DOLE: OFWs leaving Libya no longer need exit visas

MANILA, Philippines - Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Libya can now leave the country without an exit visa, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said on Friday.

"Labor Attache to Tripoli Nasser Mustafa has reported to Administrator Hans Leo J. Cacdac of the DOLE Quick Response Team that exit visa is no longer a problem for our OFWs. This after the Libyan Ministry of Labor has given the authority to bring all Filipinos out of Libya even without exit visas," she said.

Baldoz added that officials from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office will no longer need to talk to Libyan employers to issue exit visas to their Filipino employees.

Mustafa reported to Baldoz that the situation continues to deteriorate in the Libyan capital, three years after the uprising that removed former strongman Muammar Gaddafi from power.

"This also means that Filipino workers who wish to avail of the mandatory repatriation need not beg with their employers to allow them to leave Libya," Baldoz said.

With the new directive, OFWs can exit Libya through Tunisia.

Baldoz said DOLE is ready to address the welfare, employment, livelihood and legal needs of Filipino repatriates through the Assist WELL Program, a component of the National Reintegration Program for OFWs.

"The DOLE has set up a package of comprehensive reintegration assistance and services under its Assist WELL Program to ensure that returning (OFWs) who voluntarily sign up for repatriation, or those who are compelled to go home under mandatory repatriation due to crises or emergency situations, are successfully reintegrated in the mainstream of Philippine society," she said.