Chinese arrivals soar; property prices spike

Sen. Leila de Lima wants to investigate the influx of Chinese nationals working and living in the Philippines, warning that this might trigger a further surge in property prices in many developed areas.

De Lima has filed Senate Resolution No. 751 that seeks to assess the implementation of immigration and labor laws to ensure that Filipinos are protected against the effects of surges in immigration.

“The increasingly lax control mechanisms over the influx of Chinese nationals in the Philippines have led to concerns on whether we have enough capability to properly enforce our immigration and labor laws to the detriment of our national interest,” she said.

Chinese tourists up 54%

She warned that aside from causing property price surges, the influx of Chinese nationals working in the Philippines might also mean lesser jobs for Filipinos.

Citing the Department of Tourism’s 2017 annual visitor sample survey, the number of Chinese travelers to the Philippines grew by 54.43 percent last year.

In the first quarter of 2018, there were 371,429 Chinese visitors that entered the country.

Alien permits rise 33%

The Department of Labor and Employment also noted a 33.4 percent hike in the alien employment permits (AEPs) granted to foreigners wanting to work here, or from 28,371 in 2015 to 41,993 in 2016.

Chinese nationals comprised most of the AEP holders from 2013 to 2016, growing from 23.7 percent in 2013 to 45 percent, or 18,920, in 2016, De Lima said.

More than 50 offshore gambling companies catering to overseas Chinese gamblers received permits to operate here, employing 200,000 Chinese workers since late 2016.