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Earn A Living In The Philippines

July 31, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

This is a free announcement for ALL my readers.  You certainly don’t need to be an American to participate, or too succeed online.  Virtually every day someone calls me or emails me to ask … at times even beg … for information on making money in the Philippines, getting a job in the Philippines, earning a living in the Philippines and so on. 

The sad thing is, they are looking at the solution right in front of their face as they ask the question, ignoring the obvious answer, and usually ignoring my good faith advice.answer.

This Webinar (web seminar) is completely free.  It is also not any sort of commission, affiliate or tie-in deal for me … just in case you are afraid I am making money from it, put your mind at rest, I have no business relationship with Trump University.  I’ll tell you this as well. They likely will try to sell you something in return for their information.  That’s business.  So what, if you don’t want to buy, don’t.  But the information will be useful I know, Trump University is reputable and provides good value.

Why am I promoting it then, if I make nothing and you pay nothing?  Good question, easy answer.  You folks keep writing and calling me asking for what I can’t provide … a ‘J.O.B (stands for Just Over Broke) in the Philippines.  Don’t have one, don’t need one and don’t want one.  There are much better ways to make an honest living than a conventional job … start learning about what’s available and you may find something that “fits” you.  And especially for my Filipino readers … this is most certainly aimed in your direction as well … the idea that Filipinos can’t make money online in the Philippines is wrong.  But you do have to have enough initiative to learn and put proven techniques into practice.

Learn, explore succeed.

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Philippine Living — Bursting the Bubble

July 30, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Over the past few weeks I have been thinking about and researching a lot of what we who earn money online call niche markets.  In plain English this means finding an area where there are ‘hungry buyers’, people who want information or a product that will solve a problem they have, and more critically, finding people who not only want a product but are willing to get their credit card out and buy it … often two completely different things.

Contrary to what a lot of you may think, although I blog pretty frequently here on PhilFAQS and several other blogs, and because I operate all my blogs in some form of profit-making mode, you might think I am making a lot of money, blogging.

This would be wrong thinking.  Although some of my blogs make money, and PhilFAQS especially has really taken off this month, blogging is not at all my business focus online.

My focus is affiliate (commission) sales into ‘hungry’ niche markets.  And it doesn’t matter what the claptrap you hear every night on the US news pabulum parade tells you, the notion that there is actually a world-wide global economic crisis is to a large extent, pure hokum.  My online income has never been higher, and the opportunities have never been greater.

What would be a good guess why this is so?  Undoubtedly, there are a lot of reasons, many are likely over my head, and few of which I am qualified to explain properly … because economic genius I ain’t.

But one that pops up continually right here on my screen in front of me, in regard to the hungry markets’ I mentioned, are something I chose to call ‘bubbles’.

Especially since I left the US nearly three years ago, many of these artificial bubbles have grown and grown until I often wonder where my fellow American’s self-reliance and common sense has fled.  Is the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave nothing more than a nation of follow the leader wimps?  Are those just empty lyrics to an archaic song sung only at ball games?  Let me give you just a few examples to provoke some thought/discussion:

Single Family Homes:  Just recently I saw a comment from a friend also living here in the Philippines regarding comments/questions he gets frequently regarding the market value of his home here in the Philippines, mainly questions like ‘Has the bottom dropped out of the market here yet”?

His answer, and mine as well is, darned if I know.  I have no idea and basically no interest.  I rent the current home we live in and we are currently going to build our own home on land my wife owns in Zambales.  I think the rental house I am living in now had a notional ‘market value’ of around 2 million Pesos back in 2006, and I think a notional market value for the house today is about the same.  I pay less than $150 a month rent.  In terms of many US houses it isn’t much.  But in terms of a place to live it has every thing we could need.  About 1,000 square feet, bathroom, two kitchens (clean and dirty) or (inside and outside on the screened in back patio), living/dining area, driveway that will hold two or three cars, fruit trees, fenced, gated lot, and that’s about it.  The house is very solidly built with reinforced hollow block and reinforced concrete … been here more than 30 years though a hundred or so typhoons and at least one huge earthquake. 

(every time I see a storm damage report from the US, I wind up wondering how long the government will accept the sub-standard construction that is the US norm … many newer houses in the US are nothing more than stapled together undersized 2 x 4s and composition (cardboard) sheathing.  You could not build the average US home in most countries of the world, including the Philippines … it wouldn’t meet code.)

We have two rooms air-conditioned … master bedroom and the back bedroom I use as blog central, and I really want for absolutely nothing.

I’ll tell you what I don’t have compared to most Americans … mortgage, home owners insurance or any other single debt, whatsoever.  No debt.  nada.  Not a thing.  Would I trade this for an over-leveraged 3,000 square foot sticks and particle board ‘executive manor’ tract house in the states with a 30 year mortgage,  $3,000 a tear property taxes and all the other ‘must haves’ so many Americans think they need to keep up with the Jones?  “No way, Jose.”  The only thing you have that I don’t is debt and obligations.

I know a lady here, living in the Philippines, who was widowed at a relatively young age.  Her husband left her several small income producing properties.  Over the years she has built several more and now has a small ‘empire’ of income producing properties.  She paid for each properties with income from the ones before … she has no debt!

Now she, herself, lives in a quite nice 2 storey, 4 bed town home in a relatively expensive Manila suburb.  She bought her nice personal residence as a gift to herself to be comfortable in her golden years … but she will be the first to advise anyone who asks to avoid going in debt for any single-family property.  Buying a single-family house is not an investment, it’s incurring an obligation to sweat the rest of your life, for the benefit of other people,  working at the massive air pump that keeps the ‘bubble’ inflated.

Car Insurance:  This came to mind the other day when I looked at some income producing offers I was thinking of prompting on a new affiliate site.  There are companies out there that will pay ridiculous amounts just to get a prospects’ zip code and pump out an insurance quote.  Also payments like $70 or $100 USD just to get a sucker prospect to fill up a car insurance application.

In my high school years I worked in the auto repair industry.  A huge segment of the US economy if built around a gigantic bubble of automotive protective services’.  Another gigantic, over-priced, every increasing bubble. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I don’t advise people to go without insurance, if their car has the value to warrant it.  My three year old car is long paid for so I don’t need to carry insurance, but it’s still a very good vehicle, valued by the insurance company at about PhP 700,000 … or about $14,500 USD at today’s rate.  I chose to carry insurance because if the car gets stolen or totaled I have some cash to plunk down for a replacement.

What does that insurance cost me, considering the crazy driving environment here in the Philippines … and the special ‘foreigner prices’ everyone always talks about?  About $225 a year .. not a month, a year.  Considering, in my experienced driver point of view, the risks of loss here in the Philippines are certainly higher than in the US, why could reputable car insurance be so cheap here?

Maybe because those companies who want to pay me $70 for a single applicant aren’t Philippine companies.  there is no insurance “bubble” here, no screeching ads on TV, or “Give us 15 minutes, we’ll save you 15%” come on offers.  There’s just a little quiet company who writes policies for those who ask and every year mails me a renewal notice.  The hyped up US insurance \industry’ (a huge campaign funding source for politicians of all ‘flavors’, needs it’s “bubble burst” in my opinion too.

OK,this is already long enough.  But there are many more artificial needs and “bubbles” back there in the US I could write about.  What’s you favorite molehill made into a mountain?

