Senator Erwin T. Tulfo has filed Senate Bill No. 2053, known as the Free Professional Examinations Act, which seeks to waive licensure examination fees for qualified indigent graduates, according to a report by BusinessWorld .
The measure aims to alleviate the economic burden on poor graduates taking licensure exams administered by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). It covers all PRC-regulated professions and mandates that the state cover the examination costs for those who meet the indigency criteria set by the national government.
If enacted, the free exam policy is expected to remove a significant financial barrier for thousands of graduates from low-income families, helping them gain professional licenses and improve their employment prospects. The bill is currently pending before the Senate committee on civil service and government reorganization.