4Ps, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, is the government’s main poverty reduction and human capital program, run by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). It gives poor families conditional cash grants for health, nutrition, and education. In return, they keep children in school, follow health check-ups, and attend monthly family sessions. Republic Act 11310 made it permanent law in 2019.
Two changes in 2026 matter for current families. The First 1,000 Days grant went up, and an executive order lets some families stay beyond the usual seven-year limit.
Who qualifies for 4Ps
According to RA 11310 and the DSWD’s program FAQs, a family must:
- appear as poor or near-poor in the Standardized Targeting System, which uses poverty thresholds from the Philippine Statistics Authority;
- have children aged 0 to 18 and/or a pregnant member at the time of registration; and
- be willing to comply with the program’s health, nutrition, education, and Family Development Session conditions.
The law also automatically includes farmers, fisherfolk, homeless families, Indigenous Peoples, and informal settlers in the targeting system. Families in geographically isolated areas are covered as well, though all of them still go through validation.
You cannot simply apply
This is, in fact, the most common misunderstanding. Families do not walk in and sign up for 4Ps. Instead, DSWD identifies potential beneficiaries using official government data, then registers and validates them before final inclusion. In 2026, for instance, DSWD registered more than 176,000 new families using data from the Community-Based Monitoring System (CBMS) conducted by local governments.
If you think your family qualifies, file an inclusion request through the 4Ps Grievance Redress System, described below. Be wary of anyone who offers to “enroll” you for a fee, since registration and validation are free and handled only by DSWD staff.
4Ps grant amounts in 2026
The DSWD’s information guide lists these grant rates:
| Grant | Amount |
|---|---|
| Education: child development center or preschool | ₱300 per child per month |
| Education: elementary | ₱300 per child per month |
| Education: junior high school | ₱500 per child per month |
| Education: senior high school | ₱700 per child per month |
| Health and nutrition | ₱750 per family per month |
| First 1,000 Days (F1KD) | ₱750 per qualified pregnant woman or child |
| Rice subsidy | ₱600 per family |
DSWD pays education grants for up to 10 months a year, for at most three monitored children per family. The health grant, by contrast, is a fixed amount per family for up to 12 months.
A worked example
Consider a qualified family with a pregnant mother, a child in Grade 3, and a child in Grade 9. If everyone complies, the family would receive ₱750 for health and nutrition and ₱750 for the F1KD grant for the pregnancy. On top of that, it gets ₱300 for the elementary pupil and ₱500 for the junior high student. That adds up to ₱2,300 a month, plus the ₱600 rice subsidy listed in DSWD’s guide. However, the education grants stop in the months without classes, since they cover only 10 months a year.
After the birth, the F1KD grant continues until the child turns 24 months, as long as the family keeps up check-ups and vaccinations. Meanwhile, if the Grade 9 student misses too many classes in a month, only that child loses the education grant for the period. The rest of the family’s grants continue.
The First 1,000 Days grant increase
Under DSWD Memorandum Circular No. 10, series of 2026, the monthly F1KD grant rose from ₱350 to ₱750, with the new amount applied starting Pay Period 3 (May to June 2026). The grant supports pregnant women and children aged 0 to 24 months. It covers prenatal and postnatal care, facility-based delivery, breastfeeding, complementary feeding, and the prevention of stunting.
To keep receiving it, mothers must attend prenatal and postnatal check-ups and deliver in a health facility with a skilled professional. They must also bring children for regular consultations and immunization. Families with a new pregnancy or baby should update their record using BUS Form 5. They can file it through their City or Municipal Link or online through the I-Registro platform. Attach a birth certificate or certificate of live birth for the child, or a medical or health certificate for the pregnancy. Our PSA birth certificate guide explains how to get the child’s document.
Conditions every 4Ps family must meet
RA 11310 lists the conditions for continued eligibility:
- pregnant women get prenatal care, give birth in a health facility with a skilled attendant, and receive postpartum care, with postnatal care for the newborn;
- children 0 to 5 receive regular preventive check-ups and vaccinations;
- children 1 to 14 take deworming pills at least twice a year;
- children 3 to 4 attend day care or preschool at least 85 percent of the time;
- children 5 to 18 attend elementary or high school at least 85 percent of the time; and
- at least one responsible adult attends monthly Family Development Sessions.