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Filed Under: Live There

Living in the Philippines on $770 a Month — Part 2

July 28, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

An interesting discussion seems to have come up here about living in the Philippines on $770 USD per month.  A reader on another venue asked me my opinion as to him living here in the Philippines on US $770 a month and my response was, “well, not knowing how many people you are talking about, your ‘money smarts’ in general or the level of convenience you call ‘normal’ or ‘modest’ in your life, it might be problematical.

Some great comments from reader Paul and others have kind if pointed out to me that the fellow is not as far off the mark with a $770 income as my first reaction might indicate.  If you look at some of the articles I have written on the cost of living in the Philippines in 2009 and deduct the amounts I spend on car maintenance and savings (which a number of folks have told me they don’t think should be included), my wife and I are living a pretty decent lifestyle on close to $770 a month, USD.

I was reminded recently that perhaps I ought to be a little more ‘slack’ on what I thought was adequate or ‘safe enough’ buy a post from a blogging associate of mine what has nothing to do with the Philippines directly, but really pointed out just how bad things are getting in the US … we Americans living in the Philippines are pretty isolated from what’s going on back home, it seems.

The reason I chose to take note of my friend Don’s blog is because I have seen so much hand-wr9inging over dramatization on my rare glimpses of US media that I was automatically tuning things out.  But Don is a down-to-earth guy like me, with no political or economic axe to grind, and like me a long-time Federal employee living on a comfortable pension … the kind that Federal workers don’t get any more.  I’ll excerpt a couple paragraph’s from Don’s blog, you ought to read the whole thing as well, if you want some interesting views on what might be wrong or right back there in the US of A:

211 – No, that isn’t tonight’s numbers for the lottery. It’s a new telephone number, along the lines of 411 for information. 211 is for information also. It’s run by United Way of Georgia and is for information on how to survive poverty in Georgia.
I was riding around looking for something to photograph (I’m still struggling with digital photography) and I was listening to WPBA — Atlanta’s Public Radio station. They had a program on about Georgia’s mortgage crisis. Georgia’s economy is in the dumps too but the mortgage problem is among the worst in the country. As the program said, Georgia is a “non-traditional” State when it comes to bankruptcy. In short, banks have had their way with the State regulators. Good for mortgage companies. Bad for consumers. And — as it turns out — bad for Georgia. Who would have thunk it ?
Anyway, if you find yourself in the ranks of the newly poor, take note. This service was started just for you. It turns out that a lot of people are entering poverty for the first time and they don’t know where to turn. They don’t know who to call for help when they lose their job and can’t pay their mortgage. That, of course, ruins their credit rating which means no one will rent them an apartment. Hopefully they won’t get sick too because I’m sure they lost their health insurance at work (or can’t afford to pay it if they’ve lost their house.) …

Wow is about all I can say.  As mentioned, Don is no alarmist.  His article made me realize just how many things I have to be thankful for living here in the Philippines:

  • … they lose their job:  Don’t have to worry about that, I work for myself and I don’t need a job.  I can not be laid off or fired, and I don’t have to go to any particular work location or be at anyone’s beck and call, except for that of the livestock on or nascent farm.  Pigs are much easier to deal with than people.
  • … can’t pay their mortgage:  Ain’t got one of those either.  Don’t intend to have one.  I sold out of the real estate bubble in the US in 2005.  Anyone who couldn’t see it coming could not read a high school text book on economics.  I feel sorry for those who have hung on, thinking that a home is an investment.  It is a beast and a burden, pure and simple.  I rent a perfectly adequate 3 bedroom house here in the outskirts of Manila for about $146 USD per month (there are more houses available at those sort of rates as well), tell me why I would want to go back into the abyss of debt, hoping property values will climb and make me rich?  No thinks.
  • … ruins their credit rating: Ain’t got one of those, either.  Well, yes of course I do, but it means absolutely nothing here in the Philippines.  Philippine banking secrecy laws are stronger even than Switzerland’s and there is no sharing of information.  I don’t know what my FICO score was in 2006 when I moved here, and I have no idea what it is today … why on earth should I care?  I have no debt.  I pay cash.  Highly recommended.
  • … no one will rent them an apartment: See the comment above.  Here renting an apartment involves convincing the landlord you have a source of income and will pay him.  First month, last month and one month security deposit is the norm.  Period.  Many rental deals and other debt arrangements here are handled with post dated checks (really they are “pre-dated” checks, but why be a stickler for the meaning of words … it’s Filipino English and we are, after all, living in the Philippines) … you write a year’s worth of checks, written for the correct payment dates in future months and the landlord deposits them as time passes.  I don’t care for the practice itself, and since I have no Philippine checking account the point is moot.  I hand my landlord’s agent 7 PhP 1,000 notes on the fifth of every month, he hands me back a receipt with a smile and that is that.
  • … lost their health insurance at work:  Well my wife and I are blessed with good health, but it is inevitable that we are going to have medical bills sooner or later.  I had an excellent health insurance program based on my Federal employment (I can’t believe how hard people in the US are fighting to keep from getting under a decently run government plan, but the health care lobby certainly is still a huge force engaged in picking America’s pockets … hope you wake up from the dream someday soon.)  Anyway, I sad I ‘had’ the plan but technically it is in ‘suspended status’ right now … in case something happens that I might have to go back to the US.  In the meantime, I pay cash.  Medical care is cheap.  My plan would cost $169 USD a month this year, way more than my rent, and I pay so little for doctor’s visits now I have no need.  There is also government health insurance here for Filipinos and their spouses that runs about $2 USD per month, and commercial plans from familiar carriers like Blue Cross (Philippines) that are very cheap for the options that cover care in the Philippine sonly. 

All in all, as I said, my wife (who is also a US citizen … we are living in the Philippines by choice, not because of immigration issues) and I have a lot to be thankful for.  And when I look at our bank accounts this year versus what the balances were three years ago, we have even more to be thankful for.

Sounds like things are much worse than I thought back in the USA … moving to the Philippines to make a ’soft landing’  may not turn
out to be your best choice, but I certainly think you ought to give it serious, objective consideration.  There’s a lot more available here than a silly ‘211’ number.

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Filed Under: Live There Tagged With: , ,

Real Filipinos — Ramon Magsaysay – Part 1

July 27, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

A while back I published some articles on the ‘real Filipinos’ which pleased me, at least, greatly.  I recently came across some very well done biographical material, thanks to the US Army History Center, on one of my personal heroes and a Filipino whose life is worth knowing about, I think.  Sadly, you won’t find this material anywhere online in the Philippines … although there was never so much as a hint of scandal attached to his name, and although he was the only Filipino president to die without multiple mansions, wealth and prestige gained at the expense of his fellow Filipinos, there is little known or mention about Ramon (The Guy) Magsaysay in day to day life here.  You won’t even find him on a bank note,  the anniversary of his birth and death are seldom noted, and I personally think it’s a shame .. so rather than complain, I will inform … my readers can for their own judgment:

Ramon Magsaysay

Born the son of a village school teacher in the small village of Iba, the capital of Zambales Province and in the very shadow of Mount Pinatubo, Ramon Magsaysay spent his formative years surrounded by the people of central Luzon. When Ramon was six years old, he learned about honesty and integrity from his father, who lost his teaching job in the public school when he refused to pass the school superintendent’s son in his carpentry class. Outcast by the community, the Magsaysay family moved to Castillejas, where his father set up a small carpentry and blacksmith shop to support the family. His father’s example took root in Ramon and remained a cornerstone of his personality throughout his life.

