visas
 

i have seen mentiond retirement visas m im 57 do i qualify ,what do you need to qualify for it ..how much ..anyone help me please ..:thumbup:

Re: visas
 

Here, Let me Google that for you!!

http://www.pra.gov.ph/

Re: visas
 

seen the bit about retirement visa the $50,000 in the bank. but how long dose that have to stay there?

Re: visas
 

After six months, you can use it to buy a condominium or a car, that is it must be a tangible asset.
I believe however that your age would allow you the $35,000 option.

Re: visas
 

Hi it has changed a few times before used to be $50 000 but when i joined was $10 000 with pension of $800 or more or $20 000 without and now it has changed again but you don't need to put $50 000 , its 10 or 20 . The fee is $1400 and now you pay $360 a year. Before to convert to condo , golf club shares what ever had to be approved, but never a car. If you read more into it and think its right for you then i can tell you how i did it and how easy it was

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well for me its 57 years old no pensiom yet $20,000 option and yes im going to do it im not coming back to uk ,property is an asset thats good so it seems easy enough ,how about the air ticket back ?? can that be 6 myhs >> or dose it have to be less ?? its just for thier peace of mind ill never use it dose it matter??

Re: visas
 

OK its normally better to buy a return as a single is near to the same price. if you get the srrv you never have to leave, never report first few months of the year to immigration no acr card as you have your own srrv card as well as the visa in your passport oh i did mine at 57 and had it almost 2 years now and it is easy but there are a few things you need to do in the right order. just be sure its what you want. oh yes the deposit stays in the bank as long as you want to keep the visa and the interest rate is very poor

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being realy nosy heheh how much was yours ?

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well the fee was $1400 same as today i think

Re: visas
 

$1400 or $14,000

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and im positive its what i want im on the plane on the 4th sept
or maybe sooner !

Re: visas
 

well good luck you take care. i will say that if you plan to marry the maybe just extend your tourist visa and when married go for the 13a visa, yes it takes longer and red tape but cheaper and again you never have to leave

Re: visas
 

You will find more information here:

http://www.pra.gov.ph/main/srrv_program?page=1

http://www.philembassy.no/consular-s...rees-visa-srrv

I am sure that this information is known to you Blackbear, but there will be others reading that are contemplating the move. The rules are constantly changing, to better attract the client base.

Re: visas
 

carry on tropic my friend .all i can say is if your thinking about it .........................do it ! buy a return for say 6 mths and go its paradice the people on the most are good ,manila stinks,of im not sure what but thats also mixed in with cooking on charcole all over the place i love it and im going ill take the typhoons. floods ,power brown outs .the beggers little kids coming uo to you tugging on your oants asking for handouts. the white sand beaches, palm trees ,mangoes growing on trees in the street!!! the fresh fish on the bbq for bfast im prepared for discomforts > i used to work in the circus livig on a trailer so im ok with that.most of all im looking most to being with my aana .

Re: visas
 

I have lived here continously for just on ten years. Prior to that I had a one year stay, during which time this house was built. I returned to UK as my elderly mother was ailing, and sadly passed away within six weeks of my return. I was back here eight months later.
I for one have never looked back. My Filipina wife lived in England with me for six years. We have been happily married for more than seventeen years. I get on well with my MIL and my large extended family. I can keep in contact with my younger sister via e-mail on a daily basis. It certainly beats letter writing and the two week delay in the post. My sister's eldest son has visited here.
I can truthfully say that the years with my wife, have been the happiest of my life.
To me this is Paradise, my spot in Eden.

Re: visas
 

hi blackbear if you have time you can get a 59 day visa from the consulate in London. if you are too far away it can be done by post. a friend of mine did it within the last year and the cost around 21 pounds much the same i paid 20 years ago. that will get you started

Re: visas
 

i thought you could get it from the airport when you arriove??? im hopeing to fly out on the 31st aug

Re: visas
 

No you will get 21 days. It is easy to extend. Most travel agencies will handle the process.

