The labor attaché of the Philippine government’s office in Dubai has shared with The Global Filipino Magazine the full breakdown of Form 1 results for the one-time AED 730 financial aid program for overseas Filipino workers affected by the Middle East crisis — data that lays bare not just who got approved, but precisely why 154 applicants did not.
Of the 822 submissions received through Form 1 on April 28, 668 were approved, representing an 81.27% approval rate. Of the remaining 154 who were disapproved, 45 received a final disapproval — meaning they are permanently disqualified from reapplying — while 109 were tagged as “Disapproved-May Reapply,” indicating their submissions were rejected due to deficiencies that can still be corrected in a subsequent form.
Why applications were disapproved
The data shared by Labor Attaché Atty. John Rio A. Bautista reveals that document-related failures drove the vast majority of rejections. An incomplete RFA Form was the single most common reason, accounting for 40 cases or 25.97% of all disapprovals. A missing RFA Form entirely accounted for another 34 cases (22.08%), while incomplete work disruption proof covered 17 more (11.04%). Together, these three document-related issues account for nearly 60% of all disapproved applications.
Non-OFW status — specifically, applicants who did not hold an employment visa — was cited in 16 cases (10.39%), making it the fourth most common ground for rejection. Missing or incomplete Emirates ID accounted for 12 cases (7.79%), followed by no demonstrable work disruption in 11 cases (7.14%), and work disruption that occurred prior to the current crisis in 9 cases (5.84%).
Other grounds for disapproval included having already received financial assistance before (3 cases), missing work disruption proof (3 cases), being outside the office’s jurisdiction (2 cases), multiple submissions (2 cases), already being in the Philippines (2 cases), an unreadable passport (2 cases), and missing proof of employment (1 case).
Where applicants came from
The emirate breakdown of Form 1 applicants shows that 769 out of 822 — or 93.55% — held visas issued in Dubai. Sharjah accounted for 32 applicants (3.89%), Fujairah for 9 (1.09%), Ajman for 7 (0.85%), while Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah had 2 each, and Umm Al Quwain had 1.
What disrupted their work
Salary reduction remained the top type of work disruption cited, with 342 applicants or 41.61% of the total. Termination was the second most common at 222 cases (27.01%), followed by unpaid leave at 186 (22.63%), no work-no pay arrangements at 45 (5.47%), cancellation at 4 (0.49%), and other reasons at 23 (2.80%).
What comes next
Atty. Bautista confirmed to The Global Filipino Magazine that two more application forms are scheduled for release next week — on Tuesday, May 5, and Friday, May 8 — maintaining the twice-a-week schedule established since the program launched on April 28. Form 3 opens on Tuesday, May 5, at 8:00 A.M., with the link to be posted on the MWO-Dubai Facebook page ahead of the opening.
OFWs whose Form 1 applications were tagged “Disapproved-May Reapply” are encouraged to review their submissions, correct the deficiencies, and try again in the next available window. The most common fixable errors — incomplete or missing RFA Forms and insufficient work disruption documentation — are areas where applicants can still act before reapplying.
