contributors, not yet pensioned, who ceased providing services to the State after the creation date of the INPEP without having the right to pensions or allowances, the recognition of service times will be carried out when they have made contributions to said Institute for at least one year. Additionally, the worker must have made such contributions in their capacity as an obligatory contributor; b) If it concerns former public employees, not yet pensioned, who ceased prior to the creation date of the INPEP, the recognition of such times will be carried out when they meet the following requirements:
i) That they have re-entered or will re-enter active service as public employees; and ii) That they have contributed to the INPEP for a certain number of years, based on the time of service provided prior, according to the following:

1. Up to ten years of service provided prior, a minimum of ten years contributed in the INPEP;
2. More than ten years and less than twenty years of service provided prior, a minimum of five years contributed in the INPEP; or
3. More than twenty years of service provided prior, a minimum of 2.5 years contributed in the INPEP.
   In the case of re-entry as public employees referred to in roman i) of this letter, who for any reason ceased in their employment, without having completed the respective contribution periods indicated in roman ii), they may continue contributing voluntarily, until completing said periods, thereby obtaining the recognition of such times.

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

Periods corresponding to voluntary contributions are also accumulative to those corresponding to obligatory contributions made to the SPP.
To facilitate each Previsional Institute's determination of participation in the financing of a benefit in the SPP, and to determine contributions in arrears or pending backlogs to be resolved, each Previsional Institute must carry out a process of monitoring and verification regarding contributions and payments effectively made during their stay in the SPP, in order to inform the affiliate about said situation, so that they can settle it and not affect the accounting of their contributed periods.

CHAPTER III
ON THE PROCESSES PRIOR TO MEETING THE REQUIREMENTS TO ACCESS AN OLD-AGE BENEFIT

Art. 8.- Regardless of the old-age pension procedure that the affiliate must undergo upon meeting any of the requirements to retire due to old age, each Previsional Institute must determine and identify, within the Labor History System, affiliates who become candidates to obtain an old-age pension within the next nine months, that is, those affiliates who are close to reaching the legal old-age age and twenty-five years of contribution, whether independently or by accumulation of periods in both Previsional Institutes. This search must be performed on the last business day of each month. Art. 9.- After identifying affiliates close to meeting the requirements to access an old-age benefit, the Previsional Institute must prepare a list of such affiliates to carry out and inform the following actions:
a) At the latest six months before the affiliate meets the legal age or the years of contribution required to retire due to old age, the Previsional Institute must send the affiliate a report regarding the accredited service and/or contribution time and the periods registered without contributions, requesting that said insured person clarify each of them, and thus complete all information that has been pending until that moment; b) That the meeting of the legal age and the required years of contribution generates the right to an old-age pension, the administrative responsibility and payment of which will be borne by the Previsional Institute in which the last contributions are being made at the time the requirements are met; c) That to access the right, it is necessary to present to the Previsional Institute an Application for Old-Age Monetary Benefit; d) That if they retire and continue in a subordinate labor relationship, they must contribute to the SP, for which they must affiliate with an AFP; e) The importance of updating beneficiary data and the inconveniences that may arise from not declaring all of them.

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

Art. 10.- For those affiliates receiving pensions for disability granted through the first ruling by the CCI and who are close to reaching the legal age to opt for an old-age pension, they must be informed on the payment dates of each of the last three pensions that they must request the second advance ruling in order to grant them said pension. Art. 11.- Likewise, it must be informed to those affiliates receiving a partial disability pension through a second ruling and who are close to reaching the legal age to opt for an old-age pension, that they will have the right to have the amount of their disability pension recalculated when converting it to an old-age pension.

