The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has clarified that language centers and visa consultancy firms are not synonymous with licensed recruitment agencies. In a social media post, the DMW emphasized that only licensed recruitment agencies are permitted to recruit or offer overseas employment opportunities.
DMW's Warning Against Unauthorized Recruitment
"Remember: Language centers and visa consultancy firms are not licensed recruitment agencies," the DMW stated. "Language centers and visa consultancy firms cannot recruit," it added. The department stressed the importance of verifying whether an entity holds a license to recruit workers for jobs abroad.
"Not all entities making job offers abroad are authorized to recruit," the DMW said. Under the law, illegal recruitment includes any act of referring, contracting services, promising, or advertising for employment abroad, whether for profit or not, when undertaken by a non-licensee or non-holder of authority.
Legal Consequences of Illegal Recruitment
Illegal recruitment is deemed committed by a syndicate if carried out by a group of three or more persons conspiring with one another. The DMW's warning aims to protect overseas Filipino workers from fraudulent recruitment practices.
