# Citizenship.



## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Hi to all astute members, I, for the first time as an Aussie posted my first submission in the Australian forum site,,,,,, slack perhaps but my focus has been in the Philippines as it is here.
As follows:

""Hi all, my first post into this group as I normally hang out on the Philippines expat site.
My better half, Filipino national holding permanent residency in Oz is eligible to apply for Australian citizenship in September and meets all the requirements according to immi in Australia.
We have a few questions and hope some can answer or help.

Does he have to renounce his Filipino citizenship to gain his Aussie citizenship then reapply for dual citizenship? (can't find anything on this on their site)

What is the timeline for this process?

We are planning to go O/S in April next year for an extended holiday for 6 to 8 months, perhaps longer, yes we will both resign from our current employment for this holiday but can return to Australia if needed,,,,,,,,, basically out of the country for a long period. could/would this affect his application for citizenship? 

Any/all feedback would be greatly appreciated as we are just starting down this path.

Cheers, Steve.""

If anyone can throw 2 bob and a bottle of beer into the mix I'd be glad to hear it. Thanks to all for your deliberations and info if you can supply.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

I beleive by taking another citizenship he will aultomatically loose his Philippines citizenship but reaquiring is very easy and cost about $50


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## Rebaqshratz (May 15, 2016)

You need to check with OZ immigration on time out of country but i am sure it is in the same neighborhood as the US. With Joy we had to certify (don't forget the passport does not lie and is accessible by officials) that she was never out of the US for more than 6 months (there are exceptions to the 6 month rule but involves paperwork) at a time and that from the date she received her "green card" on she was in the states at least 1 day more than she was out of the country. When she took on the US passport the deal was that is she will use it for all traveling regardless of where she goes. We traveled from Boston to New York City the next week and she applied for and received her dual citizenship (all in one day). When we returned to the Philippines she checked in with her US passport but showed her documentation to immigration showing her status as a dual citizen and was stamped in with no time limit. We now live full time in the PH but always use the US passport which is a great help because in almost all countries it negates the need of a visa for entry. Again, this is an example for the US only so check with immigration. We used a lawyer specializing in this work and he was able to make things go smoothly and even changed the date for her citizenship exam because she had to rush home during the scheduled date because of the passing of her Mom. Good Luck! Almost forgot - normally it is 5 years on a green card before you can apply for citizenship in the US. The exception is for a spouse and that is reduced to 3 years of living in the states which was the scenario we followed.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Rebaqshratz said:


> You need to check with OZ immigration on time out of country but i am sure it is in the same neighborhood as the US. With Joy we had to certify (don't forget the passport does not lie and is accessible by officials) that she was never out of the US for more than 6 months (there are exceptions to the 6 month rule but involves paperwork) at a time and that from the date she received her "green card" on she was in the states at least 1 day more than she was out of the country. When she took on the US passport the deal was that is she will use it for all traveling regardless of where she goes. We traveled from Boston to New York City the next week and she applied for and received her dual citizenship (all in one day). When we returned to the Philippines she checked in with her US passport but showed her documentation to immigration showing her status as a dual citizen and was stamped in with no time limit. We now live full time in the PH but always use the US passport which is a great help because in almost all countries it negates the need of a visa for entry. Again, this is an example for the US only so check with immigration. We used a lawyer specializing in this work and he was able to make things go smoothly and even changed the date for her citizenship exam because she had to rush home during the scheduled date because of the passing of her Mom. Good Luck! Almost forgot - normally it is 5 years on a green card before you can apply for citizenship in the US. The exception is for a spouse and that is reduced to 3 years of living in the states which was the scenario we followed.


Thanks Reb for your input and insights, Ben Qualifies to apply for Aussie citizenship as said next month and passes all the requirements to apply and accomplish Aussie status, I suppose our question is whether he has to relinquishing Filipino citizenship yes/no to apply or when applying for Aussie citizenship and the ramifications ie does he/timelines etc.
There appears to be zilch on all of our research with regards to this question firstly on Oz immi sites, our great friend google, here say and even our migration agent advises he knows little as this area is not his speciality but will take our money if stupid enough to pay him,,,,,,, his words but advises a specialist but can't advise personally.

