The Philippine Embassy in Papua New Guinea on Wednesday urged Filipinos with irregular immigration status to avail themselves of a 14-day amnesty being offered by the PNG government, which runs until 26 November.

In an advisory, the Embassy encouraged affected individuals to voluntarily report and regularize their stay, aligning with PNG’s appeal to foreign nationals.

According to PNG’s Immigration and Border Security, the amnesty calls for individuals and sponsors who have breached the Migration Act 1978 and the Employment of Non-Citizen Act 2007 to voluntarily present themselves to the PNG Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority (ICSA).

The notice warned that non-compliant individuals will be “forcefully removed immediately from the country and banned from future re-entry” after the amnesty period ends.

Sponsors who assisted undocumented workers also face the risk of “hefty charges” under applicable laws.

The Embassy reminded employers and sponsors to cooperate with ICSA during the amnesty period. According to the latest data from the Department of Foreign Affairs, there are 35,969 Filipinos residing in PNG.