CHAPTER IV
ON THE APPLICATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFIT PROCEDURE

Applications
Art. 12.- Applications for the Old-Age Monetary Benefit procedure must be available to affiliates in the offices of the Previsional Institutes or through the electronic means defined by them for such purposes.
The content of the Old-Age Monetary Benefit Application remains at the discretion of each Previsional Institute.
Art. 13.- The presentation and signing of the Old-Age Monetary Benefit Application, as well as the tracking of the procedure, is non-delegable. However, in cases where the affiliate is incapacitated to do so or is abroad, they may carry out the aforementioned through their legal representative. Art. 14.- If the requesting affiliate has already reached the legal old-age age and has at least twelve contributions, they must be informed that they have the right to an old-age allowance. If the insured person states that they can no longer continue contributing and wish to receive this benefit, the Old-Age Monetary Benefit Application must be made available to them, in order to initiate the procedure. Art. 15.- When the affiliate submits the Application to a Previsional Institute different from the one making contributions at the time they meet the requirements by accumulation of periods, they must be informed to which Institute they must go to process the respective benefit. Art. 16.- When the affiliate submits the Application containing incorrect or erroneous information, such circumstance must be communicated to them at the same moment they submit it or within a maximum period of five business days in cases where it is submitted electronically, in order to make the respective corrections and so that this does not constitute an obstacle within the process of granting their benefit. In these cases, an act will be drawn up with the identified inconsistencies and missing documents, and a period of twenty business days will be granted to the affiliate to remedy the observations to continue with the benefit procedure process. Art. 17.- When the affiliate presents themselves to the Previsional Institute to sign the application, the Previsional Institute must set the date for conducting an interview, whether in person or through the electronic means enabled by the Institute for such purposes. Likewise, proof of receipt will be recorded in the Pension Applications Register, which may be kept electronically, noting the following information:
a) The date of receipt of the Application; b) The Application Number; c) The Number identifying the receiving office (In the case of regional offices); d) The official of the Previsional Institute who received it. e) Electronic medium through which the application was received, in the case that the submission is electronic. Art. 18.- The affiliate must attend the interview referred to in Article 17 of these Standards, to continue with the process of granting the benefit, in order to inform them about the duration of the procedure, the antecedents that have been established, about the benefit to which they are entitled based on the contributed time, and other information considered important, according to the case presented. The interview must be attended with the following documentation:
a) Certification of birth certificate of the affiliate, only in the case that there is doubt about the identity of the affiliate or their civil status, in order to confirm the same, which must be issued no more than six months prior; (1) b) Identification documents, established by the Previsional Institute; c) Savings or current account at the financial institution in the name of the affiliate. In the event that on the date of the interview the affiliate foresees that the required documentation will not be complete, they must inform the corresponding Previsional Institute at the latest five business days in advance, in order to reschedule said interview until the date on which the affiliate completes the documentation. Art. 19.- In all cases of old-age monetary benefit applications, the Previsional Institute responsible for the pension procedure must verify that the information provided in the application is true and correct.

CHAPTER V
OLD-AGE PENSION CALCULATION PROCEDURE

Art. 20.- The Previsional Institute must complete the information required to calculate the old-age pension, with the information contained in the Labor History System. The procedure to determine the amount of an old-age pension will be as follows:
a) Determine the exact contribution time registered by the affiliate. For these purposes, the number of days contributed to the SPP must be established, whether in a single Previsional Institute or in both, as applicable; b) When the affiliate has registered contribution time in both Institutes, to determine the total exact time, the following procedure will be followed:
i. If there are no simultaneous times, the number of days contributed to each of the Institutes will be obtained and summed. Once summed, the equivalence of said time in years and fractions of years must be obtained, taking into consideration that one year equals 365.25 days;
ii. If there are simultaneous times, the total number of days contributed to each of the Institutes and the simultaneous time, in days, will be obtained. To the sum of the days contributed in both Institutes, the simultaneous time will be subtracted. Then, the conversion to contributed years must be made, using said time with two significant decimal places.
c) Once the time is calculated, in years and fractions of years, it is necessary to select the salaries that will serve to calculate the SBR based on the applicable legislation, according to the following:
i. In the case of affiliates who opted to remain affiliated with the SPP, the last 120 IBCs will be identified to calculate a single SBR. In case they register less than 120 salaries in total, all will be selected, for the purpose of calculating the SBR;
ii. In the case of affiliates who remained in the SPP, in accordance with what is established in Article 186 of the SAP Law, and in the case of those affiliates who on the date the SAP began operations registered 31 years or more of contributions, in addition to identifying the last 120 IBCs, as detailed in the previous roman numeral, the last 36 or 60 contributed salaries will be identified, to calculate the SBM or SBR-INPEP, as applicable.
d) Once said salaries have been calculated, the next step is to establish the percentage of pension to be granted to an affiliate, according to the following:
i. Affiliates who opted to remain affiliated in the SPP. The monthly old-age pension will be determined as a percentage of the SBR based on the contributed service time, granting thirty-five percent of this for the first ten contributed years and increasing by one percent for each

