The Philippine Senate recently approved a bill that calls for the improvement of the present Migrant Workers Act. The proposed changes aim to give better assistance and further promote the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) thus strengthening the present law.

Estrada added that the Senate still needs to confirm if the Office of the President also ratified the bill. Once confirmed, they would transmit an enrolled copy to Malacanang for action by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The improved Migrant Workers Act includes preventive measures that would minimize and solve the problems encountered by OFWs in the process of recruitment and deployment. It also calls for the creation of better rescue and assistance mechanisms. Read more.

Foreigners who are employed as live-in caregivers in Canada may benefit from a new federal policy that lessens the procedures needed in obtaining permanent residency. Under the new rule, live in caregivers no longer have to pass a second medical examination as part of the requirement to be given a permanent residence status. Gaining the status of being a permanent resident is important because it gives individuals the privilege to bring their family to Canada.

The realization that earlier rules need to be changed was encouraged with the sad story of a caregiver who was diagnosed with cancer while employed in Canada and the rigorous procedure she had to go through just to be given a permanent residency status.

Read more.

The Embassy of New Zealand in Santiago has informed the Philippine Embassy that effective 30 November 2009, Filipino nationals transiting through New Zealand en route to other destinations will be exempt from securing transit visas.

Up until now, Filipinos transiting New Zealand (for instance changing planes) needed to hold a transit visa. This requirement will not apply from 30 November.

From that date, Filipinos won’t need a visa to transit New Zealand, provided they remain in the airport and their travel bookings show a stopover of no more than 24 hours. If they plan to stop over for more than 24 hours, or plan to leave the airport, they must apply for a visitor visa.

Source:
DFA

An association of Filipino migrant groups in United Kingdom (UK) called Kanlungan are set to file a complain at the British High Court regarding the migration policies of UK on foreign workers. Kanlungan demands that all migrant workers that have been staying in UK for five straight years be allowed to apply for a permanent status even if there are gaps in their employment and stay visas.

Through an official statement from UK, the chairman of Kanlungan, Benny Clutario informed that the permanent status applications of thousands of foreign senior care workers is being rejected by the UK Border Agency due to gaps in their visas.

According to Clutario, the actions being done by the office responsible for UK migration issues is not fair because the gaps were not caused by any rules that were violated by the foreign worker. Rather it is a direct result of the changes that the UK implemented in their immigration policies from year 2006-2008. Read more.

Undocumented Filipinos who are working and living in Belgium for a minimum of two and five years now have a chance to legalize their stay because of a policy that the government of Belgium recently implemented.

In a statement the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said that the new law would cover all illegal immigrants in Belgium which would include more or less 2,500 Filipinos there. Read more.