Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco believes that the more than 400 foreign nationals who were blacklisted by the agency in November for being petitioned by fake companies are just the tip of the iceberg.

Tansingco, last Monday, had a meeting with Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla to update the Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding the ongoing investigation.

“During our initial investigation, at least 40 travel agencies and liaison officers were suspected of being involved in the scheme, and we reported to the SOJ a total of 116 employers found to be fake,” Tansingco said.

The BI reported to the DOJ last year that 459 foreigners had been placed on a blacklist following an investigation into its verification and compliance division (VCD) that revealed the aforementioned foreign individuals had been using fake companies in their 9(g) visa applications.

A 9(g) pre-arranged employment visa is a requisite for foreign nationals working in the Philippines.

“Last November, we recommended to the SOJ the cancellation of the visas of these aliens, as well as the issuance of show cause orders against those involved in the application,” said Tansingco.

“We also recommended the issuance of show cause orders against four BI lawyers and the abolition of the Legal Division’s visa task force,” he added.

The BI chief shared that a fact-finding group has also been formed to further investigate the incident involving the four BI lawyers.

In December last year, the BI released an advisory suspending the acceptance of applications from companies with single proprietorships as the petitioners.

According to Tansingco, this was a result of his discussions with the Secretary of Justice (SOJ), as sole proprietorship companies were mostly used by the erring aliens. He shared that they are keen on auditing visas issued within the last five years.

Tansingco said that he also believes that the initial findings submitted by the VCD are just the tip of the iceberg, and they are expecting more blacklistings once the investigation is concluded.

“Once we discovered the scheme, we immediately informed the DOJ, which approved our recommendations,” said Tansingco.

“As such, we have reorganized the visa-issuance procedures, palit lahat top to bottom, including the procedures in accepting, reviewing, assessing, and up until the issuing of the visas. Tingin namin baka abutin ng one thousand or more foreigners that are petitioned by these fake companies,” he added.

Tansingco further stated that he would not hesitate to suggest to the secretary that administrative disciplinary actions be taken against BI personnel if it turns out that they were involved in the fraudulent scheme.

Under civil service rules, the Secretary of Justice is the administrative disciplining authority for BI employees and personnel.

“Anti-corruption measures have always been on top of our priority list, following the many issues that the BI has faced in the past,” Tansingco said.

“Kaya may mga ganito tayo ngayong auditing. These audits and investigations result in the uncovering of schemes that could have otherwise grown and festered. We are thankful to the SOJ for his continuous support in our initiatives to cleanse our ranks,” he added.