The DSWD Secretary may suspend conditions during calamities, war, or armed conflict.
Family Development Sessions
Family Development Sessions (FDS) are monthly learning sessions led by DSWD workers. Topics include parenting, health and nutrition, education, financial literacy, livelihood, family relationships, and community participation. Attendance is a condition. Therefore, if the usual attendee cannot go, another responsible adult in the household should attend instead.
When 4Ps grants are released
DSWD releases grants after it verifies compliance. For 2026, the program says health and F1KD grants generally arrive in the month after the monitoring month. Education grants, by contrast, follow a longer cycle tied to school-year monitoring. Holidays, validation, and system issues can delay releases.
Payments go through Land Bank transaction accounts and cash cards, e-wallets such as GCash and Maya, or cash-out through ATMs, point-of-sale terminals, and authorized merchants. Never give your cash card PIN or e-wallet code to anyone, including people claiming to be from DSWD.
What happens if a condition is missed
When a family misses a condition, the City or Municipal Link handles case management to understand the reason and offer help, such as counseling or referrals. DSWD may withhold the grant for that monitoring period. Under RA 11310, four months of non-compliance sends the family into DSWD’s case management process. If non-compliance continues for one year after written notice, DSWD can remove the family from 4Ps.
In practice, families can fix many issues. Common ones are a change of school, a health center that did not report a check-up, or a wrong birth date in the record. Raise them early with your City or Municipal Link.
The seven-year limit and the 2026 extension
RA 11310 provides grants for a maximum of seven years. In July 2026, the President signed an executive order on the seven-year limit. It lets qualified families at or near seven years continue, subject to eligibility and assessment. DSWD stressed that the order does not give automatic or permanent inclusion. According to the Philippine News Agency, the extension applies to families still at Level 1 (survival) or Level 2 (subsistence) on DSWD’s well-being scale, with yearly reassessment.
DSWD is rolling out an enhanced Social Welfare and Development Indicator (SWDI) as the main tool for these decisions.
Graduating from 4Ps
The program calls its graduation pathway 4Ps Kilos-Unlad. Families at Level 3 (self-sufficient) under the SWDI go through a six-month transition period. During that time, DSWD links them to programs from LGUs and other agencies to sustain their gains. After that, they formally exit, often recognized in a Pugay Tagumpay ceremony.
Families can also exit when children age out, after repeated non-compliance, for fraud, for ineligibility found during reassessment, or voluntarily. Beneficiaries also get priority for DSWD’s Sustainable Livelihood Program and employment services. For skills training, see our TESDA scholarship guide.
Moving or changing schools
Families sometimes move to another barangay or city, or a child transfers schools. In either case, update the record promptly through the City or Municipal Link. DSWD checks compliance against the school and health facility listed in the system. Otherwise, a child who attends classes may still appear non-compliant because the system does not link the new school yet. Report changes in household members, such as a new baby or a child who has left home.
Health coverage for 4Ps members
Under the law, PhilHealth automatically covers all qualified 4Ps households, and the government pays the premiums. Members can check their record through PhilHealth; our guide to the PhilHealth Member Data Record explains how.
Complaints, inclusion requests, and updates
The 4Ps Grievance Redress System accepts inclusion requests, payment and cash card concerns, appeals for reinstatement, disqualification concerns, and complaints about implementers. You can file through 4Ps grievance desks, field office hotlines, and local help desks. You can also email 4psassistance@dswd.gov.ph, text the DSWD hotline listed on the program’s FAQ page, or message the official 4Ps Facebook page.
For one-time emergencies, such as hospitalization or a death in the family, families can also ask for DSWD’s crisis assistance; see the DSWD page on AICS.
Last checked against the DSWD 4Ps Frequently Asked Questions, the DSWD announcement on the expanded F1KD grant, and RA 11310 on Lawphil on October 2026.
