Manila, April 1 -- All lenders are mandated to implement a 30-day grace period without slapping any penalty for all loans with principal and/or interest payments due within the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) from March 17 to April 12, 2020.

This is stated under Section 3.01 of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for Republic Act 11469, otherwise known as the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, a copy of which was sent by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III to journalists Wednesday.

The IRR said the grace period shall automatically be extended if the ECQ period is extended by the President of the Republic of the Philippines in line with the emergency powers given to him through RA 11469.

It also barred lenders from charging or applying "interest on interest, fees and charges during the 30-day grace period to future payments/amortizations of the individuals, households, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and corporate borrowers."

"Further, no DST (documentary stamp tax) shall be imposed on credit extensions and credit restructuring, micro-lending including those obtained from pawnshops and extension thereof during the ECQ period," it added.

The IRR defined covered institutions as all lenders, including but not limited to banks, quasi-banks, non-stock savings and loan associations, credit card issuers, pawnshops and other credit granting financial institutions under the supervision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Cooperative Development Authority, public or private, including the Government Service Insurance System, Social Security System, and Pag-IBIG Fund.

The IRR also prohibits lenders from requiring their clients to waive the provisions of the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act" including among others, the mandatory 30-day grace period.

Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which was signed into law last March 25, allowed President Rodrigo R. Duterte to realign funds under this year's national budget to be used for measures that will address the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

The health issue has resulted in, among others, the declaration of a community quarantine for Metro Manila from March 15 until April 12, 2020, but this was widened to an ECQ for the mainland Luzon starting March 17 to arrest further rise of Covid-19 cases.

The ECQ barred people, with exemptions such as the medical health workers, the emergency response staff, the uniformed personnel, and people working in supermarkets, from going out of their houses unless they will buy food, medicines, and other necessities.

Local governments in other areas around the country are now implementing various levels of community quarantine to protect their areas and prevent further rise of Covid-19 cases.

Under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, the government has so far announced the allocation of PHP200 billion for poor households whose livelihoods were affected by the ECQ.

Asked whether the IRR's coverage is solely for Luzon, Dominguez said "neither the law nor (the) IRR limits the coverage to Luzon."

As of March 31, the total number of Covid-19 cases in the country has reached 2,084, with 49 patients who have recovered while 88 have died.