Ramon entered Zambales Academy, an equivalent to high school, at the age of thirteen and graduated as salutatorian. In 1927, he enrolled in the Academy of Liberal Arts at the University of the Philippines but was forced to leave because of poor health. After recovering his health, Magsaysay transferred to Jose Rizal College, from which he was graduated in 1932 with a degree in commerce. The only job he could find was as a mechanic at the Try Transportation Bus Company in Manila. Within a few years, he rose to become the company’s general manager. At the outbreak of World War II, he quit his position in Manila and joined the Philippine 31st Infantry Division.

After the fall of Bataan, Magsaysay joined a USAFFE (United States Army Forces in the Far East) guerrilla unit. Commissioned at the grade of captain, he served as G-1, supply officer, was promoted to major, and eventually became the commander of the Zambales Military District, responsible for the actions of nearly 10,000 USAFFE fighters in the area near Mount Pinatubo. His prowess as a military commander became well known and resulted in the Japanese placing a 100,000 peso bounty on his life. (at that time, when a US Army private was paid a whopping $21 a month, base pay, this would be equivalent to $50,000 USD, perhaps more like $10,000,000 USD in 2009 dollars). In February 1945, General MacArthur appointed Major Magsaysay the military governor of Zambales due to his honesty, integrity, and ability. During his tenure as military governor he became an outspoken champion for veteran rights and impressed the local population with his dedication to improving their life. A year later, President Roxas asked him to join the Liberal Party and run for a congressional seat in the November election.

Magsaysay refused initially, stunning the president, but relented when he was presented a petition signed by 11,000 of his men asking him to run for Congress. Despite his personal differences with Roxas, whose policies Magsaysay saw as favoring only the rich, his men convinced him that he could best help the country by joining the government. He resigned his commission and won a seat in the Philippine House of Representatives with the largest popular margin in Zambales history.  (Part 2 next week)

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Filed Under: Editorials Tagged With: , ,

Live In The Philippines On $770 Dollars A Month?

July 23, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

It’s Thursday again, time, as always for some Philippine living questions and answers.  Recently I had a reader pop this question out to me .. can I live in the Philippines for $770 a month?  Hmm interesting question.  And quite easy to answer:  Yes, No or Maybe.

“Come on Dave, that’s not a helpful answer” I can hear many of you saying.  True, but it is about the only definitive answer I can give.

Mr. Franklin - El Señor Franklin
Creative Commons License photo credit: Tetsumo

I’ve written dozens and dozens of articles on the cost of living here in the Philippines … even including exact details of what my wife and I spend, specifically.  That gives one set of real and true figures.  You can read more in this “What Things Cost in the Philippines” article, as a starting point. (Hint:  Read the related articles listed at the end of the blog post … they actually do lead to further information ;-) ).

But what my wife and I spend to live life pretty much the way we want to has very little to do with how much another couple chooses to spend.  Just the simplest and most basic needs, like shelter can vary a lot.

We pay about $140 USD a month, just outside Metro Manila (by just outside, I mean a 24 peso Jeepney ride to the LRT/MRT, and thus anywhere in the main areas of Manila for less than a US dollar.).

I know of couples who lived for months on the Subic Special Economic Zone (the former Subic Bay US Navy base) for $90 a month … a single room in former US Navy bachelor officer quarters …  and they were very comfortable there while they waited out a legal matter they had to come to fruition.

There are high-end condos almost within site of where we live that routinely rent for $1,800 to $2,000 USD per month … and the renters who are living in them seem to be happy with the deal they made … certainly I won’t say a word against them … if they are happy, I am happy.

Hmm … $90 USD per month, $2,000 USD per month, how can you make a price out of that?

The short answer is, you really can’t.  What you who are reading this want for yourself and your family (and how much you are willing to pay) is undoubtedly different from the very next ‘you’ who reads these words, as well as what I want for myself and my family.  Asking me to tell you what you need to spend is a bit like asking me how long is a piece of string … it depends.

Another thing which ‘depends’ a lot is if the person asking the %770 question is married or single, and if married, if the spouse is Filipino or Former Filipino.  I could live here very nicely as a single man .. but I sure couldn’t live as cheaply as I do thanks to the diligent efforts, top quality Filipino education and downright ‘street smarts’ of my dear wife.

In summary I’d say this to the $770 USD question on living in the Philippines:

Yes, you certainly can.  Millions and millions of Filipinos live here for less than the equivalent of $770 USD per year for goodness sake.

But the question you would have to ask yourself is, would you have the guts to do so, personally?  This is a hard country to be poor in … people who are poor in US terms, on welfare or unemployment or Food Stamps (wow, what a concept they would be in the Philippines) are rich in Philippine terms … only you can figure that out for yourself.

And as a piece of unsolicited advice, why on earth would you want to live … anywhere … on only $770 USD per month?  Get yourself into the portable income club … I write a lot on earning an income online and many other people do as well … here’s one guy who has been earning his income online for years whom I know well I recommend.

In my opinion, $770 USD per month is living way, way too “close to the bone” in any country … I’d suggest you make yourself a better income, no matter where you choose to live.  Belive me, you’ll be glad you did.

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Filed Under: Live There

Foreign Exchange Philippines

July 21, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Thanks for sticking with me folks.  I’m on the road and time and connectivity are spotty.  I’ll be home tonight and things will hopefully get back to normal.  In the meantime this site has had it’s highest single-day readership ever … wow, thanks to everyone for visiting.  I try not to flog too many things here on this site, but there is so much interest in this forex … (Foreign Exchange) subject that I thought this course might be useful to some. (Note, no it is not free, but it’s solid info and it is 100% guaranteed, so if you want to learn how money is made in ForEx (and do better than I have been doing "flying blind" you might want to look.)

Some months back my friend Bob posted an article on how we think, currency-wise, while living here in the Philippines.  Bob posed the question, do you think in Dollars )or Euros or Pounds or Yen or???) or do you think in Pesos? The answer is quite definitive.  Yes!

“What do you mean, yes, Dave”? I can already here a few folks saying … “which one is it”?  Well the truth is, you can live say in the US for years and never even give another country’s currency a thought, but if you live here in the Philippines and your income, your savings, your real estate or even just someone you send Christmas cards to are in your home country, you are thinking “foreign exchange’ virtually every day.

Many are going to say, foreign exchange?  That’s complex, that’s big money, high-en investor stuff, not for me.  It is true that many big market players work the foreign exchange (or forex) market for a source of income.  And it’s big, larger by far than any one country’s stock market.  The forex market is also the most world-wide .. the forex trading day starts with the opening of the new Zealand exchange (Sunday night US time) and runs until Saturday night US.  6 days awake, rain or shine, almost every day of the year except perhaps New Years.And what does this market do?  Easy of course, it changes money from one currency to another, right? 

Well, not exactly.  Technically there is no such think as changing or exchanging currently.  You have currency of one country and you want currency of another country, you sell the currency you have and you buy the currency you want to wind up with.  It’s buying and selling, just like stocks or making a living with used cars.  The difference between Forex and almost any other market is, you never convert what yore selling into cash and then hand over the cash for something you want to buy … you sell your (for example) US dollars to a currency exchange in the Philippines who buys them from you for an agreed number of Pesos per dollar.

