# Moving to Clark - advice please



## anthonymoore (Jun 3, 2017)

Hi All, I am excited to say I am moving to Clark in a few months and would like some advice please.

1. I have an autistic 3 year child - any recommendation for good school for him or assistance.
2. how does the tax work -do they take the tax straight of your wage? any other tax advice?
3. Do you need a car there or there is good public transport?
4. Renting our house/flat 3-4 bedrooms, where to start looking for help with this? what are the good areas to look at?
5. what does it cost for getting a person to help around the house?
6. what are they typical cost for utilities a months, i.e. water, electricity etc.?
7. what fun family things to do on weekend?
8. Do's and Don'ts ?
9. any other advice?

I hope you can give us some guidance. Thank you again .


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## hogrider (May 25, 2010)

anthonymoore said:


> Hi All, I am excited to say I am moving to Clark in a few months and would like some advice please.
> 
> 1. I have an autistic 3 year child - any recommendation for good school for him or assistance.
> 2. how does the tax work -do they take the tax straight of your wage? any other tax advice?
> ...


Hello Anthony, welcome to the forum.
I'm afraid I don't have answers to any of your questions. My only comment would be that if you are moving there in a few months, which sounds like it's already arranged, don't you think you should have sought answers to those important questions before making the decision to move there?


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## anthonymoore (Jun 3, 2017)

Wow ...what a great response... NOT!!! I think I would prefer no response.... :-(


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## SimonAngeles (May 10, 2016)

anthonymoore said:


> Hi All, I am excited to say I am moving to Clark in a few months and would like some advice please.
> 
> 1. I have an autistic 3 year child - any recommendation for good school for him or assistance.
> 
> ...


Hope this helps, if you get stuck on the property side then my neighbour is a realtor but as I said don't trust any local no matter how friendly they are.


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

Anthonymoore, Are you working for a company here or getting transferred to work here from your company in Australia? If so I'd contact the company because I feel they would be the ones that have more information on the area you live in and company benefits or taxes, so are you coming here on a retired visa or a working visa? Really important question.

For sure I'd want my own vehicle because it's a hassle dealing with transportation, you'll find out once you get here, but basically you need to haggle just about everything for prices and hopefully, you have pocket change or small change.

If you are staying here for a long time you might want to buy a condo instead of wasting money on rentals, we as foreigners can only own condos.

Electricity is a little higher than most Western countries, If you have one air conditioner on 24hrs a day the costs will be high, expect at a bare minimum 10,000 pesos per month this includes a large fridge, hot and cold water dispenser, several fans and electronics, if central air it could be higher I don't have central air.

Live in helpers will run you probably more in Angeles I think 5000 pesos would probably be correct but if they live with you just like adding another family member, you'll need to provide much more benefits and food in order for them to survive.

I have a grandson That has ADHDand he's the most precious thing to me on this earth, I raised him, it's a struggle so I know what you're going through there, many kids here could possibly be classified as Autistic so you'll be in good company I feel or compassionate company.

Careful late night activities and drinking that's my best advice. The water park spots are real fun places to spend the whole day at and you bring your own foods for BBQ they have grills, kids love it.


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## hogrider (May 25, 2010)

anthonymoore said:


> Wow ...what a great response... NOT!!! I think I would prefer no response.... :-(


Sorry that you took my response so negatively. I am not given to negative responses, if anything I'm usually accused of looking through rose tinted glasses etc. It just seems that a lot of your questions are so very fundamental to moving here, that you really have to do a hell of a lot of research before jumping in, IMHO. I have absolutely no idea how or where you would find schooling for your child, but that must be very high on your list of essentials. Wishing all the best, really.
David


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

*Correction to my post*



M.C.A. said:


> I have an Autistic grandson and he's the most precious thing to me on this earth, I raised him, it's a struggle so I know what you're going through there, many kids here could possibly be classified as Autistic so you'll be in good company I feel or compassionate company.


I wish I could delete this paragraph,  I had that wrong all the way my grandson has ADHD and not Autistic and there aren't that many kids here that would be classified as Autistic.
*Mod note: MCA, it's done.*


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## SimonAngeles (May 10, 2016)

anthonymoore said:


> Wow ...what a great response... NOT!!! I think I would prefer no response.... :-(



Life lesson for everybody here.

You see, although you've only asked a few questions on the forum you'll find you've had lots of useful replies, but instead of thanking people for the helpful responses you chose to respond to the one you perceived to be negative.

If more people praised the positives and ignored the negatives, I'm sure we'd all be a lot happier.


