Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez emphasized on Friday that the Philippines is not considered one of the ‘top sources’ of undocumented migrants in the United States.
This follows a 2023 report by the Migration Policy Institute in Washington D.C., where the Philippines ranked sixth among countries with the highest number of undocumented immigrants at around 309,000 in 2021.
Romualdez suggested that the figures may have since declined amid the intensified crackdown on illegal migrants under US President Donald Trump.
Comparing it to today amid the massive crackdown on illegal immigrants under US President Donald Trump, Romualdez said that the numbers aren’t as high as before.
“I don’t think it’s as high as before. Based on our experience, we haven’t seen that many undocumented individuals. It’s very hard to tell because, as we often say, these are people who are in hiding, (tago-ng-tago) we won’t really know where they are. We certainly do not want to provide inaccurate information,” Romualdez said in a televised interview.
The ambassador estimates that the number of undocumented Filipino immigrants could be between 250,000 and 300,000, though he stressed these figures remain rough estimates, as Filipinos are widely dispersed across the US.
He added that although the Philippines can be pointed to as among the leading sources of immigrants, it must be viewed in context.
“There are now 4.3 million Filipino-Americans living in the United States, so if you just assume, multiply that by two with the relatives who came here; just a theoretical situation, you have at least 8 million in the United States,” Romualdez said. “But it’s not true that all of them are illegal, obviously. That’s being said because we really do have many legal Filipinos living in the United States.”
In recent months, many illegal migrants in the US have been sent to third countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, which accounted for more than half of deportations in March. Other countries receiving deportees include Colombia, Jamaica, and Mexico.
Despite the situation, Romualdez assured that the Embassy stands ready to assist illegally-staying Filipinos in the US and make arrangements for them to return to the Philippines, even those with criminal records.
“We’ve written to the US Department of Homeland Security saying that as long as they’re Filipino, we’re ready to accept them, we’re also cooperating with US authorities on this matter.”
“Regardless of their status, even if they have a criminal case, we don't want them [undocumented Filipinos] to be sent to Libya or Sudan or some other third-world country.”
The ambassador said the Embassy is finalizing an agreement with the Filipino American Lawyers Association to provide legal advice and assistance to Filipinos in need, expected to be signed in the coming weeks.
He added that some undocumented Filipinos have also already volunteered to return to the Philippines, while others are currently detained on the US West Coast. No exact information on the detainees and figures were provided, citing confidentiality.
A recent case that drew public attention was that of 64-year-old Filipina lab technician at the University of Washington Lewelyn Dixon, who was recently released from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center after three months.
Dixon, a green card holder who has been living in the US for nearly 50 years, was detained upon arrival on 28 February after a vacation in the Philippines.
Initial reports in February stated that the reason for her detention remains unclear but it was later found out that her detainment traces back from an embezzlement conviction in 2001.
She was released on Thursday, 29 May.