CECA Signs an Agreement with the Ministry of Labor and the SEPE to Advance Unemployment Benefits Payments

The CECA member entities will facilitate these payments before receiving funds from the SEPE

The agreement provides liquidity to the unemployed and compensates for the impact of COVID-19 on their disposable income

The agreement will have an initial duration of three months, renewable for the same period

CECA has signed an agreement with the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy (MTES) and the State Public Employment Service (SEPE) regulating the conditions established for granting advances to individuals with an unemployment benefit recognized by the SEPE. Thus, the CECA entities that adhere to this agreement will advance the amount of their benefits to the unemployed prior to the effective payment date by the SEPE. Currently, these payments are made between the 10th and 15th of each month.

This agreement, which will initially last for three months and may be renewed for the same period, increases the measures that CECA entities had already implemented since the outbreak of COVID-19. In this regard, the banks adhering to CECA have not only been advancing unemployment benefits payments but have also allowed pensioners to receive their retirement payments in advance, enabling them to have sufficient liquidity during the State of Alarm.

The restrictions imposed by the successive decrees issued by the Government during the State of Alarm have led to the paralysis of activity in various sectors, resulting in negative effects on employment and, in particular, an increase in the number of applications for unemployment benefits. This increase in the number of applications, combined with the mobility restrictions approved to combat COVID-19, reflects a moment of special need for many working individuals. This agreement aims to compensate, at least partially, for the negative impact that such a situation may cause on their disposable income.

With this agreement, the adhering entity will advance the total or partial amount of the unemployment benefit earned under the terms and conditions outlined in this agreement, prior to receiving the funds from the SEPE through agreements made with the General Treasury of Social Security for this purpose.

Individuals recognized with an unemployment benefit or subsidy since May 1 (inclusive), with economic effects between March 14, 2020, and the end date of this agreement, will be eligible for advances considered in this agreement, provided that the management of the benefit or subsidy falls under the competence of the SEPE.

After each request, the CECA member entities adhering to the agreement will conduct a study on the potential granting of advances to all applicants, subject to their approval according to their applicable internal criteria, with the possibility of granting or denying operations freely by the adhering bank applying said internal criteria, and without being subject to review by the Administration. The advance will be directly offered by the adhering entity to those of its clients who are beneficiaries, once it receives information on the recognition of the respective benefit or subsidy from the SEPE.

Each beneficiary may access the advance regulated in this agreement only once, coinciding with the payment of the first monthly unemployment benefit or subsidy they are entitled to following the application for the advance.

These operations will not incur any costs for the applicants. The conditions of the agreement stipulate that the interest rate applicable to the operation will be 0%. Furthermore, there will be no commissions or other charges for carrying out this operation, nor will any guarantees be required for its collection.