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 26/01/2023 Validity: 26/01/2023

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

additional contribution years up to a ceiling of fifty-five percent of the SBR, provided that the resulting pension does not exceed an amount of two thousand United States dollars;
ii. If it concerns an affiliate of the ISSS with mandatory permanence in the PPS, two calculations will be performed, granting them the most favorable amount between:
1. Thirty percent of the SBR, for the first three years of contributions, increasing by one point seventy-five percent for each additional year of contributions; or
2. Forty percent of the SBM; plus one point twenty-five percent of said salary for each fifty weeks of contributions that the affiliate has in excess of the first one hundred fifty weeks.
iii. If it concerns an affiliate of the INPEP with mandatory permanence in the PPS, two calculations will be performed, granting them the most favorable amount between:
1. Thirty percent of the SBR, for the first three years of contributions, increasing by one point seventy-five percent for each additional year of contributions; or
2. Thirty percent of the SBR-INPEP, for the first five years of service, increasing for each additional year of service as follows: two percent of the SBR-INPEP, during the following fifteen years; two point five percent of the SBR-INPEP, during the following ten years; and three percent of the SBR-INPEP, during the following five years.
e) The calculations established in the preceding letter will be used only when the affiliate meets the minimum time required to obtain an old-age pension using only the times contributed in a Previsional Institute; f) In cases where the right to a pension is generated by the accumulation of periods in both Institutes, the percentage calculations to be used, detailed in the Romans i) and ii) of letter d) of this article, will be the one corresponding to the Institute where the affiliate has registered the greater time of contributions. When they have registered equal time of contributions, the percentages to be used will be those corresponding to the Previsional Institute where they are making contributions on the date they meet the requirements to retire due to old age; g) Once the parameters to apply and the respective percentage (with two significant decimal figures) are established, this must be applied to the corresponding SBR, expressed in dollars, and thus determine the amount of the pension. This value will be expressed with two significant decimal figures, rounding the second decimal to the immediate higher value, if the third decimal is equal to or greater than 5; h) If the resulting pension is lower than the minimum pension, the amount must be adjusted to the latter; and i) To the amount resulting from what is established in letters g) and h) of this article, an increase of 30% will be applied. For those affiliates whose resulting pension

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

is greater than $390.00 and less than $400.00, the pension to be paid will be $400.00; for those whose resulting pension is greater than $440.00 and less than $450.00, their pension to be paid will be $450.00; and for those whose resulting pension is greater than $490.00 and less than $500.00, the pension to be paid will be $500.00.