Re: visas
 

well you can get it at the airport. just before passport control on the left is an office which i have seen but another friend is just online in UK who i think did get his 59 day there , i will ask

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this i have read about before and i think the only problem is if the cashier has left for the night. just trying to get the cost now

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OK best i can get is between 2 to 3000 peso

Re: visas
 

oh and you only need your passport

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so what airline will you use and what time will you arrive

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OK the office is just before passport control open till late so do not get your passport stamped first, it should be less than $50 and take around half hour and you then have 59 day visa. if you cant pay in $ then maybe you can go to money changer just before airport exit and get change, maybe. this is not something i have done but i think possible

Re: visas
 

Ok if you miss that then you will need an extension which will be 38 days on top of your 21 day there after i think you can get 59 days. you need someone to tell you how to do this as i,m getting out of my depth now. but as i understand it you can extend for 16 months beyond that you may get couple more months if approved by immigration in Manila. but in time you must leave if only to HK but some people do stay for years this way

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thanks piero,my only problem now is the money from the house sale , will be paid into my santander account, we thougt it would be easy for them to tranfer it all ,to my gf s account, but we tried a small amount today, five times! they cant do it! we have the swift code, account no, and something calles router no.!.... no good grrrrrrrrrrrrr ill be there, and my money will be in uk!help!! ill have internet banking but no account there looks, like i miught be staying in uk for a short whle !!!!santander said they would be ok to transfer it all ... but looks like they cant....................

Re: visas
 

Okay BlackBear, now remember we are talking large sums of money here. Your money so take care with any advice given, including mine. Others will help you in this respect I am sure, and they will give good reasons as to why they chose their preferred method, and one bank over another.
Now with Santander I think that you have been talking to your local branch, and not the Foreign Exchange Branch. Your local branch staff would most probably know more about growing bananas than cable/wire transfers.

My advice; and others will follow with equal good advice.

In Rochester Row London, close to Victoria Station. Is the head office of Allied Banking Corporation (ABC) in UK. Now if you take your ID's including passport, they can open an account for you in Philippines. Warning they will take both your thumb prints as standard procedure.
Now if you get a Banker's Draft from Santander, and take it to Rochester Row, they will phone and confirm authenticity with Santander, and then remit the money to your chosen branch. It takes four working days maximum to arrive.
I would suggest that you phone ABC for more up to date details, and recommendations.
HSBC have few branches so it may not be convenient.
BDO (Banco D' Oro) have several branches, and if you have an account with an SM branch, you have seven days a week banking.
ABC are everywhere.

ABC are MY preferred remitters, but others may have alternatives.

First though I would try the office for overseas remittances at Santander. Try doing it over the phone, obviously they will ask you several security questions to ensure your identity.

I hope that all goes well for you. ABC London are usually open Saturday Mornings, or used to be.

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THANKS TROPIC .ILL DO THT ON SATURDAY ,YOU ARE A LIFE SAVER !!! THANKS A MILLION !!!! ABC IT IS PHEWWWWWWWWWWW CLOSE SHAVE AND ITS BETTER FOR ME AS WELL COS ILL HAVE AN ACCOUT TO DO THE SRRV .WHEN I NEED TOO .......

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i have anothr way i think?? post office ..they offer fee free transfers ... look on the web site mmmmmmm think of this it can be done online ?? looks good just jhas to be in uk time but im only going to transfer it once>>>>>>>

Re: visas
 

i must admit the tought of going out with my oen acount feels better

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Yes ABC have been there since the eighties, at one time you could send the money via any Post Office to them, but that ended a few years ago. There was a special form for the purpose. It was easy.

When I moved here in 2001 and was building a house, I used bank draft and an over the counter transaction at ABC.
When I opened my account, all I had to do was identify myself at my chosen branch. That was passport etc. Plus the copy receipt.

