stardest17

Hello, I am getting married in June 2007. I am a US Citizen. I would
like to invite my grandparents based in the Philippines. They are
probably 70 + years old. How soon should they be applying for a visa?
Should I be sending them an early wedding invitation or a letter asking
them to come? Or is it okay to send the wedding invitation normally
(about 3 months before the wedding)?

Please advise! Thanks so much!

Elvira

Personally I would address this question to the US embassy in Manilla, but that's just me...

stardest17

Well, I figured I'd hear if anyone is in the same predicament as me
before asking them. They don't have an email address to contact and I
have to pay them for contacting them 0_0

mdyoung

Chance of them getting a visitor's visa from the Philippines is slim and none.

Voltes34

And they have nobody else to thank for that but their own countrymen
themselves who are among the most of the visa violators here in the U.S.
Can you fault the U.S. Embassy for doubting every visa applicant when it's a
demonstrable fact that a Filipino is more likely to break the law than abide
by it?


"mdyoung" <member11913@british_expats.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected] m...
    |
    | > Hello, I am getting married in June 2007. I am a US Citizen. I would
    | > like to invite my grandparents based in the Philippines. They are
    | > probably 70 + years old. How soon should they be applying for a visa?
    | > Should I be sending them an early wedding invitation or a letter
    | > asking
    | > them to come? Or is it okay to send the wedding invitation normally
    | > (about 3 months before the wedding)?
    | >
    | > Please advise! Thanks so much!
    |
    | Chance of them getting a visitor's visa from the Philippines is
    | slim and none.
    |
    | --
    | Posted via http://britishexpats.com

mdyoung

I totally agree with you. If the Philippines was separated from the U.S. by a river the U.S. would be full of illegal Filipinos instead of Mexicans.

scrubbedexpat099

I listened to an intersting comparison between the debacle in Iraq and a similar campaign in the Phillipines more than 100 years ago.

Politicians have a habit of not paying attention to history so perhaps soon we will be able to replace Iraqi's with Filipinos.

Folinskyinla

Hi:

I would do it as soon as possible. However, with Manila, one has to remember that not only do you have to provide a good reason for them coming, you have to give evidence that they will RETURN to the PI. That may be hard to do -- but I don't know the individual circumstances here.

Asianeyes

i'd hate to agree with you, but i have to. :(

it's sad though, because immigration aside and the penchant for finding
"workarounds", there are a number of bright/exceptional/law-abiding
filipinos; it's just that they are stereotyped because of what the
majority would do.

i suppose that this isn't exclusive to the Philippines. Might go for
other third-world countries as well. =/

to the OP though, guess my advice is to show pretty (very?) strong
evidence that they're going back to PI. I know someone (a grandma as
well) who got denied initially for the visitor's visa to visit her
daughter who was an LPR at that time. She applied again though, this
time bringing (legit) land titles for haciendas and papers that showed
the family owned hotels, and other businesses and such in the PI. Guess
that was good enough evidence for the officer, to grant her a visitor's
visa. It was a single entry visa though, so I guess that cloud of doubt
will be very hard to shoo away from immigration.

i wish you luck though. :)

-m

mdyoung wrote:
    > > And they have nobody else to thank for that but their own countrymen
    > > themselves who are among the most of the visa violators here in the
    > > U.S.
    > > Can you fault the U.S. Embassy for doubting every visa applicant when
    > > it's a
    > > demonstrable fact that a Filipino is more likely to break the law than
    > > abide
    > > by it?
    > >
    > >

mdyoung

That's what they look at there, i.e, money in the bank, own property. They could careless why you are coming unless it was for some illegal reason.

I remember a few years ago they denied some kid a visa to come here for medical treatment until the bad publicity hit the fan.

I guess the only thing in their favor would be their age, since old folks are probably less likely to go TNT.

Asianeyes

i must've been absent in history class when this was discussed. Boiler,
what was this so-called debacle about? any key words i could use to
google it? :P

mdyoung, TNT? ... you mean "tago nang tago"? :confused:

mdyoung

Yep.

scrubbedexpat099

Spanish American War

In the years that followed, fifteen U.S. soldiers died for every man dead in Cuba, at a cost of $600 million, and 200,000 Filipinos died, of whom 20,000 were combatants.

Ironically, America had, in part gone to war because of the reconcentration camps introduced by the Spanish General, Weyler. The US finally won the Philippine American War by introducing the same technique in the Philippines.

By mid-1901, the US won had won the Philippine war of independence, at the cost of its innocence.

stardest17

My grandparents are 70 + years old but they are pretty well-off. My
grandmother owns lands in the province she lives in and my grandfather
used to be the mayor of that province.

I am thinking of writing a formal letter to the embassy that my
grandparents will bring with them when they apply. I will mention that
I am writing the letter now so that there is enough time for them to
apply BUT that the actual wedding invitation will be sent out about
three months before the wedding. What do you guys think?

Thanks to everyone's thoughts and comments!

Asianeyes

sounds like a plan. :)

good luck. you know how politics and (being related to politicians)
have their way of pulling strings in the Philippines anyway, so hehe,
I'm sure those little factoids would help. Hope they count for
something as well at the consul. :) Tell them to bring their
certificates and (original) titles and what-have-yous.

Oh and congratulations & best wishes on your wedding! :D

-m