After nurses, more Pinoy accountants seen to work in US

After nurses, more Filipino accountants are likely to seek work in the United States as a new licensure opportunity has opened up for them there, the labor department said yesterday.

Labor Secretary Arturo Brion sees an increase in the number of homegrown accountants seeking employment in the US since they can already take the licensure examination in the Commonwealth Northern Marianas Island (CNMI).

Brion said a licensed US certified public accountant earns a minimum of $24 per hour in CNMI.

According to Brion, the Northern Marianas is now the latest US jurisdiction allowed to administer the US-CPA examination aside from Guam and Hawaii.

"This development opens the opportunity for more Filipino accountants to acquire US licensure and subsequently enjoy higher wages not only in CNMI but also in other areas of the United States," he said.

Brion pointed out that more Filipinos would be encouraged to take the examination in CNMI because of its proximity to the country and less stringent entry requirements.

He added it would be less costly for Filipinos to take the test there considering the cheaper flight from Northern Marianas to the Philippines.

With this development, Brion said the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in CNMI is now assisting in the conduct of US-CPA review classes.

The CPA test in CNMI is set to be conducted by summer of 2007.

Attracted by larger salaries, there are more than eight million Filipinos working overseas. Many are employed as doctors, accountants, housekeepers and nurses.

Apart from the US, countries with reportedly large Filipino populations include Canada, Spain, Hong Kong, Australia and the Middle East.

The flight of doctors, nurses, teachers and other professionals from the Philippines, while socially debilitating, is economically beneficial to the country with remittances reaching an estimated $10 billion a year.