In case you are not aware, the Manila U.S. Embassy’s phone number changed recently.

It is now: 02-5-301-2000.

The sneaky 5 was added.

The Social Security office can also be reached at that number.

When the recording starts, press 9. Social Security only takes calls on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8am to 11am.

Thanks and a tip of the hat to the folks at RAO Subic Bay.

Also, and a further tip of the hat to reader Lewis:

Anyway, I called the U.S. Embassy (today, Dec. 9, 2019), to get the numbers for the Visa Call Center, and the numbers given in the recording are not complete/correct. I called the embassy mainline, got the operator and got the correct numbers. Please take note:

02-8548-8223
02-7792-8988

3900 Marbles and Health Insurance.

(Updated 04 DECEMBER 2019)

Let me ask you folks a question.  I just had a conversation with a lady who wanted to bounce some ideas off me about business.  It was a pleasant conversation, but there was one “take away” from it that still kind of rings in my ear and rattles around in my brain, even an hour or more after our conversation ended.

The main thrust we were talking about involved health care and health services and she made a statement right along in the regular flow of the conversation that I have probably heard a thousand times before … but it just jumped right out at me this time, and I have been thinking about it ever since.

The statement went something like this …”after all, if we are talking to retirees, their absolute number one concern is health insurance.”

Retiree’s Absolute Number One Concern is Health Insurance?

[Read more…] about 3900 Marbles and Health Insurance — 2019

Is Your Child a Citizen?

(Updated 05 December 2019)

Here’s a comment I recently received that may interest a lot more readers than just the guy who made the comment.

So I thought I’d take a few minutes and answer this reader’s questions in more detail, for the benefit of others who may pass by here as well.

The subject is something a lot of you out there have already dealt with, or will deal with, or have been wondering about …

But then many of you reading this may be Filipino citizens.  Does that make any difference in the child’s citizenship acquired at birth (often called “birthright citizenship”?

Well yes, indeed it does.  more citizenship information here

and here, U.S. Citizenship Through Parents or by Birth

Before you click on the “More” link to read the rest of this article, remember one important caveat.  I am not a lawyer, I can’t give legal advice and nothing I write here is to be considered legal advice.  This is my own personal opinion based upon my own research.

Now, if you’d like to read on. [Read more…] about Is Your Child a Citizen?

How To Stay Long-Term in the Philippines — Balikbayan Privilege

(Updated 16 October 2019)

I’ve written several recent articles about staying long-term in the Philippines.  If you haven’t seen them you can read them here:

How long can you stay in the Philippines if you are a US citizen?

Ways To Stay Long-Term in the Philippines — Part 2

Staying for an extended time on a tourist visa or with many of the permanent residency visas the Philippines offers can run into some money.

How about a way that requires no forms or applications to fill up and which is absolutely free?

Interested?  It’s called the One-year Visa-free Balikbayan Privilege.  If you want to learn more, just click the “More” link and I’ll give you the lowdown.

[Read more…] about Ways To Stay Long-Term in the Philippines — Part 3

What Top Right Corner is that, Dave?

(Updated 5 December 2019)

Umm, this page you are reading right now.  Or any page on this site.

I’m asking because I have software that tracks where people have visited, and I notice that two of the absolute least visited pages on this site are the  FAQS page (that used to be a commonly understood acronym/abbreviation for “Frequently Asked Questions” and the Best Places Philippines page.

The FAQS page:

In some ways, years ago, I thought this would be the most important and helpful page on this site.  Whenever someone would ask a question of common interest … such as say “How Long Can I Stay in the Philippines?” I would enter that question on the FAQS page along with a concise answer.

That’s what having a FAQS section is all about … people can visit there and get answers to their questions without wasting their time and mine in asig the same question over and over again.

I explained it here and even included a link for people to ask additional questions with just a single click.

Here I will list Philippine FAQS (and answers) as they come in.  I’ll attempt to put them in some sort of order, but issues and opportunities arrive in random bursts, so many of these Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS) will as well.  Got a question you don’t see “Asked and Answered” here already?  “Shoot it to me” here:  Contact Philly.

Apparently, this was a dumb idea, since no one ever visits or leaves additional questions.

Any suggestion?

The Best Places Philippines Page:

I started this page a long time ago as a place where readers could see “their” place on the Philippines “on the map” so to speak.

Each blue pin on the map, when clicked on, shows the name of the reader who posted it as well as a capsule description as to why this might be the “best place in the Philippines” for you.

So many people have the question in their minds as to where they ought to move to in the Philippines … yet so few ever visit the map and have a look.

It’s a full-fledged link into Google Maps.  You can do so much more than just look at some pins on a map.

For example, here’s what you see if you zoom in on my own pin on my home here in Marilao, Bulacan on Luzon.

You Can Learn A Lot About The Philippines With Google Maps

Also, be sure to go to maps.google.com and try the “satellite view”.

For example, how would traffic be if I left mt home right now to drive to my local SM City Mall?

So what do you think?  Why don’t people make more use of the map?

 

Top 10 Art Schools – 2018

Top 10 Art Schools – 2017

 

[Read more…] about Top 10 Art Schools – 2019

A Green Card is Not a Visitor’s Visa.

(Updated 25 November 2019)

This article was published some years back.  I’ve significantly updated it and added material, because the issue has become much more critical, given the focus of the current administration.

Many of my readers either already have, or plan in the future to become quite well acquainted with the United States Permanent Resident Card, commonly known as the “Green Card” (government form number I-551)

Many folks I have chatted with in the past 17 or 18 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.

[Read more…] about A Green Card is Not a Visitor’s Visa

Happy Fourth of July

(Updated 4 July 2019)

Yes, indeed I have been AWOL from the site here a long time.

As we were taught in the military, the “excuse” is, “No Excuse, Sir”.   Everything is going well for me, but life has been happening … that’s all I can say

Took A Little Vacation/Rejuvenation Trip

Today is the 4th of July, 2019 and I am in the good old red, white and blue USA.  Mt. Dora, Florida to be specific.

My wife and I  arrived here in the very wee hours of 2 July after flying MNL-NRT-BOS-MCO.  (Google is your friend)

The trip was not too long (delayed two hours or so by weather in Tokyo, but our JetBlue flight connecting Boston to Orlando was three hours late so everything worked out well (except for the other 180 people who had to wait an extra 3 hours in Boston, just for us ;-0

I’m in the Orlando Area now

and even though I’ve only done a little shopping and dining I am still shocked by the prices here.  Rather than belabor the point I’m going to refer you to an article I wrote last October when we were last in the USA:

Still Keeping Me Rudely Awake 2018

[Read more…] about Happy Fourth Of July — Temporarily on US Soil

Can a US citizen move to the Philippines?

(Updated 16 June 2019)

The answer to that question is a resounding YES.

I’ve been reading about, writing about and actually living a move to the Philippines for nearly 13 years now.

It only struck as strange very recently how complicated and obscure my writing and most others writing on this subject have been,  I apologize right now for all those years of making it seem so darn hard.  It isn’t.

If You Want To Move To The Philippines You Can.

Tomorrow if you would like and if an airline has an empty seat to sell you.

“But Dave”, I hear you saying, “my head is swimming with all these details of visas, permissions, planning and all sorts of complicated issues people continually write about.  It can’t really be that simple, can it”?

Well, The Bottom Line Is, It Absolutely CAN Be that Simple.

[Read more…] about Can a US Citizen Move to the Philippines?