Posted to a Client's Site and My AEP Workplace Does Not Match: What Employees Should Do

First, check what your AEP actually says

The short answer: if your company has sent you to work at a client's site and you find that the workplace on your AEP does not match, check your AEP and 9G documents first, ask the company in writing how it plans to handle it, and keep a record of the assignment. Correcting it is mainly the employer's job, but you are the one standing at the site if there is an inspection, so you need to understand your own position.

Look at the documents. Find your Alien Employment Permit and your 9G work visa papers and check the registered employer name, position and place of work. Many people have never read them closely and only know the company took care of it. Whether the workplace says the head office, a particular branch or several locations decides whether your current arrangement is a problem.

Then look at the reality. Where do you go each day: the client's office, a factory, a project site, or several places in rotation? Is it a short trip of a few days or a long-term posting? Who assigns your work, who records your attendance and who pays you? These facts decide whether, in the labour department's eyes, this looks like the same employer sending you out on business, or more like you actually working for another company.

For how employers assess this and update registrations, see when the AEP workplace differs from where you actually work. This guide is from the employee's side: what you should do once you notice the mismatch, and what to watch out for.

Whether there is a mismatch and how it should be corrected follows the current position of the Department of Labor and Employment and the Bureau of Immigration; this guide only covers the preparation an employee can do.

Step two: raise it with the company in writing, not just a quick word

Once you notice the mismatch, the most important step is to put the question to the company in writing so the employer formally knows and gives a plan. If you only ask verbally and are told it is fine, everyone does this, you will find it hard to prove later that you raised it.

What to write. Email your direct manager and the HR person who handles visas. Keep the tone calm and stick to facts: my AEP lists my workplace as one location, the company has posted me long-term at a client's site elsewhere, and I would like to confirm whether this needs an AEP update or notice to the relevant agencies, and what the company's plan and timing are. Keep the email you sent and any reply.

Questions to get answered. How long the posting is expected to last; whether the company will update the workplace or position on the AEP; whether you can keep working at the client's site while the update is in progress; and what documents you should show, and whom you should call, if there is an inspection at the client's site. Write down what the company tells you.

If the company tells you to sort it out yourself. AEP applications and updates are filed by the employer, and an employee generally cannot change the registered details alone. If the company pushes this onto you, explain politely that the company has to handle it as the applicant and that you will provide any information needed. For the online AEP filing process, see the new online AEP filing rules.

While you keep working at the client's site: what to have ready

Until the correction is done you may have to keep reporting to the client's site. During this period, carry copies of your documents, know whom to call if there is an inspection, and do not sign anything that makes untrue statements on the company's behalf.

What to carry. Copies or photos of your passport, 9G visa page, ACR I-Card and AEP, with originals kept as your company and lawyer advise. Save the contact details of your company's HR and your direct manager so you can call them straight away if inspectors arrive.

If there is an inspection. If immigration or labour inspectors check the client's site, cooperate and show your documents. Answer truthfully which company employs you, what you do there and how long you have been there. Do not invent explanations and do not try to explain on the company's behalf why it has not updated anything. If you are asked something you do not know, say you need to check with your employer. For the employer's side of handling an inspection, see what to do when immigration raids a company; for the employee, the principle is to be truthful, cooperate and contact the employer.

Do not sign untrue statements. If the company or the client asks you to sign something saying you are only visiting or do not work there, and that is not true, do not sign it. Say you need to check first, or ask a lawyer to look at it. Making false statements for someone else can leave you carrying the consequences.

What risks a mismatch creates for the employee

Many employees assume this is only the company's problem, but a mismatch between your workplace and your permit can affect your own renewals and record. Understanding the risk explains why it is worth pushing the company to act.

Questions at renewal. When your 9G or AEP comes up for renewal, the authorities may check what you actually do. If the registration and reality have differed for a long time with no update on file, you may be asked to explain or provide more documents, and approval could be affected, depending on the current position.

A finding during an inspection. If an inspection concludes that you were working outside the registered workplace or for another company, both the employer and the employee may be involved in what follows. On the employee's side this can mean being asked to explain or having a note placed on your record; how serious it is depends on the case. Being found to be working elsewhere is entirely different from a few days on a business trip.

If you are effectively lent to the client. If it is the client who assigns your work, records your attendance or even manages you directly, your situation may be closer to labour dispatch or outsourcing. For who is responsible for you in that arrangement and whom to pursue in a labour dispute, see when the agency and the client both deny responsibility.

None of this is meant to alarm you. It is a reminder that a written note to the company and a clear record are how you protect yourself.

If the company does nothing, or tells you to carry on as you are

If the company ignores your note, brushes it off or says outright that it will not update anything, keep recording, assess your own risk and consider professional advice, rather than quietly carrying on indefinitely.

Remind them again in writing. After some time, send another email referring to the first one, saying the arrangement is continuing and you still need the company's plan. Two or more written reminders show you have done your part in raising it.

Assess your position. Think about how long the posting will continue, when your 9G is due for renewal and whether you intend to stay with this company. If renewal is approaching and the company still has not acted, the risk will land on you at the moment you renew.

Get professional advice. A lawyer or a licensed agency familiar with visa and labour matters can assess your specific risk and options. If you are thinking of changing jobs, plan how your 9G and AEP will carry over to a new employer and arrange new sponsorship in good time; related issues are covered in whether a job title change needs a new AEP.

If you fear retaliation. If raising a compliance issue leads to a transfer, a pay cut or a threat of dismissal, keep everything in writing. For handling unfair treatment after asserting your rights, see retaliation after a labour complaint.

Do not stop working without a plan. Walking off the posting or refusing to report may itself become a disciplinary issue. Keep working while you raise the matter in writing, unless a lawyer advises otherwise, and make each decision with the record in hand.

Getting it straightened out, and how Yixing can help

The ideal outcome is that the company updates the registration, your documents match your actual work, and you know what to show if you are checked. The longer it drags on, the more exposed you are at renewal.

What the employee can do to help. When the company decides to update the AEP or notify the authorities, provide what is needed from you quickly, such as a description of the new workplace, the client project and your role. The faster the documents are ready, the faster the update goes through.

Keep the full record. Put the posting notice, your emails to the company, its replies and any receipts for the update application in one folder. They may be needed later when you renew or change jobs.

How Yixing can help. Yixing International Travel is registered with the Philippine SEC (CS202009551), holds Bureau of Immigration accreditation (BI Accreditation No. CA-202624381-1, valid to 30 June 2027), and is accredited by DOLE and the PRA. We help employers assess whether a posting requires an AEP and 9G update and prepare the documents, and we help employees understand their permits and draft a written note to the company; see our visa and HR services. We do not advise on any way around the rules and we do not promise approval; whether there is a mismatch is for the labour department and immigration to decide under current rules.

If you move to a new employer later, bring this folder with you; a clean history makes the next sponsorship easier to explain.

Consult a licensed lawyer about your individual case; this article is not legal advice.