1) Clarifying the terms: there is no single “Magna Carta SSS sick leave”

In Philippine practice, people often combine two separate entitlements:

SSS Sickness Benefit – a cash allowance paid under the Social Security law to qualified SSS members who cannot work due to sickness or injury.
Magna Carta of Women Special Leave Benefit (often casually called “Magna Carta leave”) – a special paid leave of up to two (2) months with full pay for qualified women employees who undergo surgery due to gynecological disorders, granted under RA 9710 (Magna Carta of Women), Section 18.

These can apply to the same medical event (e.g., post-surgery recovery), but the legal basis, purpose, and administration are different.

2) Who is covered

A. Coverage for SSS sickness benefit

Generally covered are SSS members, including:

Private sector employees (including many employees of private educational institutions and some GOCCs that are under SSS coverage)
Self-employed members
Voluntary members
OFW members (as applicable under SSS rules)

Not typically covered by SSS: most government employees under GSIS, except those whose agencies/entities are under SSS coverage by law or arrangement.

B. Coverage for Magna Carta of Women special leave (RA 9710 Sec. 18)

Covered are women employees in:

Private sector, and
Government service

Key point: this is a workplace leave entitlement. It is not an SSS benefit.

3) Eligibility for SSS Sickness Benefit (the “SSS sick leave” people refer to)

A. Core eligibility checklist

A member is generally eligible if all are true:

Unable to work due to sickness or injury and is confined (at home or in a hospital) for at least four (4) days
- If fewer than 4 days: typically not compensable as an SSS sickness benefit.
Has paid at least three (3) monthly contributions within the 12-month period immediately before the “semester of sickness.”
Proper notice and filing requirements are met (rules differ for employees vs. self-employed/voluntary/OFW).
The claim does not exceed SSS limits on compensable days (see “duration limits” below).

B. What “semester of sickness” means (and why it matters)

SSS uses a contribution lookback rule built around “semesters”:

A semester is two consecutive quarters ending in the quarter of sickness.
The 12-month period used to check contributions (and compute benefits) is the period immediately preceding that semester.

Illustration (conceptual): If sickness occurs in May (2nd quarter), the semester includes 1st and 2nd quarters. The 12-month base period is the 12 months before that semester. SSS then checks if at least 3 contributions were paid in that base period.

This rule is important because members sometimes have contributions in the wrong period (e.g., newly resumed contributions that don’t fall into the required lookback window).

C. Duration limits (how many days SSS will pay)

Common rules applied in practice:

SSS pays sickness benefit for a maximum of 120 days in a calendar year (across all confinements).
A single illness or confinement typically cannot be compensated beyond the program’s limits; long-term or extended incapacity often shifts analysis toward disability benefits rather than continuing sickness benefits.

Because prolonged illness can trigger disability assessment issues, claims exceeding typical sickness periods frequently require stronger medical documentation and may be evaluated differently.

D. How much is the SSS sickness benefit (basic computation idea)

The SSS sickness benefit is generally:

90% of the member’s Average Daily Salary Credit (ADSC)
Paid for the number of approved compensable days of confinement.

In practical terms:

It is not automatically “full salary.”
It is a statutory cash allowance based on the member’s recorded salary credits and the prescribed formula.

E. Filing and notice requirements (where many claims fail)

1) For employed members (private sector employees)

Typical process:

Employee notifies the employer about the sickness/confinement within the required period under SSS rules.
Employer submits the sickness notification/claim to SSS.
Employer commonly advances the daily allowance to the employee (subject to SSS approval), then seeks reimbursement from SSS.

Late notice often results in:

reduced compensable days, or
denial, depending on circumstances and SSS evaluation.

2) For self-employed, voluntary, and OFW members

These members generally:

notify/file directly with SSS, with required medical documents and proof of confinement/incapacity.

F. Medical and documentation requirements (substance over form)

SSS typically requires medical proof sufficient to establish:

diagnosis,
dates and nature of confinement (home/hospital),
incapacity to work,
physician’s certification and credentials, and
supporting clinical documents when needed (e.g., hospital records, operative reports for surgery cases)

Claims may be questioned when:

the medical certificate is vague,
dates don’t match,
the diagnosis doesn’t reasonably require the claimed period of work incapacity,
or there’s inconsistency in the supporting records.

G. Relationship with employer-provided sick leave (company leave vs. SSS benefit)

SSS sickness benefit is not the same as company sick leave.

Company sick leave is a matter of company policy/CBA or internal practice (and in minimum terms, the statutory Service Incentive Leave may be used as paid leave in some workplaces).
SSS sickness benefit is a statutory cash benefit.

Common payroll arrangements:

Some employers offset SSS sickness benefit against what the company pays, so the employee receives full or near-full pay depending on policy.
Some employers treat SSS benefit as separate, but many integrate it administratively.

4) Eligibility for the “Magna Carta” Special Leave Benefit for Women (RA 9710, Sec. 18)

A. What the benefit is

Under RA 9710 (Magna Carta of Women), Section 18, qualified women employees are entitled to:

Special leave benefit of up to two (2) months with full pay
Following surgery caused by gynecological disorders

This is often referred to simply as “Magna Carta leave.”

