Amnesty: What if you have a loan case
POLICE OR CIVIL CASES RELATED TO BOUNCED CHEQUES MUST BE SETTLED FIRST BEFORE SEEKING LENIENCY
Amnesty seekers with police or civil cases due to bounced cheques or loan defaults will have to clear their names first before they can avail of the offer that will kick off on Wednesday
Amnesty seekers with police or civil cases due to bounced cheques or loan defaults will have to clear their cases first before they can avail of the leniency that will begin this week, a lawyer said.
The three-month amnesty will kick off on August 1, giving illegal residents a chance to leave the country without having to pay their overstay fines or get an entry ban. Those who want to remain may also rectify their status by opting for selfsponsorship or getting a new sponsor.
The amnesty, however, is not a blanket pardon.
During the last amnesty declared in 2012, a top immigration official said illegal foreigners were granted amnesty and allowed to leave the country as long as they did not have any pending cases.
“Illegal foreigners will be issued outpasses after any pending cases or dues are settled,” said the official.
Attorney Barney Almazar, director of Gulf Law, said the amnesty this year is similar.
“If you have a police case due to a bounced cheque or if you have a travel ban because of a civil case, the amnesty will not apply unless the cases are cleared. The government will not answer for your private obligations or debt,” Almazar told Gulf News.
Almazar, who helps give legal advice and assists Filipinos in the UAE, said residents can look for options to pay off their police fines or loans. They can solicit help from family members back home, liquidate assets or borrow money from lending institutions there to pay off their debts.
Borrow and pay off
Almazar said one of his clients did exactly this in 2012 and managed to secure a 400,000peso (Dh30,000) personal loan in the Philippines to clear his name and avail of the amnesty.
Borrowing from major Philippine banks will be difficult as the first criterion for loan approval is the borrower’s proof of employment to establish his capacity to pay back the loan, a banker told Gulf News.
The next option is to look for institutions that lend with more lenient criteria. Manuel Uy, managing director of Amalgated Lending, is currently in talks with Almazar’s office to be able to extend loans to Filipinos in need in the UAE so they can avail of the amnesty.
“Any Filipino can borrow from us so long as they pass the criteria. If they have a collateral, they’re 80 per cent approved. Even if they are Filipinos in financial distress in the UAE who can no longer avail of any loan consolidation there, we’re willing to accommodate them if vetted by attorney Almazar’s office,” Uy told Gulf News ina phone interview from Manila.
Almazar said amnesty seekers should settle their loans as early as now or during the first few weeks of the amnesty. “It is better if they settle their financial obligations now if they have the money. Ultimately, you will have to pay what you owe anyway.”