Bureau of Immigration creates body to check abuse of indefinite visa program

MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said yesterday it created a committee to oversee the implementation of the agency’s special visa program for foreign employers.

Commissioner Marcelino Libanan warned foreigners issued indefinite visas under the BI’s Special Visa for Employment Generation (SVEG) program that they may lose this privilege if they violate the conditions of their stay in the country.

The SVEG visa entitles the holder to stay in the Philippines indefinitely if he invests or works in a business enterprise that employs at least 10 regular and full-time Filipino workers.

“We must institute the mechanisms needed to ensure that this job visa program is not abused or taken advantage of by foreign applicants who might have ulterior motives in applying for the visa,” Libanan said in a statement.

Libanan said no foreigner should be allowed to manipulate or take advantage of the SVEG program, which was launched to encourage foreigners to do business in the country and provide employment opportunities to Filipinos.

BI executive assistant Eliodora Caluya was named head of the four-man oversight committee, which will verify the existence of the corporation or entity where the SVEG applicant has an investment or is employed; inspect the establishment to check if the business indeed employs 10 or more Filipinos; and make a report on the working conditions of the Filipino workers.

All SVEG visa holders and their respective business enterprises nationwide are subject to oversight by the committee.

The BI started implementing the SVEG program last April pursuant to an executive order President Arroyo signed in November 2008.

The program has generated P3.34 million in net income since it was implemented, the agency said. – Helen Flores