Throwing it out there to those that may have been through this debacle in our situation, Australia/Philippines.
Again thanks for your input Reb.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

bigpearl said:


> Thanks Reb for your input and insights, Ben Qualifies to apply for Aussie citizenship as said next month and passes all the requirements to apply and accomplish Aussie status, I suppose our question is whether he has to relinquishing Filipino citizenship yes/no to apply or when applying for Aussie citizenship and the ramifications ie does he/timelines etc.
> There appears to be zilch on all of our research with regards to this question firstly on Oz immi sites, our great friend google, here say and even our migration agent advises he knows little as this area is not his speciality but will take our money if stupid enough to pay him,,,,,,, his words but advises a specialist but can't advise personally.
> 
> Throwing it out there to those that may have been through this debacle in our situation, Australia/Philippines.
> ...


He does't have to relinquish his filipino citizenship to take his Ausi citizenship, he loses automatically. As I said earlier he then can reaquire it very simply. To be honest losing his filipino citizenship will have little or no effect unless he wants to own large tracts of land or vote.


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## Rebaqshratz (May 15, 2016)

Gary D said:


> He does't have to relinquish his filipino citizenship to take his Ausi citizenship, he loses automatically. As I said earlier he then can reaquire it very simply. To be honest losing his filipino citizenship will have little or no effect unless he wants to own large tracts of land or vote.


The interesting aspect of getting your dual citizenship is that if and when a holder decides to move back to the Philippines permanently is that they would have 90 days upon return to have all of their personal gear, furniture, et al imported into the Philippines with any fees or taxes being accessed excepting autos. We brought a 40' container with all of our stuff from the US without any taxes or fees from the Filipino government. That was a good windfall for us.


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

Rebaqshratz said:


> The interesting aspect of getting your dual citizenship is that if and when a holder decides to move back to the Philippines permanently is that they would have 90 days upon return to have all of their personal gear, furniture, et al imported into the Philippines with any fees or taxes being accessed excepting autos. We brought a 40' container with all of our stuff from the US without any taxes or fees from the Filipino government. That was a good windfall for us.


I know that is the case for SRRV but not sure how it works for anyone else, perhaps you got lucky.


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## esv1226 (Mar 13, 2014)

Balikbayans are tax exempt for stuff they bring when they come back home to retire. This privilege is limited (something like $10,000 worth I think). This does not apply to luxury items, cars, motorcycles.. etc


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## Manitoba (Jun 25, 2014)

Gary D said:


> I know that is the case for SRRV but not sure how it works for anyone else, perhaps you got lucky.


SRRV limited to $7,000 worth.


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## Rebaqshratz (May 15, 2016)

Gary D said:


> I know that is the case for SRRV but not sure how it works for anyone else, perhaps you got lucky.


Nope that is the rule/law for return dual citizens (must have a residence which we did) and there was no problem with it going thru...I had been worried about the value off our stuff (I brought all my tools) in that I had heard that only a certain amount would be tax/fee free but all the paperwork was completed prior to the shipment being sent so it was like eating ice cream when it arrived. No hassle, no strong arm or any type of shenanigans. The shipper from the US had a counter part here so i think that helped with the contacts with BOC et al.


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

esv1226 said:


> Balikbayans are tax exempt for stuff they bring when they come back home to retire. This privilege is limited (something like $10,000 worth I think). This does not apply to luxury items, cars, motorcycles.. etc


I thought BB were $500 each tax free


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Thanks to all so far for your input, interestingly my OP to the Aussie expat site within this forum has not received any response, nadda.

Returning Filipino citizens have set limits on tax and duty free tariffs.
After 10 years away, PHP 350K.
After 5 years away. PHP 250K.
Less than 5 years away. PHP 150K.

https://preview.tinyurl.com/y7fecr9n

We will talk to a migration agent (yes more money) and hopefully find the answers.

