The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in Ras Al Khaimah has decided to waive a Filipina's Dh1.08 million fine for overstaying illegally in the Emirates for 31 years. Khaleej Times reports she is one of four beneficiaries of the ongoing three-month amnesty in the UAE whose penalties have been waived. As part of the amnesty, they will be allowed to return and work in the UAE in the future, with the proper travel documents of course.
A visa processing center in the UAE.
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She had entered the UAE on a visit visa in 1985. She then worked as a housemaid with an Arab national as per a legal residency visa in the first two years, but later became an illegal resident since then - for a total of 31 years. Due to the long time spent working while being an illegal resident, she would have to pay 1.08 million Dirhams or an equivalent of 15.6 Million pesos in accumulated penalty (Exchange rate Dh1 = P14.45). This was the case before the UAE government decided to start the amnesty campaign.
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There are almost 700,000 overseas Filipinos workers (OFW) living in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), 450,000 of which live in Dubai comprising 21.3% of the total population of Dubai. It is the largest population of Filipinos in the UAE, followed by Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. OFWs in the UAE sent over US$500 million in remittances to the Philippines.
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Expatriates who are staying illegally in the UAE are encouraged to apply for the amnesty. For more information and guidance about what the amnesty is all about and how to avail of it, please check out these posts:
This post is filed under: UAE, Dubai, Abu Shabi, Amnesty, Illegal Resident, work in the UAE, beneficiary, Dirham, exchange rate, Tourist Visa
A huge diplomatic row is happening between Saudi Arabia and Canada because of one tweet by the Canadian Foreign Ministry. It is expected to affect the Saudi economy but more so the Canadian economy. Some movements have already been observed in the Canadian dollar exchange rate. Other sectors are expected to be affected as Saudi Arabia escalates their actions against Canada. These include Saudi scholarship students studying in Canada, as well as a huge defense contract between the two countries. It may also affect Canadian citizens working in Saudi Arabia, or those that hold a Canadian visa or supervisa.
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In a twitter post, Canadian officials have accused Saudi Arabia of human rights violations and demanded the release of activists imprisoned in the kingdom. The Kingdom saw the Canadian statement as an affront and an attempting to meddle with Saudi sovereignty. They declared the ambassador of Canada, Dennis Horak, persona non grata and ordered him to leave within 24 hours. The deadline was August 7, 2AM local time. The Saudis also recalled their ambassador from Ottawa.
Along with the expulsion, the Saudi government froze all trade and investment deals with Canada. This will potentially affect Canada's economy, especially since the Canadian unit of US weapons maker General Dynamics Corp. won a contract worth up to $13 billion to build light-armored vehicles for Saudi Arabia. Saudi also supplies 10% of Canada's crude oil supply. The Canadian dollar has already seen a 0.3% decline on Monday trading.
Meanwhile, state airline Saudia said it is suspending flights to and from Toronto starting August 13. The Saudi Ministry of education is also moving to relocate about 7,000 Saudi scholarship recipients studying in Canada. This is in addition to suspending training programs and fellowships in Canada. In a statement released by Saudi Arabia, it warned that “any further step from the Canadian side in that direction will be considered as acknowledgment of our right to interfere in the Canadian domestic affairs.”
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In what could be a repeat of the Qatar Diplomatic row, there is a huge possibility that Saudi allies in the region will join the middle east powerhouse. Bahrain, a staunch Saudi ally, said it backed the Saudi move. The country's foreign ministry slammed what it called "unacceptable intervention in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
Human rights groups sided with Canada and called on states with influence in Saudi Arabia - namely, the United States, United Kingdom and France - to end their silence with regard to Saudi Arabia's treatment of "human rights defenders."
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Very few countries actually criticize Saudi Arabia, in part due to their vast wealth derived from oil, and the huge influence they hold in the Middle East and among Islamic countries. This post is filed under Saudi Arabia, Canada, Diplomatic row, Saudi economy, Canadian economy, exchange rate, Saudi scholarship, defense contract, tweet, twitter, Middle East, Canadian visa, super visa
If you are an OFW, or your family relies on OFW remittance, then here's some good news for you! If you are aware of President Duterte's Tax Reform Plan, many OFWs were wondering if their remittances are going to be taxed as some people have speculated on social media. The good news is that Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick Chua has confirmed that the proposed Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) does not cover remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers since these are money coming from outside the country.
Simply put, the Philippine government has no jurisdiction over such inbound funds. Just to clarify, the laws apply only to remittances sent from within the country and, even then, the principal amount itself is not taxed. Only the domestic remittance fees are being charged with value-added tax (VAT).
Economists agree, that the continuing growth of OFW remittances, as well as the local BPO Industry, are a big help in achieving the 6-7% target growth of the Philippines' GDP. Last year, overseas Filipino workers had remitted a total of $28 Billion. Remittances came mainly from the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Singapore.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the CTRP was expected to help reduce the poverty rate in the Philippines from 21.6 percent in 2015 to 14 percent by 2022.
Dominguez said that meant lifting some six million Filipinos out of poverty and helping the country achieve upper middle-income status.
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) has a lot of sacrifices in order to earn money for the needs of their family back home.
This is also the reason why many OFWs save money as much as they can so that they can come home the soonest time as possible. But, for OFWs, don't you know that you can also save money when transferring funds while in other countries?
Because there are many banks and remittance center, it can get confusing to decide what is the best option when transferring money overseas.