You can make this sort of transaction at almost any bank, at large shopping malls (one of the reasons the SM chain of stor4es is well-liked is they have easy and fast currency exchange windows and they give fair and decent rates, so you don’t have to deal with street vendors and other shady money changing characters (whom I do not recommend).  You are always thinking in both dollars and pesos here in the Philippines.  Here’s a little practical example example.

Foreign Exchange Loss A few weeks ago my wife and I bought a piece of furniture.  Came up to about P18,000.  On the day we bought it, I could have walked downstairs in the mall to my bank and withdrawn Philippine Pesos from my Peso Savings account, or I could have withdraw US Dollars from my Dollar Savings account and sold those dollars for pesos, or I could have done 9as we decided to do on that day) charge the purchase on our Philippine pesos credit card.  

Mainly for convenience, we charged it.  Now I kept in my mind the fact I needed P18,000 sometimes before the 27th of this month, when the credit card has to be paid off to avoid interest payments.  So I watched my favorite tool, Yahoo’s currency page until I judged that the peso was likely as high against the dollar as it was likely to go before the 27th … in other words, when I could buy the most pesos with each of my US dollars.  I made the move last Friday, for several non-financial reasons (such as we’re going on a trip for a few days).

Went to the bank, withdrew $1,500.00 US Dollars (I needed Pesos for a bunch of other reasons too) and asked the teller to give me the money in Pesos. I signed two other pieces of paper aside from my withdrawal slip, to comply with Philippine central bank regulations, and my teller handed my my Pesos in short order.

On Friday my bank was offering to ‘sell’ Pesos at 47.905  and so the teller handed me P71,857.5 … a nice healthy stack of P1000 notes … the largest bill in the Philippines.  Simple, quick, easy, but profitable?  Not very.  Check the chart and see where the Peso/Dollar rate was on Monday of that week.  I could have gotten P72,607.5 if I had bought Pesos then .. the difference?  750 Pesos.  A difference of a bit over $15 USD.  Not all that much of a loss, but if you consider that P750 would pay my monthly cable bill and my cell phone bill for the whole month of July, I really timed my move wrong.

A lot of folks tell me, oh that exchange stuff all to complex for me, I don’t even think in Pesos … well fine … everyone should think as they like, but if you choose to live here, you’ll pay close attention to both dollars and pesos .. or your bank account balances will do it for you.

Essentially I have found that in this world you have to learn in order to earn, and you learn nothing for nothing.  (Note, no it is not free, but it’s solid info and it is 100% guaranteed, so if you want to learn how money is made in ForEx (and do better than I have been doing "flying blind" you might want to look.)

Popularity: 25% [?]

Filed Under: Foreign Exchange

Living in the Philippines — Recession? What Recession?

July 18, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

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Filed Under: Investing There

Philippine Living – Good News Potpourri

July 15, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

A couple “catch up” news items today plus a shout out to a couple Philippine government agencies trying to do a good job in providing useful resources to foreigners and Philippine citizens alike.

Philippine Embassy in Dublin opens Temporary Office

Posted: 14 Jul 2009 03:26 AM PDT

Philippine - Ireland EmbassyPR-536-09, 14 July 2009 – Philippine Ambassador to Ireland Ariel Y. Abadilla reported to the Department of Foreign Affairs that the Philippine Embassy has opened its temporary office in Dublin on 9 July 2009.

The temporary office is located at the Fitzwilliam Business Centre, Suite G03, 77 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2. Its temporary business hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays to Fridays, except on Philippine and Irish holidays.

In opening the first resident Philippine Embassy in Ireland this month of July, Ambassador Abadilla noted that July is also the same month when diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Ireland was formalized 25 years ago.

As part of the transition process, the Philippine Honorary Consul in Dublin Mr. John Ferris had his last consular clinic on July 11 at the Teacher’s Club on Parnell Square West, Dublin. Mr. Ferris will also be at the new office.

Ambassador Abadilla announced that the public can now transact regular business at the new temporary office starting July 13, when the Embassy begins consular and frontline operations….

So why do we care that the Philippines now has a ‘real’ embassy in Ireland?  Well almost every day here I listen to mindless babbling about “Pinoy Pride” … often centered on some sport’s figure’s latest exploits …or the amount of money that sports figure spends overseas, once again reinforcing the impression that the only reason there even are any Filipinos living in the Philippines is that they are the ones too poor to flee.

Those who hail from “first world” countries might as yourself “when is the last time my country opened a new embassy and confirmed formal diplomatic relations with another country?  Not that it doesn’t happen, but frankly I think formalizing and normalizing relations between countries is a lot more an object of pride than crowing about who won a pool championship or what Pinot prodigy got to appear on Oprah, the unofficial epitome of Pinoy achievement it seems.

Anyway, regardless of your thoughts on what constitutes something to take pride in, notice that this news item came directly to my mail box, as such news does each and every day from the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (same-same State Department).  You might want to visit their well-run web site.  Ever try to get up to the minute news from most ‘first world’ counties government departments?

BI_Visa_Page Another agency foreigners deal with frequently is the Philippine Bureau of Immigration.  Look at the slice I took from the Immigrant Visa page of their website.  For years I have searched various pages for some of this info, helped other on sometime fruitless searches as well.  Now they put it all on one page … just press on the tab which corresponds to the visa you want to know about, and all the facts and procedures are right there for you.  In addition, in the sidebar, there is a link to download all forms required (these have been cut down greatly as well), read, download, fill up, and go to the BI office … doesn’t get much simpler than that.  Try finding  a page this well organized on the USCIS website … sometimes “third-world” can be just as “first-world” as they want to be.

There is also a”Help Desk” on the BI web site.  Got a question you can’t find an answer to regarding Immigration issues?  Just click on the help desk and leave an email message … guess what, they answer their email and provide helpful, personalized answers.  once again, your concept will be different than mine, but I submit here’s some real Pinoy Pride on display here … doing the job you get paid for and making government services available to the public.  Hat’s off.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Filed Under: Phils Editorals Tagged With: , ,

Philippine Jobs— Have You Recognized Your Job Abuse Problem Yet?

July 14, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Let me set the stage for this one by reviewing a few things many of you already know about me.  This blog is something like a part of a 12 Step program for me … you know the organizations like AA and Addicts Anonymous and others that try to help people stay away from harmful addictions?

The Portrait of a Worker
Creative Commons License photo credit: Abhisek Sarda

For forty-odd years I suffered from a severe addiction … I was addicted to a job.  Now, I am free, and there is no evangelist like a new convert as they say, so some of you, who haven’t realized your addiction yet, may want to skip on to another article.

Most of my readers are US or other westerners, but I welcome and value my growing Filipino readership as well.  Although a big part of this article is about advice I gave a US-based reader, this article is especially appropriate for Filipinos as well … if you want straight from the shoulder advice.  My skills at delicadeza are limited and I don’t spend much time trying to improve them.

I am prompted to write articles like this frequently because no matter how many times I write on this subject, I invariably get email that says ‘please help me find a job in the Philippines’, or ‘how can I move to the Philippines and earn a living there’.  Apparently I write more poorly than I imagine, because a great many readers just don’t get the message.

Don’t send me email about how to find a job in the Philippines.  Is that direct enough for you?  Borders on bastos, doesn’t it?  Well, I meant it to, because frankly, if you are not going to read what I write, I can’t help you.

