Charging training fees for Japan interns illegal

No training fees shall be charged from any candidate selected for employment in Japan as part of the Technical Internship Training Program (TITP) or as housekeepers in National Strategic Special Zones (NSSZ).

This was reiterated in a news advisory by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) yesterday.

Administrator Bernard P. Olalia said the POEA has been receiving reports that language training centers, some of which are affiliates or partners of licensed recruitment agencies, collect training fees from these workers, either before deployment or through salary deduction in Japan under a study-now-pay-later scheme.

Olalia said the training fees are supposed to be paid for or are chargeable to the Japanese Employer or Accepting Organization.

“In the case of technical intern training for any of the TITP-approved occupations, the cost of the mandatory language training is paid for by the Japanese Supervising of Implementing Organization,” Olalia added.

Department Order No. 188, series of 2018 prohibits the collection of fee of any kind or form from technical interns for their selection and deployment to Japan.

Specified Organizations in Japan acting as employers shall shoulder the training expenses of live-out housekeepers in NSSZ as mandated by POEA Governing Board Resolution No. 8, series of 2016, in accordance with the NSSZ guidelines issued by the Japanese government in September 2015.

Licensed recruitment agencies or sending organizations and their affiliate-training institutions are enjoined to strictly observe the non-fee charging policy.