BI calls for action on foreign students' issue
BUREAU of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco has called for an urgent inter-agency meeting to discuss security issues amid concerns on the reported influx of Chinese students in the Philippines.Tansingco said he has requested the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), who chairs the Inter-Agency Committee on Foreign Students (IACFS) to call for a high-level meeting for members to clarify the role of each agency in permitting foreigners to study in the country."We have requested the high-level meeting to reiterate our previous requests for immediate joint inspections, and for it to become a regular conduct by the IACFS given new developments in national security concerns," Tansingco said."We also believe that it is high time that the inter-agency be active in matters of national security by including security assessment as a regular agenda in meetings," he added.Tansingco's request stemmed from the high number of Chinese studying in Tuguegarao, resulting in a call for a probe by both houses of Congress.Citing its records, the BI said that it found that 1,516 Chinese have been granted student visas in Cagayan, all endorsed by a major Philippine university.However, reports showed that as of April, only 485 were enrolled with only 96 onsite with student visas."The Philippine government has been promoting the country as a regional and global education hub. In fact, there are national campaigns that greatly helped boost the number of foreign students in the country," said Tansingco.In 2023, the BI issued a total of 24,189 student visas to various nationalities, and 16,190 were given to Chinese, majority of them in the National Capital Region.The BI said that the governing law on foreign students is Executive Order 285, s. 2000, which created the IACFS chaired by CHEd. Other members of the inter-agency are the BI, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), Department of Foreign Affairs, and Department of Education.Schools that accept foreign nationals as students are required to submit regular reports of their students to all IACFS agencies.The data is used by the BI who shall monitor their visa compliance, CHEd that will ensure compliance with education-related policies, and NBI and NICA who shall conduct investigations on suspicious activities.
Tomas Kauer - Moderator 
BUREAU of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco has called for an urgent inter-agency meeting to discuss security issues amid concerns on the reported influx of Chinese students in the Philippines.
Tansingco said he has requested the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), who chairs the Inter-Agency Committee on Foreign Students (IACFS) to call for a high-level meeting for members to clarify the role of each agency in permitting foreigners to study in the country.
"We have requested the high-level meeting to reiterate our previous requests for immediate joint inspections, and for it to become a regular conduct by the IACFS given new developments in national security concerns," Tansingco said.
"We also believe that it is high time that the inter-agency be active in matters of national security by including security assessment as a regular agenda in meetings," he added.
Tansingco's request stemmed from the high number of Chinese studying in Tuguegarao, resulting in a call for a probe by both houses of Congress.
Citing its records, the BI said that it found that 1,516 Chinese have been granted student visas in Cagayan, all endorsed by a major Philippine university.
However, reports showed that as of April, only 485 were enrolled with only 96 onsite with student visas.
"The Philippine government has been promoting the country as a regional and global education hub. In fact, there are national campaigns that greatly helped boost the number of foreign students in the country," said Tansingco.
In 2023, the BI issued a total of 24,189 student visas to various nationalities, and 16,190 were given to Chinese, majority of them in the National Capital Region.
The BI said that the governing law on foreign students is Executive Order 285, s. 2000, which created the IACFS chaired by CHEd. Other members of the inter-agency are the BI, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), Department of Foreign Affairs, and Department of Education.
Schools that accept foreign nationals as students are required to submit regular reports of their students to all IACFS agencies.
The data is used by the BI who shall monitor their visa compliance, CHEd that will ensure compliance with education-related policies, and NBI and NICA who shall conduct investigations on suspicious activities.