In the early 1960’s when I first got a ‘job’ it was probably an OK thing to do.  I had dropped out of high school (and glad that I did, by the way … I later got a HS degree, but the 3 years I wasted in that losing proposition were some of the worst in my life … a story for another day).  Anyway, if hadn’t have gotten a steady job the odds are today my address would be in Trenton State Prison, because I was definitely headed down the wrong path.  A year or so after I got a real ‘job’, I got an even more ‘real one’, courtesy of my local Draft Board and the USAF.  Why I stayed forty plus years, and the pros and cons during that time are a whole ‘nother story … my point right now is, things in 2009 are not the same at all as when your parents got out of school, they certainly aren’t the same as when your grandparents got out of school which is when I first got exposed to my addiction.

In 2009 I think a J,O.B. (Just Over Broke) is pretty much a bad idea.  It is very much akin to smoking that first cigarette … can lead to a lifetime addiction and in today’s world it is often a financially liability, long term.

Here’s a little excerpt from what someone recently wrote, and my response:

Message: … I am xx, my Filipina wife is xx with a degree in business mgmt and I have no skills, just some experience in airline station mgmt and law enforcement, transportation etc.

==>> You’ll have to forgive me if I confess I chuckled when I read your sentence above.  “I have no skills”.  Proof as always that we are consistently our own worst critic and the poorest judges of our own value.  Airline station manager?  Do you know how many airlines in Asia, most assuredly including the Philippines, are opening new routes each and every month?  The airline business is booming here and every place they open a route to needs what?  Station staff and managers.  …

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to sound as if I am picking on this reader, I was glad to get his message, and I wrote a lot more back to him than I am sharing here.   But can you see what I mean about what caused me to chuckle>

“I have no skills”.  If I had a dollar for every time I have heard that in the past couple years I could just shut down everything else I am doing and really retire rich.

Everyone reading this has some marketable skills.  The question is, will you make a 2009 type decision and decide to capitalize on them, or will you make a 1969 decision and wait around hoping against hope someone will offer you a J.O.B?

Myself, I think the answer is easy … but I guess I am doing a poor job of explaining it.

And now for those who read this far and say, “But Dave, that man is so lucky, I really don’t have any highly technical skills, such as being an airline station manager”.  My answer is, “Hmm, you don’t, really”?

let me ask you this.  What language are you reading this article in and what language do you normally use in daily conversation?  About 90+ percent of you are going to answer English, are you not?

I wrote about this place some time back, apparently almost no one read it.  How a guy in Ten Sleep Wyoming *(yes, it is on the map but you have to look pretty close ;-) is carving out a real presence in a huge, literally huge market while he earns a living for himself and along the way provides a living for a lot of other folks who share the one skill he needs, they speak conversational English.  I just looked today and found this follow-up that indicates the company is doing even better than it was when I first wrote about them.  You might want to read the article, if you really want to know ways to make a living anywhere.

I’ll wind this up by relating something my wife just told me less than a minute ago … changed my whole closing paragraph instantly ;-) .  I was going to relate how a classmate of my wife’s was working at a pretty decent on-line job for a Filipino company based in Baguio who was doing essentially the same thing as http://www.eleutian.com/, the folks in Wyoming I mentioned.  Well as I was writing the friend emailed my wife to say she had given up the language school to accept a full-time position with a call center in Baguio, teaching English to call center agents … and by the way she had accumulated a bunch of business translation (English to Tagalog) work that came to her because of her English speaking online work, and would my wife be interested in taking that on?

Imagine that?  Getting paid to translate English to Tagalog?  Can you imagine how very few Filipinos would be able to handle that?  Only say 30 or 40 million or so ;-)

So, yet again, the real world examples come in to me day after day … there are many ways to earn a living while living in the Philippines or in any other country in 2009, and a great many of them are not a conventional “dirt based” J.O.B.  The question to ask yourself is, what century are you living in, and will you take advantage of opportunity rather than plod along doing the same thing grandfather did?

By the way, how many read this post and how many have signed up, at no cost or obligation to learn more?

Popularity: unranked [?]

Filed Under: Phils Business Tagged With: ,

Living in the Philippines — A Green Card is Not a Visitor’s Visa

July 13, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Many of my readers either already have, or plan in the future to become quite well acquainted with the United States Permanent Resident Cara, commonly known as the “Green Card”.  Many folks I have chatted with in the past 10 or 11 years of being intimately interested in moving to the Philippines, living in the Philippines, bringing a Philippine citizen to the US, and other related matters, do not know much about this card, legal permanent residency status itself, and the rules, both written and unwritten that apply.

And, of course, why would many of you?  If you were born a US citizen, you already hold the right of residency from birth and all you know about the Green card comes from movies and bad jokes about Mexican illegal’s.

United States Permanent Resident Card A United States Permanent Resident Card, also known as a green card, is an identification card attesting to the permanent resident status of an alien in the United States of America. Green card also refers to an immigration process of becoming a permanent resident. The green card serves as proof that its holder, a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR), has been officially granted immigration benefits, which include permission to reside and take employment in the USA. The holder must maintain permanent resident status, and can be removed from the US if certain conditions of this status are not met.

Green cards were formerly issued by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). That agency has been absorbed into and replaced by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Shortly after re-organization BCIS was renamed to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

An alien with a green card application can obtain two important permits while the case is pending. The first is a temporary work permit known as the Employment Authorization Document (EAD), which allows the alien to take employment in the United States. The second is a temporary travel document, advance parole, which allows the alien to re-enter the United States. Both permits confer benefits that are independent of any existing status granted to the alien. For example, the alien might already have permission to work in the United States under an H1-B visa. … a lot more factual information on the United States Permanent Resident Card from Wikipedia:

The most common way many of you become acquainted with the Green card is when a Philippine citizen is authorized to enter the US on a Fiancée Visa (K1 or K2) and then marries the US citizen who sponsor him or her.  The Fiancée visa holder may then apply for Permanent Residency in the US and eventually qualifies for a Green card.

Many folks I have talked to over the years never think any farther than this into the future.  They travel along in life figuring that once the US citizen spouse is issued his or her Green Card they can then live together in the US for as long as they wish.  If that is their real intention, they are right.  A permanent resident can stay in the US as long as s/he wishes and has most of the same rights and privileges as a US citizen.  They can work legally, travel unrestricted within the US, travel outside the US under certain conditions, and, of course, pay taxes.  Green Card holders are 100% subject to the rules of US taxation, which means reporting all income from inside or outside the US, no matter where they reside.  (Notice I said reporting, they may escape paying tax on certain income, as a citizen may also, but the declaration requirement is there.)

One big issue I see people running afoul of time and time again is travel.  Their plan is to travel often, or even continuously between the US, the Philippines and even other countries as well once the Philippine spouse gets LPR (Green card) status.  Up to a point they can do this, but that point is an ever shifting line in the sand, and every year since 2001, that line has become more and more restrictive. 

