Globalizing the professions

The other Sunday, I wrote on my vision for lawyers to (1) be ethical and competent, (2) safeguard the liberty and nurture the prosperity of our people, and (3) globalize their outlook and practice. Today, I will dwell on the globalization of all professions: accounting, architecture, dentistry, engineering, medicine, nursing, etc.

Globalization of services. The World Trade Organization (WTO), of which the Philippines is a member, has globalized not only trade and industry by breaking down tariffs and taxes that impede the free flow of goods, but also services by encouraging the free exchange of the professions and blue-collar labor worldwide.

The Philippines is a major beneficiary of the globalization of blue-collar labor. Over 10 million Filipinos are employed abroad and remitted $26 billion last year, thus keeping the Philippine economy bustling and growing at a pace second only to China.

On white-collar jobs (or professions), however, the story is a little different. Former Dean Andres D. Bautista of the Far Eastern University Institute of Law and one of 10 holders of the Chief Justice Panganiban Professorial Chairs on Liberty and Prosperity, pointed out in a recent lecture that our Constitution limits the practice of all professions to Filipino citizens, “save in cases prescribed by law,” and by implication also restricts our professionals from practicing in foreign countries that demand reciprocity.

Pursuant to the constitutional exception, Congress enacted Republic Act No. 8981 authorizing foreigners to practice here on a reciprocal basis, i.e., the laws of the countries of the foreign professionals “allow citizens of the Philippines to practice the profession on the same basis and grant the same privileges as those enjoyed by citizens of such foreign states.”

Also, our Labor Code allows “non-resident aliens” to work here “after a determination of non-availability of a person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing at the time of the application to perform the services for which the alien is desired.” In 2012, about 12,000 working permits for foreigners were issued.

Asean integration. The reciprocal exchange of professional practice is urgently required by the forthcoming integration of the 10 member-countries (including the Philippines) of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) next year. Asean’s 2015 vision is a single market where goods, investments, capital, skilled labor and services freely flow.

To prepare for this integration, Dean Bautista reported that the Philippines entered into “mutual recognition agreements” with Asean members for reciprocal professional practice by their citizens: engineering (on Dec. 9, 2005), nursing (Dec. 8, 2006), architecture and land surveying (both on Nov. 19, 2007), and medicine, dentistry and accounting (all on Feb. 26, 2009).

Borderline actual situations. Beyond Asean, Dean Bautista sketched some actual situations where borderline professional practice is already being done here, and I quote him:

(1) In architecture: “International hotel chain Shangri-La is planning to build a 6-star hotel in Fort Bonifacio. It engages Palmer & Turner which is a foreign architectural firm based in San Francisco but with a branch in Hong Kong. It also engaged a structural engineer, Ove Arup, as design consultant, [and] BTR Ltd., Davis Langdon and Seah as quality surveyor. Teams of foreign professionals visit the project site on a regular basis. It engages a local architectural firm, Recio & Casas, to sign the plans. After the hotel is built, it will be employing several expatriates: general manager, hotel manager, resident manager, chef, etc.”

(2) In accountancy: “Del Monte Philippines is looking to purchase the Del Monte Foods operations of its parent in the United States. To complete the purchase, it needs accounting and audit advice in respect of Del Monte US’ financial statements and condition. Bill Bailey, a US CPA, works as a consultant with Isla Lipana-PWC in the Philippines. Del Monte Philippines would like to engage the services of Mr. Bailey for purposes of providing advice on US accounting matters.”

(3) In medicine: “Senator X has been travelling to Germany on a regular basis to receive stem cell treatments in Dr. G’s clinic. Seeing the positive results in his physical demeanor, his classmates have become envious of him. To help them and at the same time save on costs, he suggests to Dr. G that he visit the Philippines and perform the treatments on 10 of his friends. The latter book 10 rooms at Edsa Shangri-La. They also share in the travel and accommodation expenses of Dr. G in Manila. Dr. G now visits Manila every quarter to perform such services.”

(4) In law: “Hong Kong-based energy developer Hopewell Holdings is building a $1.2-billion power plant in Sual, Pangasinan. Financing for the project will be provided by a consortium of export credit agencies such as the IFC and Jexim and international commercial banks. The loan documents will be governed by New York law. The HK developer engages the services of an international law firm, Clifford Chance, with offices in New York and Hong Kong whose lawyers regularly travel to Manila to negotiate the loan and security contracts.”

Questions: Are these foreigners (architects, accountants, doctors and lawyers) practicing their professions in the Philippines? If so, are they practicing legally? So asked 50-year-old Dean Bautista. Let us see what readers think of, and how they will react to, these real-life situations.

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