INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Chinese nationals topped the list of those who were issued employment permits in the country for at least three consecutive years, according to data from the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole).

Dole’s data furnished to the media on Wednesday revealed that in 2024, it issued an Alien Employment Permit (AEP) for 27,413 Chinese nationals.

Vietnamese nationals are far second with 9,444 AEPs issued to them, while Japanese nationals ranked third with 3,053.

DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the insurance claims must be immediately released to ensure recovery in agricultural production.

A total of 60,312 AEPs were issued to foreign nationals in 2024.

Chinese nationals were also the top seekers of AEPs for the past two years. Dole issued 20,385 AEPs to them in 2022, while 2023 saw 25,720 AEP seekers.

In a related development, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma signed on Jan. 20 a new Dole order prescribing new rules and regulations for AEP.

Department Order No. 248, Series of 2025, adopted “unified and simplified requirements and procedures that will reduce red tape and expedite transactions with the government,” according to Dole’s statement on Tuesday.

This move includes simplifying the “labor market test,” an analysis done to determine if there are no Filipinos competent, able, and willing to do the job being opened for foreigners.

“Under the new guidelines, the conduct of labor market tests is simplified and integrated in one publication in a newspaper of general circulation,” Dole said. “This move effectively reduces cost and waiting period for the employers and foreign nationals.”

To further expand the reach of the “labor market test,” Dole said it would implement its posting on the PhilJobNet, the government’s official job matching portal, “making the process more efficient and transparent for employers and jobseekers.”

Dole’s guidelines also introduced an Economic Needs Test, a critical criterion for evaluating AEP applications, which assesses the necessity of hiring foreign nationals based on the availability of qualified Filipino workers.

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“This measure aims to safeguard local employment opportunities and will undergo public consultations in the coming months to ensure inclusivity and relevancefalcon play,” Dole said.