The USCIS’s rule regarding the Green Card is that it is a certificate to show LPR status for those, and only those, who actually are full-time permanent residents of the US.  A Green card holder can travel outside the US with a certain degree of freedom, but many folks I know skirt perilously close to the edge in their Green Card use.  Remember the Green Card can be confiscated by any USCIS officer who believes fraud is being committed and the USCIS can revoke the LPR status essentially ‘at will”.  The USCIS has stated many times that the Green Card is not a permanent multi-entry visa for entering the US and the specifically watch for this.  Every single trip outside the US puts the Green Card holder’s LPR status in some degree of jeopardy.  In particular:

  • “Frequent international travel”.  Is that statement obscure enough to suit you?  What constitutes “frequent” travel?  It is not in writing anywhere, it is basically at the discretion of the USCIS.
  • “Travel outside the US for one year or longer”.  In general this is considered automatic abandonment of LPR status.  So some folks take the view that as long as they return to the US once each year they are safe.  That’s where the ‘frequent’ issue crops up.  (a LPR may travel outside the US for up to two years if s/he applies for a reentry Permit before leaving the US … Reentry Permits can’t be applied for after the fact,from outside the US.)
  • It is very common for those abroad for even as long as 6 months now to be taken aside, questioned and warned at Ports of Entry,  Repeatedly drawing attention to oneself this way is likely a bad idea.
  • Failure to demonstrate real and viable US residency.  Some things the USCIS considers evidence of US residency are:
    • Filing US tax returns, year after year
    • Filing state tax returns (if the state of residency requires then)
    • Holding a valid driver license or state ID document
    • Owning a motor vehicle, registered in a US state
    • Having proof of insurance on that car
    • Having a current US health insurance plan
    • Owning or leasing residential properly in the US.
    • Paying US utility bills
    • Paying US property taxes
    • Having current US bank accounts.
    • Having current US-based credit cards billed to a U
      S address

You get the idea I think.  Bottom line is, don’t plan your life to be a ‘sometimes’ resident of the US on nothing more than LPR (Green card) status, coming and going at will as a US citizen is allowed to do.  It may be a much better bet for a legal resident to apply for and gain US citizenship (Naturalization) and remove all these issues from his/her life.  Planning to be a ’world traveler’ on nothing but a US Green Card puts you on shaky ground.  Don’t treat the Green Card like a Visitors visa.

Note:  None of this is to be construed as legal advice.  A lawyer I am not, and your cousin Freddie who does wills and small claims court cases for the folks at the local nursing home may not know much about US immigration law, either.  If you do need legal advice, or representation, I recommend  Attny Michael Gurfinkel.  I have personal knowledge of help he has given to US and Filipino clients and he has offices in the US and in Manila.  (I have no connection with attorney Gurfinkel and I don’t get remunerated for these recommendations, by the way)

Popularity: 4% [?]

Filed Under: Visas Tagged With: , , ,

Do You Want To Earn a Living Where You Choose, Or Do You Want To Sit and Watch?

July 12, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Some months ago I recall writing about these folks and getting virtually no feedback at all, good or bad.  One gentleman wrote to take me to task for promoting a free seminar because it required calling in, he didn’t want to pay toll charges, and he didn’t want to bother using the totally free VOIP service I recommended to avoid an toll charges.  I’m guessing perhaps he wanted someone to come by and spoon feed him the answers.  I don’t do that.

The Portable lifestyle teleseminar

I do, however, have the answer to that perennial question about how you can earn a living in the Philippines, or in any other country you choose … you can find out if it is for you by simply attending a free, online seminar that will be held, especially for you, right in the privacy of your own home.  You will, sorry to, have to provide your own spoon ;-)

Let me ask you a couple questions ….

 

  • Have you lost your job?
  • Are you worried about layoffs or cutbacks?
  • Are you ‘stuck in a rut’ in your present work, with younger, better educated folks passing you buy?
  • Hate your boss or the daily commenting grind to get to a boring place for yet another day?
  • Wishing you were living in the Philippines with someone you love, perhaps, earning a Western-standard living?
  • Envious of people who seem to be able to travel the world, staying only in places they enjoy?

Well, if you answered “Yes” to one or more of these questions, you really need to take an hour or so out of your busy schedule and join a free informational seminar from a clever couple I have come to know quite well.

http://www.theportablelifestyle.com/primer’>Jon Tompkins & Kathryn Alice are married with four children. They have been traveling internationally for almost 2 years, spending more than a month in each of 11 tropical countries. They run successful internet businesses as well as a consulting business. It took them just a few months to get ready to go, and they have already shepherded others into this lifestyle. Accomplished speakers and writers, they have co-created bestselling products together and their work has been featured in Psychology Today, Parade, The New York Times, Body+Soul, Newsweek and on Montel Williams, Ellen DeGeneres, KXLU & KPFK radio, and NBC television.

Jon and Kathryn are sponsoring another of their 100% free seminars to teach you the methods to make your own lifestyle which emulates theirs.  These folks are ‘doers’, not talkers, they already made their lifestyle portable, so what about you?  http://www.theportablelifestyle.com/primer’>Watch, listen and learn.

 

 

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Self Sufficiency Tagged With: , ,

Earn a Living in the Philippines — Fulfill a Need

July 11, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

It’s a bit amazing to me how many people write we, week after week about what sort of visa they would need in order to live in the Philippines.  All the information one could ever want is on line, especially on the new and improved Philippines Bureau of Immigration site (Thanks BI, even all the reduced down to only two and they are downloadable).  Resources readily at hand also include the hundreds of articles I’ve written on the subject right here, and many more on friend Bob’s site.

Maybe there is too much data … I dunno.  Anyway, Bob took a great step forward a couple days ago and produced a very simple and clear Immigration Guide that will guide you through the process of deciding what visa you need.  I highly recommend it, and for $10 ($9.99) actually, you can get the information in one place that might take you hours or days to find on your own.

Philippine immigration guide Know all those folks who write me and ask how to earn a living in the Philippines too?  This book (and Bob’s other books) are a great object lesson.  Find a need and fill it.  Instead of thinking ‘what can I find to sell to people … how can I convince them to buy?, find out what they are already hungry to buy and satisfy their need … the sales part just follows naturally.

Three quick comments on the different visas the book recommends.

Former Filipinos and the SRRV.  A former Filipino can avail of the SRRV for a very small investment, $1500 USD plus fees.  But mist would not want to … they can get a 13g visa for less.  bear in mind that the SRRV covers children they must be minors at the time the visa is applied for who are _not_ Philippine citizens .. like children of the spouse from a former marriage,  It also covers those children up to any age as long as the SRRV holder or his/her spouse is still alive.  This doesn’t apply to many folks, but it can be very important to those in an his/hers/ours family situation.

Second, the SRRV itself, especially the version for those over 50 with a monthly pension.  I see so many guys reject this visa out of hand, usually with one of two comments .. a., |I don’t have $10,000”.  My thought on that is, you have no business coming here then.  You need savings and this is a very, very bad country to be poor in.  Even younger people get heart attacks, car wrecks, etc. and you may literally die here without money.  Think this trough carefully.  The second objection always revolves around the attitude of “I am not going to tie up even $10,000 dollars in some Philippine bank.  Well the money only has to be in the bank 30 days.  After that you can take it out to make an approved investment.  One ‘approved investment’ is the lease of a home.  You have to live somewhere, and thus you have to pay rent or make condo payments.  So in reality, this visa is free.  Apply that $10,000 to your condo purchase or long-term home lease (which you are going to have to pay anyway) and live here as long as you want.

Lastly, and I’ll be brief and direct here.  Most people living here on a tourist visa or with their spouse on a balik bayan privilege stamp, make way, way too much out of the issue of a periodic trip outside the Philippines to restart their visa ‘clock’.  Flights to Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau (my recommendation) are very cheap if you take advantage of sales.  My wife and I went to Macau in February for less than $275 air fare, round trip for the two of us … total price.  International flying just doesn’t get a whole lot cheaper than that.  To my mind an annual trip to a close by but different location can be a nice plus factor to anyone’s life .. after all people do have wedding anniversaries or birthdays, don’t they?

