BI warns Filipinos going abroad: Beware of fake certificates

INQUIRER file photo / ALEXIS CORPUZ

MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Monday warned the public against the circulation of fake Commission on Filipinos Overseas’ (CFO) Guidance and Counseling Program (GCP) certificates being sold by scammers.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco made the warning following  the interception of two Filipino women going abroad with their foreign partners and carrying fake GCP certificates. They were held at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

“The passengers, who attempted to leave the country in two separate occasions, were intercepted by primary inspectors after suspecting the authenticity of the documents they presented. They were also unable to present the official digital copy of the certificate supposedly issued by the CFO,” Tansingco said in a statement.

An unidentified Filipino woman, who was supposed to leave the country last April 30 with her Indian boyfriend, confessed that she acquired the fake certificate from a stranger who approached her near the CFO office for a fee of P2,000; while the other victim, a girlfriend of a Hong Kong resident who attempted to depart last May 3, allegedly employed the help of a certain Ana she met online, to whom she paid P5,000 for the fake CFO certificate.

The CFO officer stationed at the airport then confirmed that the GCP certificates were fraudulent.

The two women were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for further investigation.

The GCP is a required pre-departure seminar conducted by the CFO aiming to equip Filipinos in intermarriages and bi-national relationships with adequate information on the realities of cultural and social realities overseas.

The certificates purport to show that holders have attended the GCP and therefore can leave for abroad. — Maria Liezl Projella, INQUIRER.net trainee 

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