More Filipinos in South Korea Deported due to Fake Names

22 March 2011 – Philippine Ambassador to South Korea Luis T. Cruz reported to the Department that an increasing number of Filipinos are being deported from South Korea for using assumed names.

The Assistance-to-Nationals Unit of the Embassy is handling ten cases of Filipinos detained by the Korean immigration this month for using fake identities. The Filipinos are workers under the Employment Permit System (EPS), the government-to-government hiring mechanism between the Philippines and South Korea. Last year, ten other Filipino EPS workers were refused entry by the Korean immigration because of assumed identities and passport forgery.

Despite having valid visas and successfully complying with all the requirements for deployment through the EPS, the concerned Filipinos were sent back to the Philippines after South Korean immigration officials established that they had previously entered South Korea using a different name.

South Korea uses a database system that records the photos and fingerprints of foreigners entering or leaving the country.

The Philippine Embassy also reports that some Filipino nationals have married Korean nationals using their assumed identities, resulting in serious consequences to their marriages and visa statuses.

Those whose identities were assumed by other Filipino nationals will similarly face problems when they later decide to travel, marry or engage in other activities that will require strong proof of identification.

The Philippine Embassy reminds all Filipinos to use only valid documents. Those who falsify documents or assume the identity of others, whether by theft or with the agreement of the other party, can be held criminally liable for their actions.

By: Philippine Embassy