OJK, enough of my rambling.  Got questions?  Buy Bob’s Guide.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Filed Under: Phils Visas, Visas Tagged With: , ,

Live In The Philippines — Respect the Rumbles

July 10, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

FYI:

THE EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES IS TRANSMITTING THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION THROUGH THE EMBASSY WARDEN SYSTEM AS A PUBLIC SERVICE TO AMERICAN CITIZENS IN THE PHILIPPINES.  PLEASE DISSEMINATE THIS MESSAGE TO ALL U.S. CITIZENS IN YOUR ORGANIZATION OR NEIGHBORHOOD.  THANK YOU. (editors note … Filipinos are allowed to pay attention to this warning as well ;-) )

—————————————————–

Mayon Volcano

The U.S. Embassy informs American Citizens in the Philippines to avoid the summit area of the Mayon Volcano, located in the Province of Albay, approximately 300 kilometers (186.41 miles) southeast of Manila, on the island of Luzon.  The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) raised its alert status for the Mayon Volcano to Alert Level 2 indicating increasing volcanic activity.  This alert condition signifies a state of unrest which  could lead to ash explosions or eventually to hazardous magmatic eruption.  Thus, at Alert Level 2, Phivolcs strongly recommends that the 6 kilometers radius, called the "Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ)," around the volcano and the 7 kilometers extended danger Mt. Mayon zone on the southeast flank of the volcano are off limits due to the threat from sudden explosions and rockfalls from the upper slopes.  Active river channels and those areas perennially identified as lahar prone in the southeast sector should also be avoided, especially during bad weather conditions or when there is heavy and prolonged rainfall.

Updated information on volcanoes in the Philippines is available on the Web sites listed below. The Embassy encourages all Americans residing in or visiting areas near volcanoes to consult these websites frequently and to adhere to all safety instructions from Philippine authorities.

http://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/

http://volcanoes.usgs.gov

American citizens with questions or concerns may telephone the Embassy at (63)(2) 301-2000.  In case of an emergency outside business hours, American citizens may reach the Embassy duty officer through the Embassy operator at (63)(2) 301-2000.  The U.S. Embassy is located at: 1201 Roxas Boulevard, Manila, Philippines. The Consular American Citizen Services (ACS) section’s fax number is (63)(2) 301-2017 and the ACS web page is at http://manila.usembassy.gov.

Americans living in or visiting the Philippines are encouraged to register with the Consular Section of the US Embassy in Manila.  The easiest way to do this is via the Internet, using a link on http://www.travel.state.gov or directly at https://travelregistration.state.gov.  Get more information on registration at http://manila.usembassy.gov.

THIS E-MAIL IS UNCLASSIFIED BASED ON THE DEFINITIONS PROVIDED IN E.O. 12958.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Filed Under: Travel Reports

Living in the Philippines — Your Relations Are Always Your Relations

July 7, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Normally I don’t write much here about the wise world of Internet income and many of the people I know from the online world, but I figured today would be a nice exception, since it is certainly Philippine-related and there is some great ‘eye candy’ here.

tyler_face_pageTyler Cruz is a fellow I met on line some years back and I’ve followed his career for a while now.  He even was kind enough to let me guest blog a few times on his very successful blog about online entrepreneurship (He’s in the Kasey Kasem Top 40 for blogs about making money online and he’s been earning his living since high school days.  After high school he opted not to waste 4 years with schools that can’t teach what’s happening in today’s world and instead set up his own unique (and profitable) blog network.

All that is kewl and interesting and all that sort of stuff, but what’s the Philippine connection?  Well some my have caught on already, from the family name, Tyler is of Filipino heritage.  He was born in Canada and is 100% Canadian in the legal sense, but his dad comes from the Philippines, in fact in Bulacan, not very far from where the Unofficial Cook and I live.

Tyler has come to the Philippines for the first time , among other reasons, to meet his Lola .. his grandmother, who resides in Baliuag.  So far his trip seems to be going well, see the pictures and videos on his recent post about the trip, I’m glad he’s liking it here, but no matter how the trip turns out, it will be a success in one way … he met and spent some time with his grandmother.  I was very close to my maternal grandmother, but I never got to meet my father’s mother, and after all these years, there’s still a little empty spot in my heart for her … so good on you, Tyler.

I thought this article was particularly interesting and timely because I have been talking and answering comments quite a bit lately about opportunities in the Philippines.  Now Tyler lives in British Columbia, been there all his life, and I would never have suggested to him that he might want to live here … he’s in his 20’s, bought a home there, likely to be getting married and start a family some day soon … a successful, 100% North American ‘escapee’ from the Philippines.

But Tyler happened to mention to me during the last stages of his planning that he had been thinking and had rather suddenly realized that there was absolutely no reason he couldn’t live in the Philippines if he someday chose to.  (hey this guy didn’t build up his business by being dumb, you know ;-) )

He’s absolutely correct in that assumption, though.  Every single thing he does to work his business could be done here in the Philippines as we;; as in British Columbia.  Tyler’s good at what he does, don’t lose sight of that, but he’s also not a rocket scientist and his income streams.are not rocket science either.  Any high school graduate (or drop out, even) who can speak, read and write English well enough to open a bank account, buy a business license, drive a car or find and purchase a home … this means about 99% of the people who are reading this article … can do the same thing.

So if staying where you are in life is the right thing for you to do, fine, I wish you well, but don’t tell me you can’t move to the Philippines because ‘there are no jobs for foreigners’ … because in today’s world, you can just make your own and take it with you where ever you want to go.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Filed Under: Travel Reports Tagged With: , ,

Can My Philippine Friend Visit Me in the USA?

July 7, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

I have received a lot of queries over the years about visitor (B2) visas to the US for Filipinos.  How do they work, how much do they cost, can my girlfriend get one, etc.  It occurred to me today that I hadn’t written about these issues in some time, when I opened an email from a reader here with some specific questions.  Here are a few thoughts on the subject from my answer to him, along with some important source links.  This can be a very difficult subject, so be sure you go to official sources. 

This is also a prime area for fixers to pop out of the woodwork … there are probably more “fixer problems’” in this area than any other legal activity I know of in the Philippines.  Be sure you follow the official US State Department steps, and use only real, true legal documents.  You can’t go buying a birth certificate on Recto Street and expect to get a visa issued.  The folks at the US embassy have seen every scam in the book, there are no legitimate shortcuts..

Thanks for writing.  Yes, foreigners may have a very difficult time visiting the US, depending mainly upon their nationality, age, marital status and economic means.  I am assuming that you are writing about a friend in the
Philippines who holds Philippine citizenship, correct?  Essentially anyone who wants to visit the US must hold a valid
passport.

Second, those from countries which do not have a reciprocal ‘no visa’ agreement with the US must have a visa, issued by the US State Department in their home country before they can depart for the trip.  The Philippines falls in that category, Filipinos must have a visa before they can board a flight to the US.

Any Filipino has the right to apply for a US visitor’s visa.  It can even be done online now from the US embassy, Manila, website.  It costs US $131, cash, and the application fee is non-refundable.  You also might want to also read this page from the Embassy … always better to go to the source rather than listening to ‘what people tell you’.

As the State Department says, their main concern is evidence that will convince the Consular Officer that the applicant has ties here in the Philippines sufficient to cause the applicant to return to the Philippines.  Typically this includes real estate or incorporated business owned here, spouse, family, higher-level employment, etc.

