The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has opened a currency exchange facility program for overseas Filipinos workers (OFWs) and their families returning from Ukraine.
As part of initiatives to assist OFWs displaced or affected by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the central bank’s Monetary Board approved the opening of a Ukrainian Hryvnia (UAH) currency exchange facility.
The facility allows returning OFWs from Ukraine and their families to exchange their UAH holdings equivalent to not more than P20,000 per eligible person, except for highly meritorious reasons and subject to approval of the BSP.
To avail of the facility, OFs and their family members shall present documentary proof of the OFWs’ travel from Ukraine (original passport or original/certified true copy of the travel document issued by the Philippine Embassy in Poland with exit stamp by Ukrainian authorities and/or authorities from other countries that served as exit points for repatriation).
The exchange may be done through the BSP head office in Manila, BSP regional offices and branches as well as authorized agent banks.
The facility is open to returning OFWs from February 18, 2022 onwards and will be available for four months starting from the effectivity of the Circular covering its implementation.
Data from the BSP showed that OFWs in Ukraine and Russia remitted $121,000 and $2.3 million, respectively, for a total of $2.42 million, or less than 0.1 percent of the total remittances in 2021.
