Taiwan eases requirements in hiring of OFWs

MANILA, Philippines - After lifting the hiring freeze, Taiwan eased the requirements for the issuance of visas to Filipino workers in order to hasten the recruitment and deployment of workers.

Recruitment agencies yesterday reported that Taiwan has removed the additional visa requirements it imposed last May.

Angelo Tong, president of Pilipino Manpower Agencies Accredited to Taiwan, Inc. (Pilmat), said Taiwan needs at least 3,000 Filipino workers for its electronic companies.

Taipei imposed the hiring freeze to protest the killing of a suspected Taiwanese poacher in the waters off Batanes last May.

Aside from the hiring freeze, it also imposed additional visa requirements for Filipinos wanting to work in Taiwan.

The additional requirements affected the visa processing of those workers who were able to secure working permits prior to the imposition of the hiring freeze.

Factory owners in Taiwan, however, did not hire other nationals and opted to wait for the lifting of the ban.

The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) is expecting a deluge of visa applications from Filipinos, now that the hiring freeze has been lifted.

Among the requirements removed by TECO starting Monday were the unified ID issued by the SSS, which takes over a month to be processed; the NBI clearance, and authentication by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) of the workers’ travel documents. The removal is expected to cut the visa processing time by five days.

“The removal of these restrictions will ensure faster deployment for those workers who were stranded during the past two months,” recruitment consultant Manny Geslani said.

Although Taiwan has eased the requirements, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said recruitment agencies would still have to comply with the no placement fee policy. – With Rudy Santos