Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995

RA 8042 - Approved on June 7, 1995

Amended by RA 9422 – Approved on April 10, 2007
Further Amended by RA 10022 – Approved on March 8, 2010

Definition of migrant worker

- Person who is to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state
of which he is not a legal resident
- Used interchangeably with OFW

Deployment of migrant workers

- Only in countries where rights of Filipino migrant workers are protected
- Any of the following is a guarantee for the protection and rights of OFWs:
a. It has existing labor and social laws protecting the rights of migrant workers;
b. It is a signatory to multilateral conventions, declarations or resolutions relating to the
protection of migrant workers;
c. It has concluded a bilateral agreement or arrangement with the government protecting
the rights of overseas Filipino workers; and
d. It is taking positive, concrete measures to protect the rights of migrant workers

- With regard to Filipino seafarers:

o When owners/employers are compliant with international laws and standards that
protect the rights of migrant workers
- With regard to companies and contractors with international operations:
o Compliant with standards and conditions embodied in the employment contracts
prescribed by the POEA

Liability of POEA Governing Board, Government Officials and Employees

- Money claims – within 9 days after filing of complaint of claims for actual, moral, exemplary and
other forms of damages (Labor Arbiter of the NLRC)
- Compromise./amicable settlement or voluntary agreement on money claims – within 4 months
from the approval of the settlement by the appropriate authority

Noncompliance with the mandatory periods for resolutions of cases shall subject responsible officials to
any or all of the following penalties:
1. Salary of such official who fails to render his decision or resolution within the
prescribed period shall be withheld until compliance
2. Suspension for not more than 90 days
3. Dismissal from the service with disqualification to hold any appointive public office
for 5 years
Same penalties apply for:
- Members of the POEA Governing Board who actually voted in favor of an order
allowing the deployment of migrant workers without any of the aforementioned
guarantees
- Those responsible for allowing deployment of migrant workers in direct contravention
of the prohibition imposed by the POEA Governing Board

Compulsory insurance coverage for agency-hired migrant workers

- Recruitment or manning agencies to provide at no cost to the worker
- Migrant worker made to shoulder the cost of insurance premium:
o License of the recruitment or manning agency will be cancelled
o All its directors, partners, proprietors, officers and employees shall be perpetually
disqualified from engaging in recruitment of overseas workers
- Insurance company must be:
o Duly registered with Insurance Commission
o In existence and operation for at least 5 years
o With a net worth of at least P500,000,000 to be determined by the Insurance
Commission

pg. 91
 o With a current certificate of authority
- Certificate of insurance coverage submitted to POEA as a requirement for issuance of an Overseas
Employment Certificate
- The following shall be sufficient to substantiate the claim:
o Death certificate – natural or accidental death
o Police or accident report – accidental death
o Medical certificate – permanent disablement

Disqualification
- Insurance companies who have directors, partners, officers, employees or agents with relatives
within fourth degree of consanguinity or affinity who work or have interest in any of the government
agencies involved in the overseas employment program are disqualified from providing the workers’
insurance program.

Coverage of the insurance

o USD 15,000 – accidental death
o USD 10,000 – for natural death
o USD 7,500 – permanent total disability
o USD 100 per month – subsistence allowance for a maximum of 6 months if the migrant
worker is involved in a case or litigation for the protection of his rights in the receiving
country
o Repatriation cost of the worker when employment is terminated without any valid cause
and transport of his personal belongings
o Money claims arising from employer’s liability
o Cost of transportation for compassionate visit by 1 family member in case the migrant
worker is hospitalized for at least 7 consecutive days
o Cost of medical evacuation – proximate and adequate medical facility is not available
o Cost of medical repatriation – medically necessary as determined by attending physician

Repatriation of migrant workers

- Responsibility of the recruitment agency
- Costs borne by or charged to the agency and/or its principal except when termination of
employment is due solely to the fault of the worker.

Emergency repatriation
- War, epidemic, disasters or calamities, natural or man-made, and other similar events
- OWWA, in coordination with appropriate international agencies, subject to reimbursement by the
responsible principal or agency
- Costs borne by OWWA if latter cannot be identified

Repatriation of underage migrant workers

- License of recruitment/manning agency automatically revoked and shall pay a fine ranging from
P500,000 to P1,000,000
- Recruitment/manning agency shall refund all the fees incurred by the underage worker within 30
days from date of mandatory repatriation.

