Introduction Direct hire ban history
Government agencies may claim that there's a ban on direct hires. This is not completely true: there are excemptions to this ban. The POEA today has a ban on processing OEC requests from direct hires. However, skilled workers are exempted from this ban since 2016, and this was reinforced in 2018.
— Taken from the Revised POEA Rules and Regulations of 2016, sections 123 to 124 (page 31). This exemption was also re-inforced in Memorandum Circular No. 08 of 2018, section I(d)(2).
You're (probably) not banned!
POEA has turned down many OEC applications saying that direct hires aren't being processed, or the direct hire exemptions may not include professional & skilled workers. As of May 2018, this is not true.
I looked into various government documents on the direct hire ban, and here's what I found.
2002 Direct hiring was first banned
Direct hires were first banned in 2002. Foreign employers weren't allowed to hire Filipino workers, unless they were authorized by POEA. This was instituted in POEA's rules and regulations dating 2002:
Section 8. Ban on Direct Hires. No foreign principal or employer may hire a Filipino worker for overseas employment except through the boards and entities authorized by the Secretary. Direct hiring by members of the diplomatic corps, international organizations and such other employers as may be allowed by the Secretary is exempt from this provision.
— POEA Rules and Regulations Governing Recruitment and Employment of Land-based Overseas Workers (2002), rule III, section 8, page 18
2016 New skilled worker exemption
The rules and regulations first defined in 2002 were revised in 2016. Direct hires are still not allowed by the POEA. However, professionals and skilled workers are now exempted from the direct hire ban. See this excerpt from §123 and §124(d)(2):
SECTION 123. Ban on Direct Hires. — No employer shall directly hire an Overseas Filipino Worker for overseas employment.
SECTION 124. Exemption from the Ban on Direct Hiring. — The following are exempted from the ban on direct hiring:
... d. Other employers as may be allowed by the Secretary of Labor and Employment, such as:
...... Professionals and skilled workers with duly executed/authenticated contracts containing terms and conditions over and above the standards set by the POEA. (...)
— Revised POEA Rules And Regulations Governing Recruitment and Employment of Land-based Overseas Workers (2016), sections 123 to 124, page 31
April 2017 Direct hiring was suspended
On April 2017, POEA stopped processing OEC requests from direct hires. This was made official on the May 16th of 2017, when the Administrative Order (AO) was filed.
"In the interest of justice, Administrative Order No. 155, series of 2017, suspending the processing and issuance of Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) for all directly hired Overseas Filipino workers (OFW) is hereby RECALLED."
— Public Advisory on DOLE Administrative Order 155-A (bangkokpe.dfa.gov.ph)
More sources on this:
- DOLE suspends exemptions to OFW direct hiring (news.abs-cbn.com)
- DOLE suspends exemptions of direct hire OFWs (dole.gov.ph)
May 2017 Direct hiring suspension recalled
This direct hire suspension was supposedly swiftly recalled. Here's an excerpt from a news article in May 17th, 2017:
"I recalled the suspension of direct hiring of OFWs right after our investigation. Minabuti ko na imbestigahan na muna, at ngayong tapos na ang imbestigation, alam na namin kung sino ang mga involved, at nagkakaroon ng reorganization within the agency," Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in the statement.
— Direct hiring of OFWs allowed again as DOLE lifts suspension (2017)
However, this is strange: DOLE AO-155 of 2017, the order of suspension, was filed on May 16th of 2017, which is 5 days after the article above.
When I also personally inquired in POEA's offices in Mandaluyong on May 16th of 2018, they claimed that professional and skilled workers aren't exempted from the direct hire ban.
May 2018 Direct hire processing resumed
POEA issued a memorandum in May 2018 that reiterates the rules in 2016. This perhaps means that direct hires are being processed again by the POEA. I personally inquired in POEA's offices in Mandaluyong on May 26, and confirmed that their direct hire department is indeed honoring the memorandum and processing direct hires from skilled workers again.
TL;DR
Skilled workers are allowed to be directly hired without a recruitment agency, contrary to what some government agencies may say. As of May 2018, your best citation is the Memorandum Circular No. 08 of 2018.
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