Department of Migrant Workers

About this agency

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is the executive department of the Philippine government tasked to protect the rights and promote the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). The department was created by virtue of the DMW Act or the Republic Act (RA) No. 11641, which was signed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on December 30, 2021.

The DMW Act (RA No. 11641) took effect on February 3, 2022, wherein the DMW was created, established, and constituted. It now assumes and performs all the powers and functions of seven merged agencies, namely: the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA); the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs (OUMWA) of the DFA; the International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB) and all Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLO) under DOLE; the National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP); the National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NRC) under the OWWA, and the Office of the Social Welfare Attaché (OSWA) under the DSWD.

The DMW is mandated to facilitate the overseas employment and reintegration of Filipino workers, while taking into consideration the national development programs of the National Economic and Development Authority. It is also tasked to promote the empowerment and protection of OFWs through continuous training and knowledge development.

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