# UK - Long Term Tourist Visa - Before Getting to Philippines



## gaz_0001 (May 27, 2013)

Hi,

I will be leaving from the UK to Philippines in 3 weeks.

I will be going with my wife.

I am a consultant, and my company will be sorting out my Visa and Flights etc.
But they can not sort out my wifes......i know...i know.

Does anyone know if i can get a long term tourist visa for the Mrs, 6 or 12 months. Initially, from the start. Pick it up in the UK?

(We are married, under 30, both british and have new 10 yr passports)

I dont want to be buying fake plane tickets and leaving the country etc etc, or keep going back to the office in Manila and extending her Visa.

Thanks a lot,
G


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## esv1226 (Mar 13, 2014)

I don't really know the answer. But what I would do is apply for your wife's visa for the same duration as yours (you might need to show your passport and visa). It is easier to deal with this matter before coming over.


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## gaz_0001 (May 27, 2013)

The website is no good.

It just talks about a Visa on arrival, 59 Day Single entry and 6/12 month multi entry (But with the multi entry, you have to leave and return every 59 days)

I just want a flat, hassle free 6 or 12 month solid visa


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

Have you contacted your local Philippine Consulate in Paris or the UK? I feel that would be easier and even a plus if you live near the consulate. if not there will be a phone number you can call or email, I never had any issue's with the Philippine Consulate in the states and I'm from ND but performed all my Visa applications through the mail in Chicago, I did call several times to clarify issue's and also used the email system it worked well.


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## PandaMouse (May 6, 2015)

I'm under the impression the only way is to get a visa on arrival and extend it once you are here. For working visas the company sort it out. I did a lot of research before the move and that's all i could find. Could be wrong though. 

Good luck to you


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

After the initial 30 day entry stamp and the 29 day extension your wife can apply for Long-Stay Visitor Visa Extension(LSVVE) which is a 6 month Visa.


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## gaz_0001 (May 27, 2013)

bidrod said:


> After the initial 30 day entry stamp and the 29 day extension your wife can apply for Long-Stay Visitor Visa Extension(LSVVE) which is a 6 month Visa.


Yes, but like this, she will need to buy a return ticket. 

I don't know when we will return, and would like to avoid this expense.


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

She only needs a follow on ticket not a R/T ticket. Book the cheapest flight out of the Philippines to anywhere. I used Cebu Pacific to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia for less than $50, one way ticket.


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## gaz_0001 (May 27, 2013)

bidrod said:


> She only needs a follow on ticket not a R/T ticket. Book the cheapest flight out of the Philippines to anywhere. I used Cebu Pacific to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia for less than $50, one way ticket.


OK, so.

To summarise.

We go there and she has 30 days, immediately, extend by 29 days. 

Then near to the end of the 59 days...we can extend for 6 months.

At which point here do i need to buy this Joker ticket? Do we need to have it with us when we land, ie a ticket leaving sometime between day 1 and day 30?


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

Yes you will probably be asked for the ticket when you board to go to the Philippines. Departure can be anytime up to the 30 days after arrival.


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

*Long Term Stay*



gaz_0001 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I will be leaving from the UK to Philippines in 3 weeks. I will be going with my wife. I am a consultant, and my company will be sorting out my Visa and Flights etc. But they can not sort out my wifes......i know...i know.
> 
> Does anyone know if i can get a long term tourist visa for the Mrs, 6 or 12 months. Initially, from the start. Pick it up in the UK? (We are married, under 30, both british and have new 10 yr passports) I dont want to be buying fake plane tickets and leaving the country etc etc, or keep going back to the office in Manila and extending her Visa. Thanks a lot, G


Gaz_001 I think you’re going to have to ‘bite the bullet’ on this one and accept that it may not happen the way you’d like it to. Some members have already made some suggestions that make sense. Here’s how I see it. Most employers in foreign countries offer contracts on a single or married basis. If you’ve been offered a single contract, try to get it on a married basis and then I believe your employer would take care of your wife’s visa. I assume you’ve thought of this already or can’t do it for whatever reason. If this is not possible, then I think the following option/s would apply:

(1) You can definitely get a 59-day visa in London, UK before you arrive (I appreciate that the multiple entry is inappropriate for your wife).
(2) Just before her 59-day visa is up in the Philippines, she can apply for the 6-month Long Stay Visitor Visa Extension.
(3) Getting around the problem of the ‘Return Ticket’. This has been discussed at great length on the forum and if you type in a few search words such as Onward Flight, you will find loads of posts on how to deal with this.
(4) Wanting a ‘hassle-free’ 6-month or 12-month visa for your wife. I do hear what you say but the system doesn’t cater for this. If you can’t get it from your employer as part of the married contract, then your options are limited.

Having said that, if you take on board what other members are saying, you can minimise the ‘hassle’. By the way, the only great hassle that I see here is that (a) you have to travel to London to get the 59 day visa initially, (b) you have to purchase an onward ticket and (c) you have to renew the first visa after 59 days and then every 6-months after that. Doesn’t sound too bad if it means being able to have your wife with you for 2-years. Re the onward ticket, you should only have to do this once on your initial entry because you are then going to keep getting the 6-month extensions up to the 2-year period. A word of warning re onward tickets, make sure you choose carefully. Airlines such as Cathay Pacific claim to provide a full refund for cancellation if you go for the higher-priced ticket. When you read the full Terms & Conditions, you discover that whilst there is no cancellation fee, there is a $50 per ticket for ‘administration’ of the refund. Now that’s what I call a real scam. You also have to wait at least 6-weeks to have it processed. If you don’t want to go down the fully refundable ticket route, then Bidrod’s advice re the $50 ‘throw away’ single sounds pretty reasonable. Yes, you must have it before you leave UK as you may be asked for it at Heathrow. But as I said, you will find other options suggested on the website, although it’s more ‘hassle’ having to go through the posts ;-) Good luck and try to spend some time reviewing the various posts on the website; there really is a wealth of information on here. There’s also more info about the validity of the 6-month visa etc., if and when you happen to leave the country. My understanding is that if you just got a 6-month visa extension and then had to leave the country for whatever reason, you would have to start from scratch again when you return. I’m sure other members will correct me if I’m wrong.


