Picture for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

A group of Filipinos in the UAE wants the removal of a new Dh10,000 minimum salary requirement to apply for Affidavit of Support and Guarantee (ASG), a new survey revealed. The survey, launched by the Filipino International League of Safety Advocates (FILSA), has gotten 69 respondents as of Saturday (September 5). As Expatmedia.net first reported on August 26, Filipinos applying for the Affidavit of Support and Guarantee to sponsor their family members on visit visa in the UAE will need a minimum salary of Dh10,000 as part of new requirements set by Philippine authorities amid the coronavirus crisis. A new survey by FILSA revealed that majority of the respondents or 94 percent do not support the new salary requirement. Majority of the respondents or 72 percent said the minimum salary requirement  is “too high”, while 50 percent believe that the new rule deprives them to be with their family, while also depriving their family members of the right to travel. Eighty-eight percent of the respondents want to bring their family to the UAE, but only 23 percent qualify with a monthly salary of Dh10,000. Majority or 40 percent of the respondents said they earn Dh4,000 to Dh6,000 per month. Jeannylou Canillas, a 34-year-old nurse in Dubai, told Expatmedia.net she doesn’t agree with the new travel requirements “because most of us are only earning less than Dh10,000. “It is depriving most of us to be with our family, even for just a vacation,” Canillas said. Maria Bacalla, a 24-year-old safety inspector, echoed the same sentiment. “The minimum salary requirement is too high and not realistic,” said Edmer Guyab Mellijor, 43, a safety officer in Dubai. “Even our government’s goal is to have strong family ties, so our rules should allow OFWs to bring their family and not be separated from their love ones,” Efren Yap Satorre, 52, told Expatmedia.net. The Dubai-based service engineer said he brought his wife to the UAE while he was on a Dh5,000 salary bracket in 2009, and is now unsure how he can sponsor her next visit with the new salary threshold. Alona Belen, a 45-year-old purchasing coordinator in Dubai, told Expatmedia.net the new requirement will be a big blow to low-earners who want family members to visit them in the UAE. A FILSA spokesperson told Expatmedia.net that the group “recognizes the efforts made by the Philippine Immigration to protect us Filipinos, but also emphatizes with OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) affected by this ruling, especially low-earners”. The group says it doesn’t believe that allowing people to travel will affect national security or public safety.

Move to ensure financial capability of ASG applicants

Gemma Sotto, head of United Filipino Global, agrees with the new measure, saying the move to impose revised requirements to apply for ASG ensures that Filipinos sponsoring family members during their visit in the UAE are financially capable of funding their stay. “Tama naman yan (It is right) to protect both parties. In the US it is also like that. It is better if there are pre-conditions for their own protection,” Sotto told Expatmedia.net. At the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic in the UAE, thousands of Filipinos, many on visit visa, were left stranded in the UAE with not enough funds to sustain their stay. Philippine missions in the UAE were inundated with requests for food or repatriation assistance.


What happened

The new salary threshold for Filipinos wanting to apply for Affidavit of Support and Guarantee at the Philippine Embassy and Philippine Consulate went into effect on August 24. The ASG is a personal guarantee that the sponsoring Overseas Filipino Worker will financially support their family member during their travel and stay in the UAE and ensure that the latter will “not in any manner become public wards or burden in the UAE”. Under updated requirements, individuals must have a minimum salary of Dh10,000 while married couples applying for Affidavit of Support must show proof of a combined income of Dh14,000. Married couples with children who are already earning income must show proof of a combined income of Dh18,000. Filipinos must only sponsor their parents, children, spouse, grandparents, siblings, grandchildren, parents-in-law, son-in-law or daughter-in-law on visit visa. A visit visa in the UAE allows a person to stay in the country for 30 days up to 90 days.

Why is an Affidavit of Support and Guarantee needed?

Travel agencies in the UAE require Filipino sponsors to get an authenticated Affidavit of Support from the Philippine Embassy or Philippine Consulate as a guarantee before processing visit visa applications for their family members. Bureau of Immigration officers at Philippine airports also consider the ASG as an additional supporting document “for those who cannot establish their financial capacity,” a source at BI told Expatmedia.net. ICA/Expat Media ALSO READ Filipinos killed or injured in Abu Dhabi gas blast: Latest updates
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