I am a Canadian living in Interior BC. After HRSDC, CIC and POLO processing which took over 2 years, a caregiver has just arrived at my home but not after more hassle form the POLO office in Vancouver which I consider another scam and illegal as far as I am concerned.
When my caregiver obtained his VISA from CIC, he needed to get a exit pass before getting an air ticket so he went to POEA to get the seminar and certificate and was told that he had to go to OWWA Intramuros to get an OWWA certificate, and that person at OWWA told him to get his work contract verified by the Canadian Consul. He then went to the Canadian embassy the next day in Makati and they told him that they don't verify contract or put a stamp on the work contract. He went back to POEA and there he found out from another employee that he didn't need an OWWA certificate and the one that needs to verify the contract is the POLO located in Vancouver. They didn't even say sorry! He subsequently texted me about this new requirement.
I then drove 450 KM to the Vancouver POLO personally to get the contract verified. When I arrived at the POLO office, I found that they were not at the address that POEA gave. They had moved their office to another floor. When I arrived at the new address, there was no one in the open unsecured office. After 10 minutes a man and woman with a guilty look appeared from outside the office and I was told that I had to sign an addition to the work contract and pay $41.75 processing fees! The additional requirements on the work contract that they wanted from the employer were quote:
1. Employer shall bear the cost of the transportation from place of origin to destination and back, during the period of employment,
2. Termination of contract/ employee shall only be for just cause,
3. Employer shall be responsible for medical treatment of the employee during the time the employee is not yet covered by provincial health plan,
4. In the event of work related death during the term of employment, the employer shall be responsible for the repatriation of the remains.
I told the person at POLO that we had already booked a flight in 2 working days The man at POLO said he would fax the verified contract addendum to POEA at 11PM that day. He also said I either had to come back to the POLO office to pick the “red ribbon” certification or pay for a return envelope for the papers to be sent to my home.
The next day, my caregiver went back to POEA and got a photocopy of the verified list from POLO in Vancouver and found that they had misspelled his middle name. He texted me about this and I emailed and faxed POLO in Vancouver to inform them about the misspelled name. Fortunately when he received the exit pass he found that his middle name appeared correctly spelled so he was able to get his plane ticket just in time.
Two days later my caregiver arrived. We went to the POLO office to get the so called “red ribbon” and found that it was not ready for pickup. They said they would mail it free. We received it a week later in the mail.
The main part of all these procedures that I am angry and frustrated about is:
Where is POLO getting the authority to collect money from Canadian employers for processing when they are not within their own jurisdiction?
If POLO wants these additional requirements, why don't they ask CIC Manila to put on their web site instead of collecting more money from the employer/employee?
Finally, since POLO has no jurisdiction in Canada, they cannot themselves enforce the additional requirements that they call for so what is the point they themselves asking for them?
When my caregiver obtained his VISA from CIC, he needed to get a exit pass before getting an air ticket so he went to POEA to get the seminar and certificate and was told that he had to go to OWWA Intramuros to get an OWWA certificate, and that person at OWWA told him to get his work contract verified by the Canadian Consul. He then went to the Canadian embassy the next day in Makati and they told him that they don't verify contract or put a stamp on the work contract. He went back to POEA and there he found out from another employee that he didn't need an OWWA certificate and the one that needs to verify the contract is the POLO located in Vancouver. They didn't even say sorry! He subsequently texted me about this new requirement.
I then drove 450 KM to the Vancouver POLO personally to get the contract verified. When I arrived at the POLO office, I found that they were not at the address that POEA gave. They had moved their office to another floor. When I arrived at the new address, there was no one in the open unsecured office. After 10 minutes a man and woman with a guilty look appeared from outside the office and I was told that I had to sign an addition to the work contract and pay $41.75 processing fees! The additional requirements on the work contract that they wanted from the employer were quote:
1. Employer shall bear the cost of the transportation from place of origin to destination and back, during the period of employment,
2. Termination of contract/ employee shall only be for just cause,
3. Employer shall be responsible for medical treatment of the employee during the time the employee is not yet covered by provincial health plan,
4. In the event of work related death during the term of employment, the employer shall be responsible for the repatriation of the remains.
I told the person at POLO that we had already booked a flight in 2 working days The man at POLO said he would fax the verified contract addendum to POEA at 11PM that day. He also said I either had to come back to the POLO office to pick the “red ribbon” certification or pay for a return envelope for the papers to be sent to my home.
The next day, my caregiver went back to POEA and got a photocopy of the verified list from POLO in Vancouver and found that they had misspelled his middle name. He texted me about this and I emailed and faxed POLO in Vancouver to inform them about the misspelled name. Fortunately when he received the exit pass he found that his middle name appeared correctly spelled so he was able to get his plane ticket just in time.
Two days later my caregiver arrived. We went to the POLO office to get the so called “red ribbon” and found that it was not ready for pickup. They said they would mail it free. We received it a week later in the mail.
The main part of all these procedures that I am angry and frustrated about is:
Where is POLO getting the authority to collect money from Canadian employers for processing when they are not within their own jurisdiction?
If POLO wants these additional requirements, why don't they ask CIC Manila to put on their web site instead of collecting more money from the employer/employee?
Finally, since POLO has no jurisdiction in Canada, they cannot themselves enforce the additional requirements that they call for so what is the point they themselves asking for them?
Thank you and God bless us all.