The regional office of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Metro Manila said it will temporarily waive penalties for foreign nationals (FN) who fail to renew their expiring Alien Employment Permit (AEP) on time due to the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon.
DOLE-National Capital Region (DOLE-NCR) Director Sarah Buena Mirasol said they opted to relax their AEP rules after the agency was forced to suspend “until further notice” the processing of the said permit due to the ECQ, which started on March 17, 2020, and will end on April 13, 2020.
During the 30-day ECQ, operations of most government offices have been suspended, while those allowed to operate will only use a skeletal work force.
“This office shall not impose the penalty/administrative fine on all soon to expire AEPs or permits that expired during the suspension period. Hence, said application will still be treated as renewal,” Mirasol said, quoting Advisory 20-04.
She said they will not also impose any administrative fines for AEP applicants whose employment contracts are effective during the suspension period.
An AEP is a requirement of DOLE for FNs who will be working in the country for more than six months.
Most of AEP applicants of DOLE, particularly in the NCR, are employed in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) and related establishments.
On Wednesday, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. announced the suspension of POGO activities in Luzon, which will last until the lifting of the ECQ.
