Following the four-month amnesty program offered by the UAE government giving expats with overstaying and absconding cases the opportunity to change their status or leave the country, immigration officials will be implementing measures to identify illegal residents in the country.
Although there are reports that the amnesty might be extended by another month starting Dec. 2, Brigadier General Saeed Rakan, acting director general for the immigration authority, said that inspection campaigns will be held to check on residents without valid visas, reported The National.
Rakan, however, assured that the inspections will be planned and not random inspections on streets.
A possible inspection given by Rakan is inspection of residential areas which informants claim to be home to a number of illegal residents.
“We will start applying the law against offenders but we will not stand out in public and ask people for their ID cards,” Rakan said.
“When the traffic police ask for a driver’s licence, it is based on an offence they committed or an incident that made them stop the person… We don’t just stop all cars and ask for someone’s licence,” he added.
Latest data from the Philippine government states that as of November 12, the number of Filipino amnesty grantees who have arrived in the country has risen to 2,481.
The latest batch of OFW amnesty grantees arrived on November 24 and they were given transportation allowance which was used for their traveling expenses to their respective provinces. All of them also received Php5,000 financial assistance from the government.
