Most OFWs pay their OWWA membership fee and never think about it again until something goes wrong. But OWWA covers much more than emergencies. It supports you before you leave, while you're abroad and after you come home, and some of that help is for your family too.
OWWA groups its programmes into five areas.
1. Social benefits: help when something happens
This is the safety net. It includes:
- Death and disability benefits for members, and burial support for families
- Education and Livelihood Assistance (ELAP) for the families of members who have died: schooling support for a child and livelihood help for the surviving spouse
- MEDplus, supplemental help with medical costs
- Welfare Assistance, for situations not covered by the regular benefits, such as calamities or being displaced from work
Use it when: a member dies, is disabled or seriously ill, or a calamity hits your family.
2. Education and training: scholarships and skills
OWWA runs scholarships for OFWs and their dependents, for both college degrees and short courses, as well as skills training programmes.
Use it when: your child is applying to college, or you want to upskill for a better job abroad or at home. Places are competitive, so apply early.
3. Reintegration: starting again at home
For when you come home for good:
- Balik Pinas! Balik Hanapbuhay! (BPBH) gives livelihood support to OFWs who came home displaced or distressed.
- The OFW Enterprise Development and Loan Program offers business loans for returning OFWs who want to start or grow a business.
Use it when: you're planning your return and want to build a livelihood. Our guide to the new reintegration law explains what's coming next.
4. Pre-departure education: before you fly
- PDOS, the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar, is a country-specific orientation for workers about to leave. It covers your rights, what to expect and financial literacy.
- CPDEP is a longer programme for first-time household service workers, covering language, culture and stress management.
Use it when: you're leaving for the first time, or going to a new country.
5. Repatriation: getting you home
When you need to come home because of a crisis, illness, a contract dispute or a disaster, OWWA arranges flights, airport help, temporary shelter, transport to your province, and counselling. It also handles the repatriation of members who die abroad.
Use it when: you or a family member is in trouble abroad and needs to come home. The recent help for OFWs stranded in Riyadh shows how this works in practice.
The catch: keep your membership active
Most of these benefits need active OWWA membership, and some pay more to active members than to inactive ones. Membership costs US$25 and lasts two years, and you can now renew online. See our step-by-step guide to renewing your OWWA membership online.
Benefit amounts and requirements change. Check owwa.gov.ph or your nearest OWWA office before applying.
Sources
This article is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Government rules and rates change; confirm current figures with the official agency before acting.