Officials of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) told lawmakers that withholding the passports of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) is prohibited and constitutes a contract violation.

The issue surfaced as the House of Representatives tackled the safety of Filipinos in the Middle East on Wednesday.

During a joint hearing of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, Agimat Party-list Rep. Bryan Revilla asked what actions the government is taking to help OFWs who want to return home but whose passports are being held by their employers.

“Ano po ang mga action po na ginagawa po natin diyan para sa mga OFWs natin na gusto pong makauwi pero hindi po makauwi dahil hawak po ng mga employers nila ang kanilang mga passports?” Revilla, chair of the Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, asked.

Department of Migrant Workers Undersecretary Jainal Rasul Jr. said Philippine Migrant Workers Offices negotiate with employers and recruitment agencies to secure the release of workers’ passports.

“With the permission of the honorable chairs of both committees, ang ginagawa po ng MWO ay nakikipag-negotiate po directly sa employer hanggang maaari. Otherwise, through the Philippine recruitment agency as well as the foreign counterpart agencies,” Rasul said.

He continued: “Bawal po ang withholding ng passports. That is why kung may mga tumatakbong distressed workers at hino-hold ng mga employer, ang depensa po natin kapag may violations, kapag wini-withheld po ‘yung passport, contract violation ‘yun at pwede po i-waive, i-lift ‘yung hold.”

DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac added that Philippine labor attachés also coordinate with employers and host governments to resolve such cases.

“Sanay naman po ‘yung mga labor attaches natin to talk to the employers along those lines and also the host government because just about every country involved in this crisis has laws against non-withholding of passports. So we can coordinate with the employer and with the host government as well,” Cacdac said.

Revilla then asked whether the government had received repatriation requests from OFWs whose passports were in the hands of their employers.

“Have we had any requests for repatriations from OFWs na hindi nila hawak ‘yung kanilang passports na nasa mga employers?” Revilla asked.

Cacdac confirmed that such cases exist and that assistance is extended to affected workers.

“Meron din po, kaya we provide such an assistance sa mga OFWs. Although sa ngayon, mas karamihan ‘yung mga semiskilled or skilled na nahawak nila ‘yung passports nila. Some of them have expired passports, so we refer them to the DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs),” Cacdac said.

Cacdac said that by and large, passports or travel documentation are not much of a problem.

However, a major hurdle arises when OFWs have cases or immigration records, which require coordination with host countries.

He cited Kuwait as an example, where Philippine officials are closely coordinating with immigration authorities to clear around 50 Filipinos with immigration records so they can leave.

The exchange came as the House of Representatives reviewed government contingency measures for Filipinos in the Middle East amid escalating tensions in the region.