Cheers, Steve.


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## mogo51 (Jun 11, 2011)

esv1226 said:


> Balikbayans are tax exempt for stuff they bring when they come back home to retire. This privilege is limited (something like $10,000 worth I think). This does not apply to luxury items, cars, motorcycles.. etc


Correct.


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## Rebaqshratz (May 15, 2016)

esv1226 said:


> Balikbayans are tax exempt for stuff they bring when they come back home to retire. This privilege is limited (something like $10,000 worth I think). This does not apply to luxury items, cars, motorcycles.. etc


We sent boxes long before we decided to move here. Never taxed. When moved our household goods it was in a 40' container no tax accessed by BOC. Had to show paperwork including her dual citizenship (original copy) which was returned to us. Apparently if it is HHG House Hold goods they are not taxed whether it is a wink wink because the value is under reported or they don'r care as long as it is not luxury item. There was absolutely no hesitation or shenanigans from the government.

This returning dual citizenship is somewhat different from a returning OFW because you need to have dual citizenship and be returning full time and permanently to an established home in the PH. I am not acquainted with what "rights" and privileges" are given to returning OFW's but I would be surprised if they are the same...


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## Manitoba (Jun 25, 2014)

Rebaqshratz said:


> We sent boxes long before we decided to move here. Never taxed. .......


If you sent them BB boxes these were never taxed. There was some talk on some restrictions on these in the last year but I am not sure what ever came of this.


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## lawyer128 (Aug 14, 2018)

bigpearl said:


> Hi to all astute members, I, for the first time as an Aussie posted my first submission in the Australian forum site,,,,,, slack perhaps but my focus has been in the Philippines as it is here.
> As follows:
> 
> ""Hi all, my first post into this group as I normally hang out on the Philippines expat site.
> ...



Hi Steve,

The moment your wife swears an Oath of Allegiance to Australia, she automatically losses her Filipino citizenship. The good thing is that she is allowed by law to reacquire it. All she needs to do is to go to the nearest Philippine embassy and bring a copy of her Philippine passport or Certificate of Birth issued by Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to prove that she is a former Filipino citizen.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

lawyer128 said:


> Hi Steve,
> 
> The moment your wife swears an Oath of Allegiance to Australia, she automatically losses her Filipino citizenship. The good thing is that she is allowed by law to reacquire it. All she needs to do is to go to the nearest Philippine embassy and bring a copy of her Philippine passport or Certificate of Birth issued by Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to prove that she is a former Filipino citizen.


Thanks for your input, unfortunately we are not going down that path at this stage as we will be out of the country (Australia) and based in PH for many years and only going to spend 1 to 2 months a year back in OZ.
Applying for Australian citizenship takes about 18 months, if you leave the country even for a holiday the clock stops and starts again upon return, given our intended status achieving this could take 10 plus years. We want to keep our options open for returning to Oz so will simply maintain Bengie's permanent residency, like others PH may not be the place for us to retire and therefore could move back.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Rebaqshratz (May 15, 2016)

Gary D said:


> I know that is the case for SRRV but not sure how it works for anyone else, perhaps you got lucky.


Not the case- the law pertains to returning dual citizenship folks who have a home in the transport of household goods into the Philippines within 90 days of the permanent return. We shipped a 40' container at no fee other than the transport from the US to the Philippines.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

lost_lyn said:


> Be careful. I lost my PHL citizenship in the USA, and now my kids can't live in the Philippines!


Due diligence I am sure and if that was/is your situation then you only have yourself to blame and no other. You seem to be relating a different experience to my/our own/this thread and what we are discussing on here.
Please enlighten us to your plight/grievances or submit another post.

Cheers, Steve.


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## fmartin_gila (May 15, 2011)

In reference to the above posts. The US is the same as Au in this regard. The Philippine citizenship will be relinquished at US citizenship, but may be reaquired (as Dual Citizenship) at a Philippine Embassy anywhere in the US. I agree with Steve, due diligence should be done before making concrete, inflammatory, and unsubstantiated statements.

Fred


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