Visas

Does My Filipino Friend Need A Visa To Visit The USA?

(Updated 2 December 2018)

Well, as some of you already know, the answer to this question is yes, she or he does.

Looking around at many of the articles I have written and others have as well, it seems many articles are starting at too advanced a level.

I should start at the beginning since a majority of my readers are from the USA and my fellow Americans are among the least traveled and most uneducated in the mechanics of international travel on earth.

Now don’t get your knickers in a knot over that last paragraph.  If you are already an expert on passports, visas and international travel, great, more power to you.  Feel free to move on to the next article then.

But there are plenty of people reading here who only have a vague concept of passports, visas (not the credit card) and international procedures. [Read more…] about Does My Filipino Friend Need A Visa To Visit The USA?

Why Choose the Philippines — Is Malaysia a Better Choice?

(last updated 27 November 2018)

I originally wrote this about 8 years ago.  It was in response to a lot of mail I was receiving on the subject of what country was “best” to live in for US expats.

At the time, Malaysia was advertising The Malaysia My Second Home program and many expats wondered how that program compared with what was available to retirees in the Philippines.

Significantly updated and corrected.  Only a few things have changed in 8 years, mostly making it even easier to stay in the Philippines.

Why choose the Philippines?

That’s a very good question.  Why choose the Philippines instead of the nation of Malaysia for retirement, or just an escape from the western world rat race? [Read more…] about Why Choose the Philippines — Is Malaysia a Better Choice?

US Visitor Visa concerns.  Can My Philippine Friend Visit Me in the USA?

(Updated 21 September 2018)

Originally published sometime back.  Significantly updated and corrected for my current reader’s information.  Thanks for being a reader, by the way.

I have received a lot of queries over the years about the US Visitor Visa (known as a B2 Visa to the US State Department) for Filipinos.

Mainly these questions revolve around the subject of getting a Filipino friend a temporary visitor’s visa allowing them to enter the USA for a short visit.

People want to know, mainly:

1. How do they (the visas) work,
2. How much do they cost,
3. Can my girlfriend get one, etc.
4. I’ve heard they are very hard to get, and why?

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: [Read more…] about Can My Philippine Friend Visit Me in the USA?

Destinations Close To Manila.

(Updated 23 July 2018)

I don’t want to drift too far into geography here, but there are some good reasons to think about destinations close to the Philippines.

Reason 1, Onward Travel Tickets:

One common reason is a destination for a required “onward travel” ticket.  Technically, everyone entering the Philippines as a tourist must have travel booked back home, or to some other destination, within 30 days of their arrival in the Philippines.

The reason I used the word “technically” above is that although that is the law, Philippine Immigration seldom asks people for proof of onward travel.  (but they do, sometimes.)

The agency that almost always asks, though, is the airline you are planning to fly to the Philippines.
[Read more…] about Destinations Close To Manila