OFWs heading to Korea under EPS program may avail of loan assistance

Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) heading to South Korea under the Employment Permit System (EPS) may now avail of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)  and the Land Bank of the Philippines’ loan assistance program.

The OFW Pre-Departure Loan Facility can lend departing OFWs up to P52,000 to pay for their pre-departure fees and support their relatives while they wait for remittances.

The loan amount is payable in 12 months and has a fixed annual interest rate of 10%.

Interested OFWs must be at least 21 years old and must be enrolled in any Landbank banking programs. They must enroll their accounts “under the mandatory account requirement of HRD Korea in its computerized system for insurance benefits at the end of the worker’s stay in Korea.” They must also pay the processing fee and sign the deed of undertaking to pay the loan.

DOLE said mobilization fees for EPS workers typically goes up to P21,879. These fees include:

• P1,028 for the mandatory TB test;
• P1,200 for re-medical fee
• P500 for preliminary training
• P5,786 for the e-Receipt or the Overseas Employment Certificate which includes POEA processing fee, OWWA contribution, PhilHealth premium, and Pag-IBIG contribution
• P2,250 visa fee
• P11,000 or P16,000 for airfare, and
• P115 for NBI clearance

The Philippines is one of the six original countries that signed the EPS agreement with South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) in April 2004.