There are at any given time hundreds of thousands of Filipinos "overstaying" their visas, that is, failing to return to the Philippines.  Sad fact, but it’s the truth.  The Filipinos even have a slang for it, Tent … tango nag tango … literally translates to "hiding and hiding".

A young person is usually very high risk, as they typically have no substantial ties here in the Philippines … nothing to lose if they leave and don’t return.  A young, single woman is a particularly high risk, because in addition to the possible intent she will find illegal (but readily available) work in the US and fail to return, she may find a husband in the US and not even have to worry about finding a job.

If the consular officer gets the idea she is trying to visit the US to meet an available man, it’s a virtual certainty the application will be denied … there’s virtually no chance she is coming back to the Philippines if he
issues her the visa to allow her entry.

These are the cold hard facts of life, my friend.  Her word means nothing … all applicants are basically treated as if they are lying (mainly because a huge percentage of them _are_).  Your word means nothing.  A US citizen has no real say in the matter.  Also, realistically, the US citizen has no control over the visitor after s/he enters.  Remember  too, realistically, you do not know this woman at all.  If it were to turn out she is not who you think she is in real life, what
alternatives would you have?

You can’t call the police and have her arrested for overstaying, if she runs off on her own the only crime is an immigration violation, you can only report the offense to the USCIS (formerly the INS) and they will add her to the list for apprehension/deportation.  Typically that could take 10 years, so you can see why this is considered a worthwhile gamble for Filipinos … even if eventually caught, they might get 10 years or more in the US for a hundred thirty one dollar visitor visa … better odds than buying lottery tickets for sure.

Many Americans get really angry when you bring out the facts this way.  Get used to it.  In immigration matters you have little or no say in the matter.  Just look at the news every day with people constantly complaining about
illegal immigrants, even arming themselves and threatening violence in some cases, and you’ll see why the laws are the way they are … if I were a Consular Officer, I’d probably deny a huge percentage of the applicants I
interviewed as well.

Hope this answers your questions, although I doubt the answers made you happy.  You want to meet this young lady?  Come to the Philippines yourself.

If you think I have missed the mark on anything here, or you want valid legal advice, which my meanderings certainly are not, this fellow is one of the world’s leading experts on US/Philippine immigration issues, and he will
give you straight, honest advice: http://www.gurfinkel.com/ (this is not a commercial link, I have no connection with attorney Gurfinkel), I just know he is a straight shooter and helps a lot of people with these sort of issues.

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Living in the Philippines — A Cure for Paralysis by Analysis

July 4, 2009 By Philly Leave a Comment

Some of my readers know that one of the jobs I held over the years was that of a military planner.  Strangely enough, it was the highest paid job I ever held and one of the ones I felt least comfortable doing.  I had to plan multi-million dollar multi-year budgets without knowing what our allocation from the empire would be for those years, revise plans that called for accommodating 400,000 refugees in bed space for 40,000 … cozy .. and plan for equipment to be sent places over a 30 day period, broken down into pallets per outbound flight when only 7 days of fuel were on hand … no way of knowing how the flights on days 8 through 30 were going to take off, but planning for planning’s sake was the name of the game.

George Patton, one of the better generals our country ever produced is credited with two famous quotes involving plans:

  • “No battle plan survives contact with the enemy” (actually this comes from Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke, often known as Moltke the Elder)
  • “A good plan violently executed right now is far better than a perfect plan executed next week.” (translated into civilian-speak this might say, “Do it now, while you still can”)

Recently I came across a great article from Paul Thompson on the RAO Subic website, and Paul has graciously given me permission to re-post it.  It just seemed perfect to me, at this time of year … happy 4th of July to those readers still a day behind .  Also because I’ve written several times lately about the Paralysis by Analysis syndrome that affects so many, and Paul makes some good points here.

Also, since less that one percent of US citizens now serve their country in the military, many may be unfamiliar with the RAO.  RAO Subic Bay is an Independent Retired Activities Coordination Office which provides vital services to U.S. military retirees living in this area.

There is also an RAO Clark in Angles City which does similar work, an RAO Manila and a large network of satellite offices around the Philippines.  Even if you aren’t military you would do well to visit their websites as there is a lot of valuable ‘living in the Philippines’ information there, disseminated by folks who have been actually living in the Philippines, rather than talking about living in the Philippines, for many years now.

Anyway, Paul’s article, thanks again Paul and thanks to all the RAO folks everywhere in the Philippines and around the world and to the folks they serve, my brothers and sisters in arms on this special day.

We choose to live here! – Way-back-machine

June 29, 2009

Author:

Paul Thompson, SHCS, USN, (ret.)

So it’s July and on the 13th I’ll turn 62. Who would have thunk it, that I would have made it to 62. When I enlisted in the Navy in 1964 for four years only, my plan was to get out and make it big or at least get out. At the end of my time with a short timer’s chain in my pocket, CWO3 Frank Elkins ask me what were my plans? Scratching my head I said damn if I know. USS Alstede AF-48 He pointed out that the ship (USS Alstede AF-48) was heading to the Med. A week after I was to be discharged, and it was summer time and I could get $3,000.00 and have two weeks leave in Spain (Palma) for just signing up for 4 more years. Sounded like a good deal to me, there I was back on the ship, broke and heading towards retirement.

So then its retirement time and I was down in Puerto Rico, and decided I needed a year off prior to returning to the work-a-day world. The year went by quickly and I found myself in Europe selling Encyclopedias’ from Scotland to Italy. Easy job, and sold three sets a week and made $2,100.00 tax free each week. I could have sold more but why bother I was making enough to party on. Then winter set in and I quit and went back to Puerto Rico, because warm is good. Thank God I kept the Condo in Playa Azule!

So a few months after I was back, I was on the beach having cocktails, thinking about happy hour which started a 3pm when the daily rain storm starts. So with a few Cuba Libras’ under my belt (or shorts) I loaded up my Boom box and cooler on my American Flyer red wagon and headed to my friend’s watering hole (Rascal’s Pub Luquillo Beach). On the way there I saw the Old Dona who sold the Lottery Tickets every day, and gave her my last three dollars for my donation to the cause. (I ran a tab at my friends bar)   The next day I check the numbers and found I won $25,000.00. And its tax free in Puerto Rico, ya gotta’ love it!  So I did just what any retired sailor would do, opened a bar!

So then along came Hurricane Hugo and I went from Hero to Zero in 24 hours, bar underwater, house under more water, and the condo wind damaged . Fly to the states and apply to Military Sealift Command, First Ship USNS Mars T-AFS-1 and we pull in to Manila, went to Olongapo with a friend and met his wife’s sister, and that’s why I choose to live here.

So my point is, I feel bad, and the reason is, I never made a plan. I just enjoyed each day and waited to see what would happen the next day. Correction, I made plans every day in my working life, hell the Navy and MSC kind of required it. But my personal life, I just let unfold and adjusted when I needed to. (Ask any of the X-wife’s) Quote of the day: Divorce is when you’re in the mood to buy a new house.

So that is why I choose to live in the Philippines, because plans are a violation of the law here. It just isn’t done, highly frowned upon. Yet after all that, I do have a plan for today after I finish typing this dribble, I plan to have a cocktail and listen to Country Music. Isn’t that why we all choose to live here, and those who don’t, wish they did! Don’t even try to stop the carnival, viva la fiesta. 

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