Legal basis and related references
- The guidelines are promulgated pursuant to Articles 5 and 40 of PD 442, as amended.
- The guidelines further rely on Rule XIV, Book 1 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of PD 442.
- The guidelines also cite Section 17 (5), Chapter 4, Title VII of the Administrative Code of 1987.
- The guidelines refer to a prior Memorandum dated 24 August 2001 on Alternative Interim Measures for the Issuance of Alien Employment Permits.
- The exemption for certain refugees also references DOJ Department Order No. 94, series of 1998.
Covered foreign employment and who may seek AEP
- The Alien Employment Permit (AEP) framework covers foreign nationals seeking admission or residence for employment purposes.
- The AEP coverage applies to foreign nationals seeking admission to the Philippines for the purpose of employment.
- The AEP coverage applies to missionaries or religious workers intending to engage in gainful employment.
- The AEP coverage applies to holders of Special Investors Resident Visa (SIRV), Special Retirees Resident Visa (SRRV), Treaty Traders Visa (9d), or Special Non-immigrant Visa (47(a)2) when they occupy an executive, advisory, supervisory, or technical position in any establishment.
- The AEP coverage applies to agencies, organizations, or individuals (public or private) that secure the services of foreign professionals to practice their professions under reciprocity and other international agreements.
- The AEP coverage applies to non-Indo Chinese refugees who are asylum seekers and are given refugee status by the UNHCR or the Department of Justice under DOJ Department Order No. 94, series of 1998.
- The AEP coverage applies to resident foreign nationals seeking employment in the Philippines.
- AEP coverage also extends to those who work after securing permits under the procedures and renewal rules in these guidelines.
Exemptions from securing an AEP
- The guidelines exempt foreign nationals from securing an AEP in these categories.
- Exemption applies to all members of diplomatic services and foreign government officials accredited by the Philippine government.
- Exemption applies to officers and staff of international organizations of which the Philippine government is a cooperating member, and to their legitimate spouses who desire to work in the Philippines.
- Exemption applies to foreign nationals elected as members of the Governing Board who do not occupy any other position, and who have only one voting right in the corporation.
- Exemption applies to foreign nationals granted exemption by special laws and by all other laws that may be promulgated by Congress.
Application processing and issuance standards
- Applications for AEP must be filed with the DOLE Regional Office (DOLE-RO) having jurisdiction over the intended place of work.
- Applications may be filed by the foreign national seeking employment or by the prospective employer.
- The AEP fee requires payment of PHP 8,000.00 per application for AEP with a validity of one (1) year.
- For additional years of validity, the fee is PHP 3,000.00 for every additional year and a fraction thereof.
- An AEP is issued only when the following issuance bases exist:
- Compliance with the substance and documentary requirements by the applicant employer or foreign national;
- A determination by the DOLE Secretary that no Filipino national is competent, able, and willing to do the job the foreign national is desired for; and
- An assessment by the DOLE Secretary that employing the foreign national will redound to national benefit.
Denial, renewal, duty-assumption notice, and permit validity
- An AEP application may be denied for non-compliance with any AEP issuance requirements.
- An AEP application may also be denied for misrepresentation of facts or for submission of falsified or tampered documents.
- Renewal must be filed at least fifteen (15) days before expiration.
- For elective officers, renewal must be filed upon election or at least thirty (30) days before the effectivity of the applicant’s term of office if the succeeding term of office is ascertained.
- Failure to file renewal within the prescribed period triggers fines:
- PHP 5,000.00 if filed within six (6) months after the prescribed period; and
- PHP 10,000.00 if filed after six (6) months.
- Failure to renew an AEP within one (1) year from expiration is a cause for revocation or cancellation.
- The employer must notify the DOLE-RO that issued the permit of the foreign national’s date of assumption to duty within thirty (30) days from issuance.
- Permits generally have validity for one (1) year, unless an employment contract, consultancy services, other engagement mode, or elective officer term of office provides a longer period.
- Renewal effectivity runs from the day after expiration of the previous permit regardless of whether renewal is granted before or after expiration.
- Permits are valid only for the position and employer for which issued, except that a foreign national holding multiple positions in one corporation may have one AEP valid for those multiple positions.
- Resident foreign national permits are valid for multiple employers, regardless of the nature and duration of employment, provided the foreign national reports changes in employment, status, and employer identity to the issuing DOLE Regional Office.
Revocation/cancellation grounds and resolution timelines
- AEPs may be cancelled or revoked motu proprio or upon petition.
- Cancellation or revocation may be based on these grounds:
- Misrepresentation of facts or falsification of the documents submitted;
- The foreign national is declared an undesirable alien by competent authorities;
- Non-compliance with the conditions for which the AEP was issued; or
- Failure to renew within one (1) year after expiration.
- Petitions for cancellation or revocation must be resolved within thirty (30) calendar days from receipt.
- An aggrieved party may file a Motion for Reconsideration and/or Appeal, and the matter is resolved under the remedies timeline rules.
Remedies: reconsideration and appeal
- A Motion for Reconsideration must be filed within seven (7) calendar days after receipt of the Order of Denial/Cancellation.
- The DOLE Regional Director must resolve the Motion for Reconsideration within ten (10) calendar days from receipt.
- A Motion for Reconsideration filed after seven (7) calendar days but within ten (10) calendar days after receipt of denial is treated as an appeal.
- An appeal from the DOLE Regional Director’s decision may be filed with the Secretary of Labor and Employment within ten (10) calendar days from receipt of the Order.
- The Secretary of Labor and Employment’s decision is final and unappealable.
Penalties and transitional enforcement measures
- DOLE Regional Directors, after due notices and hearing, may impose fines on foreign nationals working without an AEP:
- PHP 5,000.00 if working without an AEP for less than one (1) year; and
- PHP 10,000.00 if working without an AEP for more than one (1) year.
- Applications for employment permit/certificates pending at the DOLE-RO at the time these guidelines take effect are processed under these guidelines.
- Holders of provisional and extended AEPs issued under the Memorandum dated 24 August 2001 on Alternative Interim Measures must apply for an AEP under these guidelines on or before the expiration of their provisional and extended AEPs.
- Foreign nationals already working in the Philippines without the required employment permit must secure the required employment permit within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of these guidelines without penalty.