Children and dependents of overseas Filipino workers now have a fresh opening to secure college funding, as the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration began accepting applications on September 7, 2026 for four of its education grants.
The application windows differ depending on which program and category an applicant falls under. Those aiming for the Education for Development Scholarship Program under Category 1, reserved for incoming college freshmen, must submit their requirements by September 17, 2026. The same cutoff applies to hopefuls for the Congressional Migrant Workers Scholarship Program.
A longer runway was given to two other tracks. Applicants for the Education for Development Scholarship Program’s Category 2, which covers students already in their second through fifth year of college, have until September 27, 2026 to file. That later deadline likewise governs the OFW-Dependents Scholarship Program.
OWWA is coursing the entire process through its online portal at scholarship.owwa.gov.ph, where the full list of documentary requirements and the step-by-step application procedure are posted. The agency also circulated a QR code in its public advisory to route applicants directly to the site.
The three grants trace back to OWWA’s mandate of easing the cost of higher education for the families of migrant workers. Eligibility generally hinges on the OFW parent or guardian holding active OWWA membership at the time of application, a condition the agency has repeatedly flagged as non-negotiable.
According to the scholarship guides tracking OWWA’s programs, the Education for Development Scholarship Program is the merit-based track, with selection tied to a qualifying examination administered by the Department of Science and Technology, and it carries financial assistance of P60,000 per school year for a four- to five-year baccalaureate course. The Congressional Migrant Workers Scholarship Program, funded under the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act, channels its grants toward students pursuing priority courses in the sciences and technology.
The OFW-Dependents Scholarship Program sits as the more flexible of the offerings. Reports on the program describe it as covering both entering and continuing students across CHED-recognized courses, with assistance placed at P20,000 per school year, though figures cited across various scholarship trackers have not been uniform.
For inquiries, OWWA pointed applicants to its hotline, 1348, reachable at that number within Metro Manila, at (02) 1348 elsewhere in the country, and at +632 1348 for those calling from abroad. The agency additionally listed Viber and WhatsApp numbers along with the email addresses owwacares@owwa.gov.ph and tulong@owwa.gov.ph for those needing help before the respective deadlines lapse.