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## Nickleback99 (Aug 6, 2011)

We are still planning and working on our move, checking out some places past few yrs, and more in depth planning perhaps the past 12 months. A lot of what I've found was already posted on this and other Expat sites; so, my recommendation is to do some digging here and on those others as well, especially since some have "search" capability for past threads. I have found a lot of Very useful info from prior threads all over, as well as posting a current question, as you did, but most was from prior posts. ALSO, and don't underrate it, check YouTube for some Philippine Expat related channels and that will also be very informative, although I've not seen much to help on Angeles. I wish I could offer more, but we are not considering Angeles, but could offer more on Dumaguete, Subic and few other locations. I take it you have a job lined up Angeles?....Otherwise, I'd recommend some other locations, Best of luck, as the school thing is very tough and depends where on the Autism spectrum your child "sits.". Regards, James C.


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## Nickleback99 (Aug 6, 2011)

Also, we have a Filipina friend there who is married to an USAF Major and they have a kid; so, I'll ask her for some feedback as well, as I know they have a nice place in a nicer area/community there if I recall correctly. Their kid just a baby; so, don't think she'd be up to speed on the school and special needs aspects of your situation though.


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## Simon1983 (Jun 6, 2016)

Hi Anthony.

Welcome to the Philippines.

I'm working in San Fernando, just down the road from Clark. I will give as much advice as I can. Feel free to send me a private message if you have any more questions or want to meet up once you have arrived.

1. I have an autistic 3 year child - any recommendation for good school for him or assistance.

The best school I know of is Bright Woods. It's a bit pricey but well recommended. 

2. how does the tax work -do they take the tax straight of your wage? any other tax advice?

If you are working for a company here you need an Alien Employment Permit and a 9G work visa. Your employer should sponsor you for that.

You should get paid every two weeks and your employer should deduct taxes, social security, phil health and other deductions.

The easiest way (I think) is to arrive here on a tourist visa and then apply for a Provisional Work Permit and then once you have that you can apply for the Alien Employment Permit and 9G Visa... it takes about 3 months but the PWP will cover you for that period. PM if you have questions regarding this.

3. Do you need a car there or there is good public transport?

Public transport is mostly jeepneys and tricycles and so if you have a young family I would definitely recommend a car. Lots of second hand cars for sale but be careful as some may have been flooded or not well looked after. Other members know more about buying cars than I do.

4. Renting our house/flat 3-4 bedrooms, where to start looking for help with this? what are the good areas to look at?

It depends on your budget. Personally I would recommend renting over buying. Firstly renting is cheaper. Secondly no downpayment, thirdly you can move a lot easier.
If you buy you are pretty much stuck here and will find it hard to sell if you decide you want to move.
I would live here a few years before sinking money into property, personally.

5. what does it cost for getting a person to help around the house?

Maybe 5000. They should be live in. Maybe you can find someone to help look after your kid and also keep the house tidy.

6. what are they typical cost for utilities a months, i.e. water, electricity etc.?

I am paying about 200 for water and 800 for electric, but i have a small house and no air con and few appliances. With air con, your bill will probably be 3 times that.

7. what fun family things to do on weekend?

Fun things here include resorts (for swimming), malls (for shopping, eating and aircon), Sandbox, Sky Ranch.... there's a lack of parks and green spaces here unfortunately (although Clark is greener than San Fernando. I like to go cycling or gym at the weekends. Also seeing friends and family.

8. Do's and Don'ts / 9. any other advice? Have you been to Philippines before? If not, maybe come visit as it might be a bit of a culture shock. 

I've lived in Philippines 3 years and been working in San Fernando more than a year. I find the place very safe but my advice would be keep your nose clean, dont get involved in anything naughty as things can very quickly escalate if you do.

Also if you're driving, take care as the roads are a bit dangerous here, particularly in the evenings.

I hope you enjoy your time here. Feel free to message me any questions or if you need help with anything.

I hope you can give us some guidance. Thank you again .[/QUOTE]


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## anthonymoore (Jun 3, 2017)

Thank you all for taking the time to respond. It is very nice to get the answer to questions that I have been unable to get from research on the Internet.


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## greenstreak1946 (May 28, 2017)

*cost*



anthonymoore said:


> Wow ...what a great response... NOT!!! I think I would prefer no response.... :-(



Hogrider is right. I sure would have checked the cost before final preparation to move there. 