CHAPTER VI
PROCEDURE FOR CALCULATING OLD-AGE ASSIGNMENT
Art. 21.- In the event that, during the determination of contribution time, through a consultation in the Labor History System, it is established that the insured does not meet the time requirement established to obtain a pension, it must be verified if they have the right to an old-age assignment. Art. 22.- The granting of an old-age assignment will not proceed in cases where, even meeting the time requirement established for these effects, the applicant does not meet the legal age of old age. In these cases, the Previsional Institute must indicate to the insured that the granting of said benefit will proceed from the date they reach said age. Art. 23.- Once the right to an old-age assignment is established, the benefit must be calculated as follows:
a) Determine the total number of months contributed by the insured, including fractions of a month, expressed in decimal figures. If the Previsional Institute has the total days contributed, the equivalence of 30.4375 days equals one month will be used; b) Select the salaries that will serve for the calculation of the assignment, according to the following:
i. In the case of affiliates who opted to remain affiliated with the PPS, the last 120 IBCs will be identified to calculate a single SBR. In case they register less than 120 salaries in total, all will be selected, for the purpose of calculating the SBR;
ii. In the case of affiliates who remained in the PPS, in accordance with what is established in article 186 of the SAP Law, and in the case of those affiliates who on the date the SAP began operations registered 31 years or more of contributions, in addition to identifying the last 120 IBCs, as detailed in the previous Roman, the last 36 or 60 contributed salaries will be identified, to calculate the SBM or SBR-INPEP, as the case may be. In these cases, the amount of SBR that is best for the insured will be taken as the basis for the calculation of the assignment.
c) Once the corresponding amount is obtained, ten percent will be applied to it and subsequently, a rule of three will be established to determine the total amount of assignment based on the number of months registered by the insured. If during the

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

total time considered to calculate the assignment there is a remainder of time, this must be expressed as a fraction of a month and apply a rule of three, to determine the proportional percentage of the ten percent to be granted for said fraction.

CHAPTER VII
ON THE RESOLUTION
On the resolution of old-age pension
Art. 24.- In all cases of pension requests, the respective Previsional Institute must communicate to the affiliate the approval of the submitted request, through the issuance of a resolution, which must contain the following:
a) The type of benefit granted; b) The value of their benefit; c) The date on which the benefit will begin to accrue; d) The lifelong nature of said benefit, prior to fulfilling the requirement of signing the survival certificate every 6 months; and e) The contribution rate to the EMRP Regime of the ISSS, which will be deducted monthly from their pension and the set of benefits to which they are entitled for said contribution. Additionally, the amount of said contribution and the net amount to receive as a pension, after deducting the health contribution, must be detailed. Art. 25.- The old-age monetary benefit procedure must be carried out within a period not exceeding fifteen business days counted from the date of receipt of the request. On the resolution of old-age assignment Art. 26.- Once the amount of the old-age assignment benefit is obtained, the Previsional Institute must issue a resolution indicating the following:
a) Type of benefit granted. Indicating that having not met the requirements to access an old-age pension, they have met the requirements to obtain the benefit of old-age assignment; b) The amount of said assignment; c) The complete and definitive extinction of any right that might be based on the periods of contribution, which have served to justify the payment of said assignment; d) That their incorporation into a new remunerated activity generates the obligation to affiliate to the SAP and make contributions to said system in the percentages established in the SP Law, and inform them that they may dispose annually of the balance of their CIAP and that upon their death, the balance constitutes part of the estate.

CHAPTER VIII
ON THE PAYMENT OF OLD-AGE BENEFITS

Payment of old-age pensions
Art. 27.- Old-age pensions granted in the PPS, by virtue of the SP Law, will have a lifelong nature and their payment will be made by deposit into an account at a financial entity, either a savings or checking account. The payment will be made in the form of due monthly installments, without interruption, on the same date that the Previsional Institute establishes. The payment of pension monthly installments will be subject to compliance with the semi-annual survival control requirement.

Payment of Old-Age Assignments
Art. 28.- Being a benefit granted only once, its payment may be made through deposit into an account at a financial entity, either a savings account or through a checking account or by means of issuing a check in favor of the affiliate, or their beneficiaries (in case of death).

CHAPTER IX
ON THE CESSATION OF PROFESSIONAL RISK PENSIONS AND TRANSFER TO THE PPS

On the cessation of professional risk pensions Art. 29.- Article 107 of the SP Law establishes that the disability pension caused by professional risk will cease when the affiliate meets the legal age to retire due to old age or when they die, at which moment the respective benefit must be processed at the corresponding Previsional Institute. Art. 30.- Upon reaching the legal age to retire due to old age, the professional risk pension will convert into an old-age pension granted by the Previsional Institute, without the need for contribution time requirements; the pension will be calculated in accordance with what is established in these Standards. If the resulting amount is lower than the pension accrued at the ISSS, the latter will be paid; in any case, the pension accrued by the affiliate cannot be lower than the minimum old-age pension, in accordance with what is established in the SP Law.

