Insurance rules for Filipino overseas workers

Employers already providing insurance equal to or exceeding the benefits stipulated in Ministry Order No. 5 are considered compliant with LOI No. 1122.
Compliance applies regardless of whether the insurance is purchased from Philippine or foreign insurance companies.
Insurance provided for workers deployed to war risk areas, meeting or exceeding Ministry Order No. 5 benefits, also satisfies compliance.

Travel and employment documents for vacationing Filipino contract workers may be processed without an individual insurance certificate.
This exemption applies only if the worker is on vacation under an unexpired overseas employment contract.
The exemption is valid for one year from the issuance of the Circular.
Workers returning to new overseas employment contracts must comply with the insurance requirement.
An individual insurance certificate, covering the benefits under Ministry Order No. 5, whether from Philippine or foreign insurers, is required for compliance.

Name-hired contract workers covered by adequate insurance are exempted from presenting a separate individual insurance certificate during travel document and employment contract processing.

Agencies or contractors may submit a sworn statement or affidavit of undertaking with the Request for Processing.
This statement must declare that the workers under a specific Request for Processing are adequately insured as required by LOI No. 1122.
The agency or contractor assumes full liability for any claims arising from the insurance.
This method aims to prevent delays in processing workers' travel documents.

The guidelines were originally adopted on October 11, 1984, under the administration of Patricia A. Sto. Tomas.
They were re-issued on February 18, 1992, under the administration of Jose N. Sarmiento, ensuring continued enforcement and clarity of insurance requirements.