BI warns foreigners vs scam offering to lift immigration blacklist status

INQUIRER file photo / ALEXIS CORPUZ

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Thursday warned foreigners against social media scams on immigration services after receiving reports of an online racket offering to lift immigration blacklist status for a fee.

This comes after Movement for Restoration of Peace and Order Chairperson Ka Kuen Chua testified during a Senate Public Order and Dangerous Drugs Committee hearing that there are offers on social media that charge P1 million to P5 million to lift immigration blacklists.

According to Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco, the scam proliferates on Facebook and other messaging platforms like WeChat, which mainly caters to the Chinese-speaking population.

“There are even some accounts that pretend to be immigration lawyers and legal officers.  They create profiles using photos of our employees, their badges, or even the logo of the Bureau,” Tansingco said in a statement.

It can be recalled that the BI issued a similar warning in September last year following the reports of fake employees offering illegal services posted on social media.

Tansingco said that these incidents recurred every now and then.

“We warn the public not to engage with these scammers. Remain keen to avoid being victimized,” he stated.

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