Live in the Philippines as Long as You Want
Visas for foreigners are a frequent topic here on PhilFAQS, the blog for Frequently Asked Questions about the Philippines. Also we spend quite a bit of time talking about running a business in the Philippines.
Here’s an interesting news item that was released from Malacañang Palace, (the President’s Residence) this morning:
MANILA, Philippines: Foreigners who employ at least 10 Filipinos can stay in the country indefinitely, the Philippine government said Monday in an attempt to woo more investors.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo signed the new rules in hopes of providing more jobs for Filipinos as the country braces for a global economic slowdown, said Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan. … more on long term foreign business owner visas here.
This is very similar in some ways to what has been done over the past year or so with the SRRV (Special Resident Retirement Visa) program. Like the SRRV there has always been a provision for a permanent visa if a sizeable cash investment was made in the country, but just like the newer provisions where a person of modest means who has a source of income, like a government pension can have a permanent visa for a much more modest investment. people who want to start a relatively small business can now come here and stay here as long as they stay in business.
There is not a lot of detail released except to say the jobs must be “in viable and sustainable commercial enterprises, trade or industry,” … but that terminology itself covers a lot of ground … so this is a move in the right direction for the Philippines, to my point of view.
The way new laws always seem to work here, is the law gives one thing and then the IRR (Implementing Rules and Regulations”, written later by bureaucrats seem to take away. so we’ll have to see, but Immigration Commisisoner Libanan has been behind many recent liberalization rules, such as changing Tourist Visas from one to two years, so it seems this will be a good for Living in the Philippines overall.
Related posts:
- Bringing A Loved One To The US — Overview
- Philippine Working Visas
- How Much Does It Cost For Visas — Part 1 Of Many
- What Everybody Ought to Know About Citizenship and Visas — Permanent Visas
- What Everybody Ought to Know About Citizenship and Visas — Part 1
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November 17th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
Hi Dave, this is good news overall I think. What they have to do, like some developed countries, is to give more incentives to invest and stay in outlying cities, towns, or area where that kind of business is needed or where unemployment rate is the highest. This will prevent more people crowding in already overpopulated places like Manila.
I recalled Canada required this a long time ago, investments plus the investment must hire minimum 5 people. In places where no one wants to go, i.e. the really cold places higher north, the investments required were lower. I thought this was good, because it required hiring locals. A lot of the investments that came in were to purchase rental properties and laundromats. I guess that was the easiest investments they could buy just to be able to immigrate to Canada :).
November 17th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
@Ellen: I’m optimisitic abut it, overall … it won’t affect as many people as one first might think, becuase you have to have more of a business put together .. investments and plannig –to employ 10 peopple … but that’s still in range of the average person who really has a buisness goal.
It’s almost as if the Philippine goverenement was taking notes on the Canadian experince you were mentionbng. Running a rental property or an almost zero labor facikity like a laudromat is certainly a viable business, but they don’t produce many jobs … structuring it in this way gives a maximum chance for people to find work here.
I’ll certainly wish them well. Any positive step is so much better than the usual ‘Oh poor us’ we so often hear, I tip my hat.
November 18th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Hi.
Found you site a couple of weeks ago and find it very informative and have backtracked many subjects in my quest to get a mindset on my eventual retirement to RP.
First time I have posted a Q on your site and apologies for labouring on an often debated subject.
I am british and marrying my Philipina partner of 4 years in January 2009,then returning to Saudi Arabia alone to complete my contract due up in June 2009.
My intention is to then retire and live in Davao were we have had a house for nearly 2 years.
Does anybody know if I can apply for residency while I still reside in KSA?
AND what documentation do I need to source for me and my then wife.
OR is it compulsory to visit the Philippine embassy in UK to start the ball rolling.
Appreciate any help.
November 18th, 2008 at 8:56 am
@David: Thanks for dropping by and for your kind words and your question.
Congratulations on your forthcoming marriage. I’ve spent a lot of years married, single and then married again. I recommend marriage
I started to write an answer to this and then thought to re-read your question … gee, guess I should have read it the first time, eh?
There is nothing do before your marriage. You have no status with the Philippines and have no basis to apply for any residency at this time.
When you two travel to the Philippines in January for the wedding I assume you will just use a tourist visa. Once you have a Philippine NSO certified copy of the marriage contract your wife can then sponsor you for a 13a permanent residency visa as the spouse of a Filipino citizen.
I am not sure if the Philippine embassy in Riyad will process this without your wife coming in for an interview or not. Or if it is practical to do the process between January and June. In the US they do 13 series visas in days to month depending on which consulate applicants use, so only the embassy there can advise you on this. A simple phone call ought to get you some good advice.
http://www.philembassy-riyadh.org/index.php
If you get the visa granted and stamped in your UK passport prior to June, fine and dandy. If you can’t get the visa while you are in Saudi you can just enter the Philippines in June as a tourist and apply at the Bureau of Immigration in Intramuros, Manila and the process will flow from there. To my understanding, once the BoI accepts your application your visa status is frozen and no need to worry about going out of status until the issue you the 13 series visa.
Hope this will be of some help and do let us know from time to time how things are progressing.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Hi Philly and David - Not trying to step in where I don’t belong, but I just had a suggestion to make. David said that he intended to live in Davao. Instead of applying for his 13a in Manila, it would be much easier for him to apply in the BoI office in Davao, since it is local for him.
Just a thought.
November 18th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
Thanks Philly and Bob.
My partner is already in Davao and has no intention of following me to Saudi so if the embassy here needed to see her it would not be an option.
I have seen comments on Bob’s site advising getting the 13a visa sorted in my home country to avoid delays in RP due to greed which lead me to enquire if getting it from the philippine embassy in Jeddah could be a better/quicker option if at all possible.
I did not want to go to the embassy here before I had some information as to whether I could expect better treatment than in RP.(corruption wise)
I dont really want to travel Jeddah to London(dont like the place at the best of times) then have to fly to Davao…unless there is no other option.
As always thank you and all information is greatfully accepted.
November 18th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
@Mindanao Bob: Hi Bob. i stand corrected there .. I did not know one could apply for the 13a (or g) in Davao. i was told at another BoI field office that manla was the only place the applications could be made. Obviously, as we know from other events, information from field offices heere is abit like the weather in some countries … it varies a lot. I’ll keep that in mind.
November 18th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
@David: Hi David. As Bob just mentioned it appears you can apply in Davao. So that’s one avenue clearly open to you. As far as the UK or any other embassy, as far as I know both the usband and wife must be present. Strictly speaking the wife makes the application, so since you aren’t married there isn’t a lot to plan out, yet.
In general, people I know who have gotten the visa outside the Philippines report an easier time of it, and it often costs less, but if one is here and bot going to travel then the location becomes rather moot.
Many people have gotten their permanent visas here in the Philippines though and reported little or no problem … although as you’ll see in my answer to Bob I really don’t know of anyone whi has gotten their anywhere except the head BoI office in Manila. That’s where I’ll be headed next year when I finally get mine, unless Miat and I decide to take a trip … I pretty much live one day at a time here.
Best of luck, whenever it works for you.