Gifford Nakajima, Head of Wealth Development, UAE and MENA, at HSBC Bank Middle East recommends that people use a bank to remit their money as it “provides far greater security and convenience.
Aside from these, the following are seven ways you can take to save money when sending funds overseas according to ServiceMarket.
1. Keep track of exchange rates.
Keep a close eye on how exchange rates are changing in order to exchange your money at a suitable time. Exchange rates often change frequently during peak times, such as Eid or summer holidays, so staying aware of exchange rates and patterns can help you to save money! Also, look to transfer money between Monday and Friday as rates on the weekend and on public holidays are not ‘live’ rates, and can end up being higher or lower than when the international markets are open. (Rappler Talk: Financial Literacy for OFWs)
2. Do the transfer in the currency of the beneficiary’s account.
It is usually recommended that you do the transfer in the currency of the beneficiary’s account so that you are sure of the exchange rate you are getting. If you send the money overseas in your local currency, it will be subject to the exchange rate offered by the recipient’s bank or exchange house.
3. Choose who pays the transfer cost.
When transferring money, you can choose who pays the processing fees. You can choose whether the sender or the receiver pays or you can even choose to share the cost and this cost can vary from country to country.
4. Transfer your money online.
Online transfers are usually faster and cheaper as they reduce the possibility of errors and gives customers on-the-spot notifications for their transactions. They also offer higher physical security as you do not need to walk around with a lot of cash.
This service is available around the clock, giving you the ability to know the exchange rates at any time without having to visit a branch. (It is important to note though that when currency markets are closed rates are not updated – such as international weekends (Saturday and Sunday) and holidays, this is why it’s best to transfer Monday to Friday.)
5. Set aside some time for the transfer.
It is possible to save money if you are willing to wait a few days for the money to be transferred instead of instant or express transfers. Express transfer rates are typically a bit more expensive. Usually, transferring money on Mondays or Tuesdays will get the transaction through faster than on other days, because it usually takes 2-3 working days to process the request. With UAE being closed on Fridays, and international banks being closed on Saturdays? Sundays, Monday or Tuesday are the best days to ensure your money gets transferred within the week.
6. Keep an eye out for hidden charges.
Make sure to always read the terms and conditions and understand all charges on both ends of the transfer. Some exchange houses charge a “back-end fee” which is an additional fee upon collection of the money overseas. This can mean that the recipient overseas will receive less money than you anticipated, so make sure you ask in advance!
(ANC On The Money: Money Management for OFWs)
7. Open a bank account in your home country.
If you are looking to send money back home, it is a good idea to look into opening an account in your home country as well as the country where you are currently living. This will allow you to easily transfer money between the two accounts. If you open the two accounts with the same bank you should be able to make fast transfers between the accounts in different currencies. Some banks, offer a fee-free online transfer service in certain currencies through internet banking, which could help you to save money, especially if you plan to send money back home on a regular basis.
Transferring money to the same bank abroad is cheaper than sending money to any other bank, as this usually means intermediary institutions are involved – who may charge additional fees. That is why it is beneficial to use one trusted global banking partner if you frequently transfer money abroad.
Dollar surges and Asian market take a hit as Federal Reserve raise interest rates. US dollar against Philippine peso went to as high as P49.92, few points away before it reaches P50.
The U.S. dollar was sharply higher in early Asia trading, with the yen hardest hit after the U.S. Federal Reserve announced its first interest-rate increase of 2016 and signaled it expects to increase rates more quickly than previously anticipated in 2017. Marketwatch reports that
Fed officials said they would increase the federal-funds rate by a quarter percentage point to between 0.50% and 0.75%, a move consistent with a brightening economic outlook.
The Fed now expects the median fed-funds rate to be 1.4% by the end of 2017, reaching 2.1% at the end of 2018 and 2.9% in 2019. That implies three quarter-percentage-point interest-rate increases over each of the next three years, a faster pace than officials projected in September, when they only saw two rate increases next year.
Currency traders said the full extent of the reaction to the Fed rate increase won’t be known until European markets have had time to absorb the news.
The reaction in currency markets in early Asia has seen the U.S. dollar jump to its highest levels since February against the yen, with broad gains also posted against the euro and dollar bloc currencies.
The U.S. dollar climbed above 117.0 yen USDJPY, +0.30% after trading closer to 115.0 yen ahead of the Fed announcement. WSJ Dollar Index BUXX, +0.16% is up 0.8% to 91.12, which would mark its highest closing value in more than 14 years. The Australian, Canadian and New Zealand dollars were sharply lower against the greenback.
Richard Grace, the global head of currency strategy at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said the Fed is navigating its way through some tricky waters. Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen has acknowledged the potential for stronger GDP growth if big infrastructure spending by the Trump White House occurs, while also acknowledging monetary conditions have tightened in the past month through a higher U.S. dollar and big increases in U.S. bond yields, he said.
“We were certainly surprised by the Fed move,” said Tim Condon, head of research for Asia at ING. “There was a risk [of a hawkish Fed] that did materialize.” Condon added that a stronger dollar and the selloff in the S&P 500 threatens to “be the most contagious” for Asian markets, excluding Japan.
Overnight, the Federal Reserve raised the federal-funds rate by a quarter of a percentage point to between 0.50% and 0.75%, and said it expected to raise short-term rates next year by another 0.75 percentage points, spread over three rate increases.
