DESK REVIEW ON POPULATIONS AT RISK OF STATELESSNESS October 2020 by the House of Representatives,89 while Senate Bill 56 and 211290 are pending at the Committee level in the Senate. Passage of a foundling bill would codify judicial precedent and ensure ongoing consistency with the 1961 Statelessness Convention, and aligns with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022, National Action Plan to End Statelessness, the Philippines’ High-Level Segment on Statelessness pledge, and other relevant frameworks. A.5. Refugees and Stateless Persons The Philippines ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol in 1981 and acceded to the 1954 Statelessness Convention in 2011. There are legal provisions in the Immigration Act of 1940 as amended, that predate these ratifications and grant the President the authority to authorize admission for humanitarian reasons to “refugees,” and authorize the admission of quota immigrants “without nationality.” Under DOJ Circular No. 58, a Refugees and Stateless Persons Protection Unit (RSPPU) has been established and a procedure to identify and protect refugees and stateless persons is in operation. There is, however, a lack of a comprehensive law institutionalizing the Refugee and Stateless Status Determination (RSSD) Procedure and codifying the rights of persons of concern in the areas of protection, durable solutions, and access to services among others as found in relevant policies, rules, and regulations. National Policy and Legal Framework for Refugees and Stateless Persons on the Admission of Refugees and the RSSD Commonwealth Act No. 613, as amended, “the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940” Section 13: “…there may be admitted into the Philippines immigrants, termed “quota immigrants” not in excess of 50 of any one nationality or without nationality for any calendar year” Note: This authority has been delegated to the Secretary of Justice pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 830 series of 1975 and Letter of Instruction No. 47 dated 18 August 1976 and Administrative Order No. 142 series of 1994 Section 47(b) the President is authorized… “for humanitarian reasons, and when not opposed to the public interest, to admit aliens who are refugees for religious, political, or racial reasons, in such classes of cases and under such conditions as he may prescribe.” National Policy and Legal Framework for Refugees and Stateless Persons on the Admission of Refugees and the RSSD 89 House Bill 7679, Foundling Welfare Act, available at: http://www.congress.gov.ph/legisdocs/third_18/HBT7679.pdf. Senate Bill 56, Foundling Recognition Act, available at: http://legacy.senate.gov.ph/lisdata/3028627114!.pdf. Senate Bill 2112, Foundling Recognition and Protection Act, available at: http://legacy.senate.gov.ph/lisdata/3476031556!.pdf. 90 32 UNHCR / April 2021