THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has shut down eight offices of Visa to America Manila Inc. for illegal recruitment activities.
The DMW’s Migrant Workers Protection Bureau closed the offices in Pasig City, Cebu City, Lucena City, Iloilo City, Santiago City, Quezon City, Davao City, and Zamboanga City. This marks the 27th closure operation by the DMW this year as part of its crackdown on illegal recruiters targeting aspiring overseas Filipino workers.
According to a post on the DMW’s Anti-Illegal Recruitment and Trafficking in Persons Program Facebook page, Visa to America, which presented itself as a visa consulting firm, was operating without a proper license. The company was found to be offering employment to Filipino teachers in the United States.
Visa to America allegedly charged fees of $5,400 (P300,000) for a J-1 visa package and $8,500 (P500,000) for an H-1B visa package. The DMW revealed these “visa service fees” were actually illegal placement fees. The company was also using these visas to deploy workers as teachers in the US, a practice not permitted for a visa consultancy firm.
The DMW uncovered further deceptive practices, including fake interviews. Visa to America employees were reportedly instructed to pretend to be representatives from American schools to mislead applicants into thinking they were in direct contact with legitimate US employers. Applicants were also promised employment through an alleged partner company in the US with the same name, Visa to America. However, these assurances were vague and often unfulfilled.
Visa to America will now be added to the DMW’s List of Persons with Derogatory Record and will face illegal recruitment charges. Victims of the scam can seek free legal assistance and file complaints by visiting the DMW’s Anti-Illegal Recruitment and Trafficking in Persons Program on Facebook.
