The Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (APECO) announced on Thursday that it has temporarily halted the issuance of visas as part of an internal audit and review by the new APECO Administration led by President & CEO Gil G. Taway IV. This measure is effective immediately.
This was after the agency found that the existing protocols and processes need to be revisited in order to provide the service in a more efficient, effective, and appropriate manner.
Under the APECO charter created by Republic Act No. 9490, as amended by Republic Act 10083, APECO is authorized to issue an Investor’s Visa to foreign nationals who will invest at least US$150,000 in the economic zone and who meet the other entry requirements.
Taway on the other end said that at this time, APECO is drafting guidelines and streamlining the process for visa application to allow potential investors to come into the country and to experience for themselves what APECO has to offer.
“We do not take lightly the responsibility of issuing visas and it is high time to go back and to understand why APECO was given such privilege. APECO will only be issuing visas to serious investors moving forward. Our interest is to provide this incentive only to those who truly share in our vision of growth and progress for the Filipino people, most especially of our communities in Aurora,” Taway explained.
This news article, authored by Jing Villamente, was first featured on Daily Tribune on 29 February 2024. To continue reading, please visit the original publication on this link.