The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas ( BSP ), the Philippines’ central bank, has made changes on where Personal Equity and Retirement Account ( Pera ) scheme funds can be invested.

Unit investment trust funds ( UITFs ) with foreign exposure, according to a recent issuance from the bank, can now be qualified under the Pera scheme.

The voluntary Pera scheme, launched in 2016, is meant to augment state-based pension schemes. The BSP has long touted it as a “superior retirement savings option” since earnings from it are tax free.

Under the programme, by the time the contributors reach the age of 55 and have invested for at least five years, they can redeem their investment free of taxes. The scheme also comes with a 5% tax credit that can be used to pay for national income tax liabilities.

While UITFs have long been permitted under Pera, previously, only locally-domiciled funds were qualified. Under the new rules, global feeder funds and funds-of-funds will also be allowed, so long as they were opened in the Philippines, and subject to existing approval processes.

“The availability of these types of funds as investment products,” the BSP’s memorandum circular notes, “provides Pera contributors with additional means to diversify their investment portfolios.”

The expanded rules, the BSP hopes, will also support capital market development, while also providing consumers with a broader range of available Pera investment instruments and additional diversification opportunities.

While Pera contributors have slowly increased in recent years, the total number is still a long way away from the bank’s target of enrolling at least 5 million contributors in the programme by 2025. Latest BSP data shows that there are currently 5,912 Pera contributors, up only 6.42% from the 5,555 in end-2024. Total Pera contributions amount to 491.39 million Philippine pesos ( US$8.619 million ), as of end-2024.