MORE than two years since it was pilot tested to replace the traditional Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC), the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is now rolling out for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) the use of the OFW Pass.
In a social media post, the DMW said it will be implementing the OFW Pass across all destinations, but only for returning to the same employer and destination country, more known as Balik Manggagawa (BM).
"Hindi niyo na kailangang magdala ng dating Overseas Employment Certificate o OEC. May bago nang mas mabilis at mas madaling paraan -- ang digital OFW Pass," said the DMW.
"Ito ay binuo ng Department of Information and Communications Technology at ng Department of Migrant Workers para mas mapabilis at mas mapadali ang proseso ng pag-alis ng mga OFW," it added.
Under Advisory 38-2025, the DMW said the OFW Pass may be accessed through the eGovPH super app.
It said the OFW must download the eGovPH app and get registered to gain access.
After successfully registering on the eGovPH app, the department said the user can go to the national government agencies section and select the DMW tab to access the Balik-Manggagawa service and generate an OFW Pass.
The DMW said the app will automatically generate a travel Pass for OFWs with active and existing contracts in the system, while workers with expired contracts will be prompted to update their employer and jobsite information.
"Sa bagong paraan na ito, mas mabilis, mas madali, at mas secure ang pagbiyahe ng mga OFW. Walang papel, walang abala," said the DMW.
The DMW said the OFW Pass will be valid for 90 days from its issuance date, and can either be voided or renewed by the worker at any time.
Previously, all departing OFWs were required to secure their OEC until it was replaced by the OFW Pass in July 2023 when it was pilot tested by the DMW.
While still on pilot test, the OFW Pass was limited to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Singapore, Qatar, Oman, Malaysia, Taiwan, Japan, and United Kingdom. (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)