CHAPTER X
OTHER PROVISIONS AND VALIDITY

Verification of survival of residents in the country Art. 31.- For the verification of survival of pensioners or beneficiaries who receive any of the benefits established in these Standards, the following is established:
a) The Previsional Institute must verify semi-annually, taking as reference the month in which the accrual of pensions or benefits began, the survival status of the pensioner or beneficiary; b) The Previsional Institute must verify under any of the modalities established by the SP Law, semi-annually that each pensioner or beneficiary continues

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

alive and is entitled to the corresponding pension or benefit, for which, the Previsional Institute must require the pensioner or beneficiary to complete during the corresponding month the procedure established to prove their survival; c) To document this situation, a form designed for such effects must be completed, which must contain as a minimum what is established in article 34 of these Standards. In these cases, the Previsional Institute may use the electronic means it defines to complete the necessary information to verify the survival of the pensioner or affiliate; and d) The survival verification of pensioners due to old age with total disability or great disability, will be carried out through a home visit by a social work professional. This procedure may also be applied when a pensioner or beneficiary who is not disabled demonstrates being unable to reach the Previsional Institute due to health deterioration or advanced age. In these cases, electronic means may be used to carry out the verification. Verification of survival of residents abroad Art. 32.- For the verification of survival of pensioners or beneficiaries who receive any of the benefits established in these Standards, the following is established:
a) For survival verification in the case of pensioners or beneficiaries residing outside the country, the pensioner or affiliate must present themselves before the Salvadoran Consulate Office in the country of residence and request to make a Sworn Declaration before their offices, which must be drafted in accordance with the notarial legislation of El Salvador; b) In case there is no Consulate of El Salvador in the country of residence, the pensioner or affiliate may verify their survival through a sworn declaration, which must be made before the offices of a public notary authorized by the Supreme Court of Justice of El Salvador; and c) Alternatively, the sworn declaration may be granted before the offices of the person who exercises the notarial function in the country of residence of the pensioner, which will have validity in El Salvador, provided that it is made in the Spanish language and carries the authentic signatures required by Salvadoran laws and international treaties subscribed by El Salvador. In this case, the sworn declaration may be made in a notarial deed, provided it meets the requirements established by the Notary Law of El Salvador. In these cases, electronic means may be used to carry out the survival verification.

Art. 33.- If the pensioner or beneficiary does not complete the survival verification process in the corresponding month, the payment of the pension or benefit will be suspended, starting from the month following the non-compliance with the verification. Such payment will resume on the next business day with retroactive effect, once the pensioner or beneficiary proves the referred survival. This deadline will not apply in exceptional cases where the lack of survival verification is greater than two years or documents are required to verify the requirements for the enjoyment of the pension or benefit. Once the requirements are verified, payment must be made on the next business day. (1) Art. 34.- The format of the form is at the discretion of the Previsional Institute, however, it must contain, as a minimum, the following information:
a) Name of the pensioner or beneficiary enjoying an old-age benefit; b) Type of benefit; c) Personal Data:
i. Data of the pensioner or beneficiary;
ii. Type and number of identity document; and
iii. Address, email, and phone.
d) Information of the attorney or legal representative, if applicable:
i. Name of the attorney or representative;
ii. Name and number of personal identity document;
iii. Address, email, and phone; and
iv. Information related to the public deed, such as: number of deed, number of protocol, and name of the notary.
e) Names and Signatures, in case the verification process is carried out in person:
i. Of the person receiving the form, named or authorized by the Previsional Institute;
ii. Name and signature of the pensioner or beneficiary, if they cannot sign, the fingerprint;
iii. Name, signature, and identity document of the person signing on behalf, when the pensioner or beneficiary cannot sign; and
iv. Name and signature of the legal representative or attorney, if applicable.
Art. 35.- The Previsional Institute may keep control of the survival of its pensioners or beneficiaries, residents in El Salvador and abroad, through a biometric device, so that, in an expeditious and secure manner, they can carry out an effective review of the survival of their pensioners and allow the continuation of payments made through these, of the benefits established in these Standards. The Previsional Institute will be responsible for the implementation, operation, dissemination, and verification of the correct functioning of the tool, ensuring that pensioners know the method and way to demonstrate their survival, as well as the