I find the utilities are cheap there. Also, house maids are cheap also.

art


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## Simon1983 (Jun 6, 2016)

Hi Anthony. Another point regarding schooling.
Generally children with autism would have a shadow-teacher or a nurse who would accompany them during the school day.
This would probably be a live in nurse who has training how to communicate and look after the child.
You would pay more than a maid (maybe 10K).
I have a friend from Hong Kong who moved here and he had a nurse for his child whilst in Hong Kong. After moving to Philippines and hiring a Filipina nurse he found his child really improved (wasn't autism but something else). 
The nurses here are well trained and if you look after them they will treat your child as their own.
But choose someone single, have them live in, and you provide all their food etc.
Hope that helps.


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## MikenKeira (Jul 3, 2017)

Hi,

I have just moved to Angeles in the last 2 months. Whilst I dont have that much info I can relay my most recent experiences;

1. Dont have experience of the school needs you have indicated but we registered our 7 year old at Westfields and he started last week. Suggest you contact them to see if they can accommodate your needs and if they dont I am sure they will be able to point you in the right direction as they are very helpful. We also have a 2 year old and will be searching for her as well but its early days.

2. Tax is deducted at source and depending on what you are earning depends on the rate. Top wack seems to be 30%. SSS and Philhealth is also deducted.

3. Car is essential. I bought a 3 year old 1.4l 7 seater so the wife can get about easier for PHP 480K. Whether this is a bargain or not I dont know but I'm happy with the outcome. And its now all registered in her name.

4.We have rented and will do so for around 2 years. This will give us time to review all options as my wife is Filipina as I intend to retire here. But didnt want to rush into anything without seeing what was available. Realtors experience was pretty rubbish to be honest but we did find a lady who was very helpful and up front so we found a nice 3 bedroom in a secure sub division with a clubhouse literally 50m away that has a nice pool for the kids. can introduce you if you want to.

5. We got a driver/home help for 7.5k per month live out (not live in). Wife needed a driver as well as she doesnt drive ....yet! For my comment I have had a live in before in another Asian assignment and to be honest it sort of stifles the privacy a little....but thats my viewpoint.

6. Cant answer this one as I haven't had any bills yet !

7. The mall trips. Cinema, Parks in Clark. still to early to explore much.

8. To many to mention....dont get angry just go with the flow.

9. Make sure all the requirements for visa can be fulfilled. There are no short cuts no matter what anybody says. make sure the relocation company being used is a good one....I work for a shipping company and I would consider we are pretty okay with customs regulations etc etc.. But we still had problems on personal effects. 

Hope this helps a little.

Rgds
chris


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

MikenKeira said:


> Hi,
> 
> I have just moved to Angeles in the last 2 months. Whilst I dont have that much info I can relay my most recent experiences;
> 
> ...


Howdy and welcome to the forum. Looks like you're getting settled in and set up. Angeles is a pretty good place and has most everything. Duty free stores inside Clark are good and will carry many item from home.

When you decide to go exploring you can head West on the expressway and be at Subic Bay in less than one hour. Good beaches and restaurants as well a the Yacht Club if you like boating and enjoy the finer things in life.


Jet Lag


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## SilvesterM (Sep 6, 2018)

Hi I'm from Pampanga, I dont recommend Angeles really. The nearest best place to live is San Fernando Pampanga instead. It's much more peaceful and its not far from clark.


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## Pakwaan (Oct 14, 2017)

This post was over a year old. Somehow I have a feeling at this point replies are pointless.


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## hogrider (May 25, 2010)

Can you actually be an expat in your own country? Just asking.


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

hogrider said:


> Can you actually be an expat in your own country? Just asking.


Hahaha---You're a bad boy!! I think actually if the person moved away and then moved back years later it would fit.
At any rate, maybe the new member will do some more posting. Fun to have locals on here sometimes. Actually, I agree with him. Anywhere outside of Angeles proper is better. We are out in the country about a 30 minute ride from Balibago and would never know it's even there.


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## mogo51 (Jun 11, 2011)

SimonAngeles said:


> Life lesson for everybody here.
> 
> You see, although you've only asked a few questions on the forum you'll find you've had lots of useful replies, but instead of thanking people for the helpful responses you chose to respond to the one you perceived to be negative.
> 
> If more people praised the positives and ignored the negatives, I'm sure we'd all be a lot happier.


Yes I have to agree with the other posters Anthony I am afraid. I felt that the suggestion of doing 'due diligence' BEFORE you get here was not only positive, but entirely correct. 
Angeles is a jungle and you can soon get lost in it. In the interests of your son, I think you should be looking on the outer areas of Angeles and not in the middle of the sordid night life! Riding in jeepneys and motorcycle trikes are not much fun, a car would be better or a bike with a sidecar? 
Agree with the other advice you have received. These are good friendly people on this forum always willing to help 0 no need to 'p.ss them off'.


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