Balik Manggagawa: going back to work abroad after a holiday

DMW’s Citizen’s Charter 2026 defines a Balik Manggagawa, or returning worker, as “an Overseas Filipino Worker who has served or is serving his/her employment contract, and is returning to the same employer”.

Before you fly back, you need one of three things:

• The OFW Travel Pass in the eGovPH app, or an OEC exemption from the DMW Online Services portal, if your employer, job site and job are the same as before.
• An OEC, issued after DMW processes your contract, if something has changed.

A first deployment is different: new hires go through an agency or DMW’s direct hire process (see what an OEC is).

Do you count as a Balik Manggagawa

The POEA’s 2021 definition, still used by DMW, has three parts. You are a Balik Manggagawa if you:

1. have served or are serving your employment contract,
2. are going back to the same employer, at the same job site or a new one, and
3. have a record in DMW’s database of deployed workers.

You are treated as a new hire instead if you have no record of deployment. The 2021 release gives one example: a remote worker leaving for the first time is not a Balik Manggagawa.

Same job or changed job

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Sources: DMW Citizen’s Charter 2026 (Ilocos and Cordillera regional office services) and the 2016 OEC exemption rules. MWO Singapore adds that contract verification is “not required for each contract renewal” with the same employer.

The steps

If nothing has changed, in the eGovPH app (MWO Osaka, 22 October 2025):

1. Open the eGovPH app, go to the NGA tab and choose DMW.
2. Tap Balik Manggagawa, then Travel Pass.
3. Your profile and QR code appear. The QR code is your exit clearance.

DMW Advisory No. 38, s. 2025 says the Travel Pass is valid for 90 days from issue and is only for workers going back to the same employer and destination country. More in the OFW Pass guide.

On DMW Online Services. DMW’s FAQ describes the online route:

1. Log in to DMW Online Services.
2. “If returning to the same job site, employer, and position, an OEC/exit pass is automatically generated.” DMW Advisory No. 38, s. 2025 says printed passes from DMW Online Services are still valid exit clearances.
3. If something has changed, enter your contract details and set an appointment.

The 2016 exemption rules add that you cannot edit your employer’s name, job site, position, salary, name, birthdate or mother’s maiden name online. A mismatch in any of these needs an appointment.

The current portal steps, screen by screen, are in getting your OEC online.

If something has changed: book an appointment through DMW Online Services, at a DMW regional office or at the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) where you work, and bring the papers below. DMW’s Citizen’s Charter 2026 lists no fee for returning worker papers.

Papers to have ready

DMW’s Citizen’s Charter 2026 lists these for returning workers:

• Passport, valid for at least 6 months from your departure date.
• Valid work visa, work permit or equivalent for the country you are going back to.
• Your employment contract, verified or authenticated, as DMW’s Citizen’s Charter lists.
• Proof that you still work there, such as a certificate of employment, a valid company ID or recent payslips.

If you changed employer or job site, the Charter adds:

• a worker’s declaration if you changed employer,
• a letter from your employer about the transfer if you changed job site,
• a notarised sworn statement explaining how your current employer hired you, and
• proof of arrival, such as the arrival stamp in your passport.

Some regional offices ask for more, for example insurance if your contract has no repatriation clause (Cordillera office). Check the list for your office before you go.

Common hold-ups

The 2016 rules send these cases to an appointment instead of an exemption:

• a different employer or job site,
• you or your employer is on DMW’s watchlist,
• you are going back to a country with deployment restrictions,
• no record found, or a difference between your record and your papers,
• undocumented workers, and
• sea-based workers who moved to a land-based job.

At the airport, the 2023 departure guidelines say Immigration sends you to DMW’s Migrant Workers Airport Assistance Center if your OEC is invalid, expired, already used, or does not show in their system. Sort out record problems before your flight, at a DMW office or your MWO.