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

coding of the same.
The Previsional Institute must place the devices in places accessible to users and implement all those controls aimed at avoiding any type of fraud involving improper use of the control mechanism.
Likewise, the Previsional Institute may make use of technological means such as phone calls, video calls, or others, in which it must document the acceptance of the pensioner or affiliate in the use of said means to carry out the process, as well as request the information defined in the preceding letters that is necessary. On the notification of the survival verification process (1) Art. 35-A.- The Previsional Institutes must notify pensioners or beneficiaries entitled to an old-age pension or benefit, through the different communication channels made available to them, including instant messaging applications, text messages, email, or phone calls, regarding the obligation to carry out the survival verification. Such notification must be made within the first three business days of the month in which the survival verification corresponds and reiterated two weeks prior to the end of said month. (1) The communication must be made, as a minimum, by two of the following means: sending a text message or call to the registered phone number of the pensioner or beneficiary, an email to the registered electronic address, or a message through the WhatsApp instant messaging application, when said channel is enabled. (1) Likewise, the Previsional Institutes must carry out information campaigns at least every three months directed at pensioners or beneficiaries, oriented to raise awareness about the importance and timeliness of the survival verification in the month corresponding to each pensioner or beneficiary. In case the pensioner or beneficiary does not carry out the survival verification within the corresponding month, the Previsional Institute must formally communicate to them within the first three business days of the following month their condition of non-compliance, warning that the payment of the pension will be suspended until said requirement is met. In said communication, the means and channels available to carry out the survival verification must be clearly indicated, in order to reactivate the payment of the benefit. (1) On the notification of pension or benefit payment (1) Art. 35-B.- The Previsional Institutes must notify by means of text messages or instant messaging, when the payment of the old-age pension or benefit has been made. (1)

CNBCR-01/2023
NSP-77
TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR THE GRANTING OF OLD-AGE MONETARY BENEFITS IN THE PUBLIC PENSION SYSTEM Approval: 01/26/2023 Validity: 01/26/2023

Sanctions
Art. 36.- Non-compliance with the provisions contained in these Standards will be sanctioned in accordance with what is established in the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System.

Repeals
Art. 37.- These Standards repeal the "Instruction for the Granting of Old-Age Monetary Benefits in the Public Pension System" (PPS -002/98) and the "Instruction for the Granting of Old-Age and Survival Benefits in the Public Pension System to Professional Risk Pensioners" (PPS -02/99), approved on April 17, 1998, and December 14, 1999, respectively, by the Superintendency of Pensions, whose Organic Law was repealed by Legislative Decree No. 592 which contains the Law on Supervision and Regulation of the Financial System, published in the Official Journal No. 23, Volume No. 390, of February 2, 2011. Transitory (1) Art. 37-A.- The Previsional Institutes must guarantee that the provisions approved through the modifications to these Standards, approved by the Central Bank through its Standards Committee in Session No. CN-01/2026 of January 29, 2026, are carried out starting from the month of March 2026, for which they will have the deadline to carry out the administrative and technological adjustments that guarantee the reactivation of the payment of pensions or benefits suspended due to the lack of the survival verification process. (1) Unforeseen Aspects Art. 38.- Aspects not provided for in regulatory matters in these Standards will be resolved by the Central Bank through its Standards Committee. Validity Art. 39.- These Standards will enter into force starting from the twenty-sixth of January of two thousand twenty-three.

MODIFICATIONS:
(1) Modifications in article 18 and 33 and incorporation of articles 35-A, 35-B, and 37-A, approved by the Central Bank through its Standards Committee, in Session No. CN01/2026 of January 29, two thousand twenty-six, with validity starting from February 13, two thousand twenty-six.