Specific procedures for hiring Filipinos

2020,05,04

Since the Philippines is a pro-Japan country and most Filipinos can speak English, there are many companies in Japan which want to hire Filipinos.

However, hiring Filipinos requires unique procedures that differ from hiring other foreigners. Another process is required before applying for a visa. That is the POEA and POLO procedure.

Ami Ito, an immigartion lawyer, will explain POEA and POLO.

What is POEA?

POEA stands for Philippine Overseas Employment Administrations and refers to the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency.

According to the data of January 2019, 22% of the total working population in the Philippines engaged in agriculture, forestry and fisheries. It is difficult to find a job in the Philippines because there are not enough employment opportunities for people. As a result, 10 million Filipinos, 10% of the population, are working abroad. Especially, there are many Filipinos working in the Middle East and Asia.
Therefore, it is the role of POEA to examine the work place before their people leaving the country in order to guarantee the human rights of Filipinos so that Filipinos going abroad will not be subjected to unfair working conditions.
Specifically, POEA will check whether the contract between the employer and the Filipino worker is appropriate, the local registration information of the work place and so on. If there is no problem, they grant the employment permission.

What is POLO?

POLO stands for Philippine Overseas Labor Office. Whereas POEA is in the Philippines, POLO has offices abroad. In other words, POLO is the overseas organization of POEA. POLO in Japan is located in the Philippine Embassy of Roppongi in Tokyo.

Procedures for inviting a Filipino to Japan

A Philippine worker and a Japanese employer contract with a POEA-accredited local agent (shipping agency).
The Philippine agent and Japanese employer prepare documents such as employment contract.
The Japanese employer submits the documents to POLO Tokyo (If the documents are complete, the standard certification days will be 5-10 business days. The examination fee will not be charged.)
Interview with an employer at POLO Tokyo. Done in English. Will be asked about the company’s business and welfare.
The Japanese employer apply for Certificate of Eligibility (COE) to Immigration Bureau of Japan
When the COE is approved, the employer applies for a visa at the Japanese Embassy in the Philippines.
POLO sends the Filipino worker the authorization documents.
The Filipino worker submits the documents to POEA.
The work permit is issued to the Filipino by POEA.
The Filipino comes to Japan.

Summary

Thus, in addition to applying for a Certificate of Eligibility, the procedures for POLO and POEA will take long.

Therefore, hiring Filipinos will take a longer time than hiring other foreigners. We recommend that you take enough time.

Furthermore, there are lots of documents to be submitted to POLO.
All employer interviews at POLO Tokyo are conducted in English. You are allowed to take an interpreter.

We will support the procedures for POEA and POLO, including the interpretation of the interview.
Please feel free to contact us.