The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Friday said it aims to complete the rollout of a new cash assistance program covering 7.5 million low-income households by the end of July, as the government moves to cushion vulnerable families from rising fuel and energy costs.

DSWD Sec. Rex Gatchalian said the beneficiaries have been grouped into three categories to speed up the distribution of financial assistance while relying on existing government databases instead of lists from local officials.

The first group covers 3.5 million Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries and households under the government's Walang Gutom Program, where each household will receive a one-time P2,000 cash assistance through existing LandBank accounts or food credit cards used under the program.

Another 2.5 million households classified as poor but not enrolled in the 4Ps, as well as near-poor families, will receive P2,000 monthly for six months.

Gatchalian also said these beneficiaries were identified using the Philippine Statistics Authority's Community-Based Monitoring System (CBMS).

To ensure the accuracy of the beneficiary list, the government will conduct a manual payout for the first release while validating recipients and collecting their preferred digital payment accounts, including GCash, Maya, or LandBank accounts, before shifting succeeding payouts to digital channels.

"Again, there is no political interference. We did not make a list with any local government official or any public official. We took this, as our President [Marcos Jr.] mentioned, from CBMS or the Community-Based Monitoring System that is held by the Philippine Statistics Authority [PSA]," Gatchalian said.

The third group consists of 1.5 million low-income workers whose records were cross-checked with the Social Security System (SSS). Eligible members are those with a monthly salary credit of P20,000 or below, at least one contribution in the past year, and an enrolled disbursement account as of 30 April, 2026.

Qualified SSS members will receive P2,000 monthly for six months, with the agency directly crediting the assistance to their registered disbursement accounts.

According to the secretary, the first group will begin receiving assistance as early as Tuesday through direct account credits, while payouts for the second and third groups are scheduled to start next week.

Gatchalian noted that DSWD expects to complete a substantial portion of the distribution before the end of July in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive.