AMENDING AND CLARIFYING CERTAIN PROCEDURES FOR PROCESSING APPLICATION FOR PRE-ARRANGED EMPLOYMENT AND IMMIGRATION VISAS
Instructions No. 13, Sec.3. This also clarifies Law Instructions No.
15, Sec. 4, para. 2 and Law Instructions No. 13, Sec. 4, para . 2.
2. Effective immediately, the certification that the documentary
requirements are complete issued by the Law and Investigation Division
in connection with petitions for pre-arranged employment visas under the
Immigration Act, Sec. 9 (g), and for immigrant visas under the
Immigration Act, Secs. 13 and 13(a) to 13(g), and other matters that
fall within the competence of the Board of Special Inquiry (BSI) shall
no longer be necessary. Instead, applications shall be filed directly
with the BSI receiving clerk.
3. The BSI receiving clerk shall examine the petition and shall
determine whether all the documents enumerated in the appropriate
checklist have been submitted. If the petition is incomplete, the BSI
receiving clerk shall return the application and provide the applicant
with a checklist of the additional documents to be submitted. If the
application is complete, the BSI receiving clerk shall certify on the
face of the petition that the documents are complete. This
certification merely provides a basis for accepting the application and
is neither an admission as to the genuineness and authenticity of the
documents nor as to their sufficiency as proof of the matters for which
they are submitted.
4. The BSI receiving clerk shall then raffle the petition among the
three (3) BSI and shall calendar it for hearing in open court at the
earliest available date and time. He shall give the petitioner at least
three (3) days notice of the scheduled hearing and shall inform the
petitioner to bring the original documents for verification at the
hearing. No postponement shall be granted. The BSI shall hear a
petition continuously within a period not exceeding two (2) days, except
that in exceptional cases and for good and meritorious grounds, the BSI
may, upon the request of the petitioner and in the exercise of its
discretion, set one final hearing date. The setting of the final
hearing shall be in addition to and shall not prejudice the previously
calendared petitions which shall be heard as scheduled.
5. The petitioner shall have the option to be represented by counsel
of his own choice who shall propound questions to the witnesses in the
presence of the member of the CID Law and Investigation Division
assigned to the case. The CID lawyer may propound additional questions
to the witnesses to ensure compliance with the requirements of the law
and implementing instructions.
However, if the petitioner opts not to be so represented, the CID
lawyer assigned to the case shall intervene on behalf of the Commission
and propound such questions to the petitioner and his witnesses to show
whether or not he has complied with the requirements of the law and
implementing rules. In no case shall a CID lawyer act as counsel for an
applicant. Further, in no case (except deportation cases) shall two
CID lawyers appear as adversaries — one as counsel for the applicant and
the other as representative of the Commission.
6. Immediately before the hearing, the petitioner and his counsel
shall present the original documents to the CID lawyer for verification
and comparison with the photocopies submitted. The CID lawyer shall
prepare his objection, if any, to the documentary evidence to be
presented by the petitioner.
It shall be incumbent upon the petitioner and his counsel to prove
that, based on the evidence, both documentary and testimonial, the
application should be granted. The documentary requirements for each
admission category are listed in the relevant law instructions and in
the Immigration Manual.
7. The petitioner shall present not more than two (2) witnesses in
support of his petition. Any third party may file an opposition to the
petition which likewise shall be heard in open court. To expedite the
proceedings, the testimonies of the petitioner and his witnesses maybe
presented in affidavit form, subject to affirmation before the BSI, and
cross-examination by the CID lawyer assigned to the case. The BSI shall
submit its recommendations to the Board of Commissioners not later than
three days following the termination of the hearing in open court.
Adopted: 18 May 1988
(SGD.) REGINA PADILLA GERALDEZ
Associate Commissioner