Senator Chiz Escudero addressed concerns regarding the funding of refunds for offloaded passengers, a new policy under the 2024 General Appropriations Bill (GAB). He assured employees of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) that their salaries and benefits would remain untouched. Instead, the refund costs will be covered by the excess income that the BI returns to the National Treasury.
Escudero emphasized the legal standpoint, stating, “Any diminution from the salary and augmentation of BI personnel is illegal and unauthorized! Will look closely into this to ensure that the intent and mandate of Congress regarding this is followed to the letter.”
This move comes in light of the GAB’s provision for reimbursing passengers who miss their flights due to lengthy immigration assessments. In the previous year, the BI reported that 32,404 Filipino passengers were offloaded. Of these, 472 were identified as human trafficking victims, 873 presented fraudulent documents, and at least 10 were minors attempting to work illegally abroad.
The GAB, which includes this passenger refund provision, is set for signing by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on December 20, as confirmed by a Senate press release.