Holding a passport in his right hand and a heart-shaped pink pillow in his left, Orly is contented that he can finally see his family in the Philippines after 16 long years. A few paces behind him is Joan, who is equally excited to go home with her three-month-old son.
Orly, 43, and Joan, 35, (and her baby Zayn) are part of the first batch of mass repatriation of Filipinos who availed of the ongoing UAE visa amnesty programme. A total of 64 overstaying Filipinos – 35 from Abu Dhabi and 29 from Dubai – sought repatriation assistance from the Philippine government, and left Dubai for Manila on Thursday evening via Philippine Airlines flight PR 659.
They will arrive in Manila Friday morning and Orly said the first thing he will do is to tightly embrace his two grown-up daughters when he sees them. “They were only eight and seven years old when I left to work in Dubai 16 years ago. Now, my eldest daughter LyCell, 24, is a teacher; and my second daughter, Mona, 23, finished college with a degree in business administration,” Orly told Khaleej Times at Dubai International Airport on Thursday.
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“All those years not seeing my daughters growing up seems nothing but a distant memory. I’m now at peace that finally I will be going home and will be with my family for good,” he added.
He said he was not able to visit home in Batangas for almost two decades because he had been jumping from one job and company to another. He first worked at a glass fabrication company in Dubai in 2008 then moved to Abu Dhabi. After finishing his contract, he moved to another company. His last official job was in Sharjah but unfortunately, he said, he and the other workers were not paid for some months.
That was in 2020 – at the height of the pandemic – when they lost their jobs and eventually their residency visa expired. Since then, Orly had been staying in the country illegally and had been doing odd jobs to continue sending money to his family back in the Philippines and to support his personal needs.
The last time he checked, Orly said his overstaying fines racked up to more than Dh60,000. “Thankfully, the UAE government announced amnesty and I was one of those who immediately applied for it,” he added.
But September 1 – the start of the amnesty programme – was a bittersweet day for Orly. Because it was also the day his 77-year-old mother passed away. “Internment was supposedly September 12 but I asked my family to postpone it until Sunday, September 15, so I can still see my mother one last time before she’s buried,” he shared.
After everything, Orly said he is content with the way his life in UAE turned out. “Yes, there were many sacrifices – I was away from my family; my wife also had to work as a domestic worker in Morocco – but I’m proud that I was able to provide for my family,” he highlighted, adding: “Both my daughters finished college and they are now employed. I also bought a tract of land, which I’m planning to develop as my retirement place.”
‘Amnesty is really a blessing’
Meanwhile, Joan, 35, is going home to raise her baby Zayn in the Philippines. She worked as a sales staff in Dubai but her company did not pay her salary for some months so she decided to work part time. This was discovered by her employer who filed an absconding case against her in June last year.
Because of the case and her overstaying fines piling up, Joan was not able to find employment. “The amnesty is really a blessing for us,” said Joan, noting: “My absconding case was lifted and I’m leaving the UAE with no fines.”
The amnesty programme covers all types of visas, including tourist and expired residency visas. Those who were born with no documents can also avail of the amnesty and have their status rectified. Those who ran away or absconded from their sponsors can also apply. However, those who entered the country illegally cannot apply for amnesty.
The best thing for those who applied for amnesty is that there is no re-entry ban that will be imposed on them. They can return to the UAE anytime but with the appropriate visa.
Joan said she might consider returning and working again in Dubai but only when her baby is old enough to be left with her family back home.
Expressing profound gratitude
Before leaving the UAE, Philippine officials spoke with the returning Filipinos. Philippine ambassador Alfonso Ver also “expressed his profound gratitude to the UAE government for its generosity in waiving fines and penalties; and for allowing Filipinos and other expatriates to leave the country with dignity and the option to re-enter the UAE in the future with an appropriate visa”.
Consul-general Marford Angeles also said that majority of the OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) “had previously absconded from their employers and were unable to secure permanent employment in the UAE. Notably, one of the repatriates from Dubai had overstayed in the UAE for 2,118 days. Additionally, another OFW, who departed prior to this batch, had overstayed for a total of 5,218 days in the UAE.”
Aside from the Philippine diplomatic staff, officials from the Migrant Workers Office in Abu Dhabi and Dubai – led by labour attachés Teresa Olgado and John Rio Bautista were also present at the airport to assist the 64 repatriates.