Illegal recruitment
- any act of canvassing, enlisting, contracting, transporting, utilizing, hiring, or procuring workers
and includes referring, contract services, promising or advertising for employment abroad, whether for
profit or not, when undertaken by a non-licensee or non-holder of authority
- includes the following acts:
o charge any amount greater than that specified in the schedule of allowable fees
o publish false notice regarding recruitment or employment
o commit any act of misrepresentation for securing license or authority
o induce or attempt to induce a worker already employed to quit his employment for
another unless the transfer will liberate the worker from oppressive terms and
conditions of employment
o influence or attempt to influence not to employ any worker who has not applied for
employment through his agency
pg. 92
 o engage in the recruitment or placement of workers in jobs harmful to public health r
morality or to the dignity of the country
o obstruct or attempt to obstruct inspection by Secretary of DOLE
o fail to submit reports on the following:
§ status of employment
§ placement vacancies
§ remittance of foreign exchange earnings
§ separation from jobs
§ departures
o substitute or alter to the prejudice of the worker employment contracts
o officer or agent of a recruitment or placement agency to become an officer or member
of the Board of any corporation engaged in travel agency
o withhold or deny travel documents from applicant workers before departure for
monetary or financial considerations
o failure to actually deploy without valid reason
o failure to reimburse expenses incurred by the worker in connection with his
documentation and processing for purposes of deployment, in cases where the
deployment does not actually take place without the worker’s fault
o allow a non-Filipino citizen to head or manage a licensed recruitment/manning agency

Syndicated illegal recruitment – carried out by a group of 3 or more persons

Large-scale illegal recruitment – committed against 3 or more persons individually or as a group
Economic sabotage – illegal recruitment committed in syndicate or large scale
Prohibited acts
- grant a loan with interest exceeding 8% for payment of legal and allowable placement fees
- impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement to avail a loan only from specifically designated
institutions
- refuse to condone or renegotiate a loan after premature termination of employment contract without
fault by an OFW
- impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement to undergo health examinations only from
specifically designated medical clinics
- impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement to undergo training from specifically designated
institutions
- For a suspended recruitment/manning agency to engage in any kind of recruitment activity
- For a recruitment/manning agency or a foreign principal/employer to pass on the overseas Filipino
worker or deduct from his or her salary the payment of the cost of insurance fees

Filing of criminal complaint for illegal recruitment

- Secretary of DOLE
- POEA Administrator
- Any aggrieved person

Prescriptive period for filing of criminal complaint

- Simple illegal recruitment – 5 years
- Large-scale or syndicated illegal recruitment – 20 years

Penalty of illegal recruitment

- Simple illegal recruitment
o 12 years and 1 day to 20 years of imprisonment
o Fine ranging from P1,000,000 to P2,000,000
- Large-scale or syndicated illegal recruitment
o Life imprisonment
o Fine ranging from P2,000,000 to P5,000,000
- Maximum penalty if:
o Person illegally recruited is less than 18 years of age
o Committed by non-licensee or non-holder of authority
- Any of the prohibited acts
o 6 years and 1 day to 12 years imprisonment
o A fine ranging from P500,000 to P1,000,000

pg. 93
 - Accessory penalties
o Deportation after service of sentence – if the offender is an alien
o Automatic revocation of license or registration

Jurisdiction of the POEA

POEA – regulate private sector participation in the recruitment and overseas placement of workers by
setting up a licensing and registration system.
- Administrative aspect of recruitment violations committed by recruitment or manning agencies
- Disciplinary action cases and other special cases involving employers, principal, contracting
partners and overseas workers processed by POEA

Power of the POEA to order closure of establishment

- When the activities of the non-licensee:
o Constitute a danger to national security and public order
o Will lead to further exploitation of job seekers

Effect of closure order

- Inclusion of all officers and responsible employees of the entity in the List of Persons with
Derogatory Record
- Disqualification from participating in the overseas employment program of the government

Remedies from a closure order

- Motion to Re-open Establishment
- Motion to Lift Closure Order
- Appeal

Money claims
- Labor Arbiters of NLRC
- Solidary liability of the principal/employer and recruitment/placement agency
- Claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages
- Termination of overseas employment without just, valid or authorized cause - the worker shall be
entitled to the full reimbursement of his placement fee and the deductions made with interest at twelve
percent (12%) per annum, plus his salaries for the unexpired portion of his employment contract or for
three (3) months for every year of the unexpired term, whichever is less.

pg. 94