B. Who is eligible (core elements)

A woman employee is generally eligible if:

She is a woman employee (private sector or government).
She undergoes surgery due to a gynecological disorder (i.e., a disorder involving the female reproductive system that necessitates a surgical procedure, as recognized in applicable implementing rules and medical practice).
She has rendered at least six (6) months aggregate employment within the last twelve (12) months prior to the surgery (a standard statutory condition associated with this benefit).
She complies with workplace requirements for application and medical documentation.

C. “Gynecological disorder” and “surgery” (how eligibility is assessed)

The entitlement is not for any illness in general; it is anchored to:

gynecological disorder, and
surgery as the triggering event

Eligibility is typically supported by:

attending physician certification,
operative report or hospital record,
diagnosis and recommended recuperation period.

D. Amount: “two months with full pay”

Key features:

“Full pay” is based on the employee’s gross monthly compensation as understood in employment practice and implementing rules (commonly anchored on regular pay components rather than discretionary benefits, depending on workplace rules and the nature of compensation).
The benefit is up to two months (commonly treated as a maximum cap for the qualifying episode, not a recurring monthly grant).

E. Non-cumulative character

In practice, this benefit is treated as:

non-cumulative (not banked like leave credits), and
subject to conditions and documentation

5) How SSS sickness benefit and Magna Carta special leave can overlap (and what usually happens)

A woman employee who undergoes gynecological surgery may potentially be:

eligible for Magna Carta special leave (up to 2 months full pay), and
eligible for SSS sickness benefit (cash allowance for compensable confinement days), if she meets SSS contribution and filing requirements.

A. Same medical event, different legal purposes

Magna Carta special leave: a workplace leave with full pay for a specific women’s health surgical condition.
SSS sickness: a social insurance cash benefit based on SSS salary credits.

B. Avoiding “double recovery” in practice

Because both relate to wage replacement during incapacity, employers often administer them in a way that:

the employee receives the legally required full pay under Magna Carta (if eligible), and
SSS reimbursement (if approved) is handled through employer payroll accounting (often as an offset/reimbursement mechanism).

The exact mechanics depend on:

company policy/CBA,
payroll practice, and
SSS processing outcomes.

C. When recovery exceeds two months or is longer than expected

Magna Carta special leave caps at two months for the qualifying gynecological surgery-related recovery.
If the employee remains incapacitated beyond that, entitlement may shift to:
- company sick leave/other leave credits, and/or
- continued SSS sickness benefit (subject to SSS limits), and/or
- disability evaluation if the condition becomes prolonged.

6) Special situations that affect eligibility

A. Members with irregular contributions (common reason for denial)

For SSS sickness benefit, the issue is often not the illness—it’s that the member lacks:

the required 3 contributions in the correct 12-month lookback period, or
properly posted contributions due to remittance issues.

B. Separated employees

Eligibility for SSS sickness benefit can be complicated if the member is no longer employed at the time of confinement. The path typically depends on:

whether contributions were sufficient in the required period,
the member’s current status (voluntary, self-employed, etc.), and
compliance with direct filing requirements.

C. Work-related illness or injury (Employees’ Compensation angle)

If the sickness or injury is work-related, it may fall under the Employees’ Compensation (EC) program administered alongside SSS for private-sector workers. Coordination matters because:

EC and SSS have different legal bases and requirements.
The availability of one benefit can affect how the claim is routed and what supporting proof is needed (especially for work-related causation).

D. Government employees

SSS sickness benefit typically applies to SSS-covered workers, not GSIS-only government employees.
Magna Carta of Women special leave still applies to women employees in government, but procedure is handled under government HR and civil service mechanisms.

7) Where to assert rights and resolve disputes

A. If the issue is SSS sickness benefit (denial, reimbursement, employer processing)

Disputes involving SSS benefits are generally brought through SSS processes and, if escalated, before the Social Security Commission (the quasi-judicial body that hears SSS-related controversies).

Common dispute triggers:

employer refuses to file/advance despite proper notice,
contributions not remitted/posted,
claim denied for technical or medical reasons.

B. If the issue is Magna Carta special leave (refusal to grant, improper conditions, nonpayment)

For private sector:

commonly treated as a labor standards and compliance issue (handled through workplace mechanisms and, when necessary, labor enforcement channels).

For government:

typically addressed through agency HR and relevant civil service processes.

8) Practical eligibility summary

Eligible for SSS sickness benefit if (in essence):

SSS member + medically established inability to work,
confined at least 4 days,
has at least 3 contributions in the required lookback period,
complied with notice/filing rules,
within compensable day limits.

Eligible for Magna Carta of Women special leave if (in essence):

woman employee (private or government),
underwent surgery due to gynecological disorder,
meets the service requirement (commonly 6 months aggregate service within the past 12 months before surgery),
complied with documentation and application procedures,
up to two months with full pay.

Overlap:

A gynecological surgery case can qualify for both, but administration typically aims to comply with the Magna Carta full-pay requirement while properly accounting for any SSS sickness benefit that may be approved.