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

mabrouk,

You are correct any tourist Visa is void upon depart from the Philippines.


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## gaz_0001 (May 27, 2013)

@mabrouk - Thank you so much for spending the time to write all that information. Its crystal clear now.


I spoke again, today, with my recruitment consultant. He said something a little bit 'off'.
When i insisted that my Wife be added to my work visa, he advised me that i would be initially going over there on the tourist visa myself, and once i get there it would be changed to a work visa - this is the reason my wife can not be added to the visa.

Unfortunately, i had to cut the call short before i could probe for answers, and did not have time to call him back due to workload.

Is this possible? Surely i can not be expected to arrive on a tourist visa myself and then convert it to a working visa.....i would already be working. 

Thats my thoughts.

But, i checked the website, Home and actually there does not seem to be a work visa on there. There are just Conversion and Extension to Pre-Arranged Employee.

So, is this guy telling the truth? I arrive on the tourist visa and then do a conversion to pre-arranged employee?

Any ideas? Im starting to doubt the legitimacy of this contract now.


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

Check the following link:

Pre-Arranged Employee Visa


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## lkarlovsky (Jan 4, 2013)

bidrod said:


> Yes you will probably be asked for the ticket when you board to go to the Philippines. Departure can be anytime up to the 30 days after arrival.


Been to BI to renew my Visa three times now. The only time I was ever asked to produce this fake onward ticket was when boarding to come to the the first time. No BI official has ever asked in Manila or at the airport. Silly policy and in my humble opinion just a racket by Cebu and PAL.


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

*Permanent or Work Visa take time*



gaz_0001 said:


> @mabrouk - Thank you so much for spending the time to write all that information. Its crystal clear now.
> 
> 
> I spoke again, today, with my recruitment consultant. He said something a little bit 'off'.
> ...


It's gonna be a process, I thought about working here and I'm a permanent resident and I'd still need to check into 3 government agencies before I start my work, actually jotted down all my requirements:


transcript copies put together from my conversations with an American expat working here.

Requirements (it's a tough world here get ready)

1. Permanent resident or *if not a permanent resident you'll need a Work Visa*.
Site for the work Visa, so it sounds like your employer is gonna handle this?
FAQs on AEP

2. NBI clearance, current to 6 mo or less. 
3. Local police clearance (Not hard). 
4. Local residency permit from your city hall. 
5. Barangay clearance from your Barangay Captain. Your wife can help with that one (if she's a Philippine citizen). They usually require a local college degree with 72 credits but as an American with English as our 1st language, we can usually bypass that. Let them know that you've had previous call center experience and where. 

Note once hired the company (will your future employer handle this for you or?) :

1. Take the copy of the employment contract and go to your local SSS office and apply for your SSS#.
2. Same with BIR. You will need a tax id #.
3. They will send you for a physical exam at company expense.

With all this said there are many expats from the UK and US as well as other nations working here, most are working for the same company in their homeland but they happen to have a branch here in the Philippines.


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## bidrod (Mar 31, 2015)

The on ward ticket is not really for the BI it is for the airline flying you to the Philippines. The airline you fly in on must fly you back out if for any reason BI refuses you entry to the Philippines. The only time I have not been asked to show this ticket is if I have purchased a R/T ticket. Coming here in 2010, Visa run to Bangkok 2012, return from USA 2014 had to show the throw away at check in for flight. I have renewed tourist Visa since Jun 2010 and yes the BI has never asked for the ticket. On the other hand know people that have been asked to show the ticket upon arrival in the Philippines.


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## lkarlovsky (Jan 4, 2013)

bidrod said:


> The on ward ticket is not really for the BI it is for the airline flying you to the Philippines. The airline you fly in on must fly you back out if for any reason BI refuses you entry to the Philippines. The only time I have not been asked to show this ticket is if I have purchased a R/T ticket. Coming here in 2010, Visa run to Bangkok 2012, return from USA 2014 had to show the throw away at check in for flight. I have renewed tourist Visa since Jun 2010 and yes the BI has never asked for the ticket. On the other hand know people that have been asked to show the ticket upon arrival in the Philippines.


Better to follow the rules then pay the price for not. I have never been asked for my passport but never leave my barangay without my ARC card or if Manila my ARC and Passport. But still think this fake onward ticket is a scam. Do other countries ask for this? Honestly do not know.


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

lkarlovsky said:


> Better to follow the rules then pay the price for not. I have never been asked for my passport but never leave my barangay without my ARC card or if Manila my ARC and Passport. But still think this fake onward ticket is a scam. Do other countries ask for this? Honestly do not know.


The reason for the continuing or round trip ticket is this. The Philippine govt does not want people getting here and becoming indigent and have no way to leave-thus the onward ticket. It helps protect the foreign traveler if he/she gets in a bad way. It also helps prevent the foreigner from becoming a burden on the Philippine government as use to happen many times before this law was passed.

This law is meant to be and is strictly forced by the airlines serving the Philippines. The airlines take it seriously as if they board you without an onward ticket and it is discovered upon arrival in the Philippines, the offending airline is fined very heavily.

With the passport and ACR card. For your own protection it is best to carry only a photo copy of both if you feel you need to carry either.
Reason for this is if ever lost or stolen, they are difficult and expensive to replace.


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