Re: visas
 

Hi T of C........bit of topic here but could i please ask your help with some info?

My wife is from Davao but we are presently living in KL due to my work. I need to start looking at places to hang my hat once i finally give up work and so far i really like the look of Cebu...... i havent actually been there yet but my internet searching has produced promising results. I like Davao but it is quite difficult to get to and i'd preffer to be nearer an International airport which Cebu has. Could you let me know the which areas you think may be considered as practical for setting up a home? anything with 90mins of the airport wopuld be ok, i think?

Thanks for the info in advance

ianinmalaysia

Re: visas
 

Well Ianinmalaysia before taking the big step it is best to have a look around. Most of the favoured placrs for foreigners attract a premium in costs.
Most of the British Ex-Pats favour Mactan itself, and I must say that I always thought that I would live in the Mactan or Talisay region. There have been a lot of developments in both places over the past few years. Also in Minglanila a bit further from Talisay and Cebu City.

In the South West there are some wonderful views, and there are many foreigners in the Badian area, mostly Australian though. Sadly it is more than ninety minutes from the airport. Unless you have a lucky run.

To the North Mandaue and Consolacion have a fair few foreigners living there, but they are both busy places always people and traffic.
Carmen in the North is another popular place, especially with the Americans, and I do like it there. It even boasts a children's playground (as does Danao City) it is in the main a restful sort of place. Many of my nieces and nephews attend school and university there. There is a new route to the airport from the North, running off the main highway at Liloan, which is currently closed as it is being widened. I have met a few British people in Liloan.
Consolacion has a new SM, both it and Fooda supermarket have cheese and other foreign foods, as does Gaisano in Mandaue. All on the National Highway.

Cebu is one of those places where many of the attractions are hidden. It would definitely pay to look around before committing yourself. I think though that the majority of British live on Mactan. The places in Cebu grow on you. There is a wide variety.

Talisay used to be my favourite place, and that is where I met my wife, She was with friends all from a village in Northern Cebu.

Re: visas
 

Hi Blackbear for my monthly transfer i use direct money transfer about same rate as you get from the moneychangers and 6 pound fee upto 1000 pound. for my srrv i got my bank to issue a us dollar cheque from bank of america in my name cost less than 20 pound and the rate was ok as well............ so you will send all to your girlfiends account is this some joke , nobody else has seen this and told you not to do that. i did read it twice so if i still have it wrong i,m sorry....... but never put any money your girlfriends account other than what you can loose

Re: visas
 

Try and open your own account, i have bdo open 7 days in sm and boc, and don't bring all your money at once , your still young and plenty of time to spend it

Re: visas
 

Hi Blackbear time to sleep now. I just want to tell you a short story about another friend of mine. So before the volcano went up and the US still had the base near to Angeles my friend had a bar so you may think well he knows the score in the Philippines. Well a year ago he sold up in the UK and had 250 000 pounds and today very little left. I wont go into details but i do know where most was spent .So you worry me as its too easy to spend. Only trust yourself.i,ve been coming here for nearly 23 years but i,m no expert but i will give you true answers to your questions if not first hand then i will say so. But again please don't rush to spend your money no matter how sweet she is, i,ve been there but my rose tinted specs got lost a few years ago

Re: visas
 

OK YES YOUR WRIGHT ILL OPEN MY OWN ACCOUNT FIRST .PROMISE. ITS NOT WORHT THE RISK JUST TOO PROVE IM RIGHT ... OR WRONG HEHEHEHSO ILL COME OUT WITH FUNDS FOR A MTH OR SO...THEN WE GO FROM THERE

Re: visas
 

blackbear you trust mu and and yourself so my mum and dad are both gone so i only trust myself now. i have nothing against your girlfriend but you worked hard for your money so make it last, ok enough of that. if you still think the srrv is for you then 1 of the things they ask is that your deposit is new money coming into the Philippines not money that is already here. so if you were to transfer all your money [ and please don't] then you have to prove its new money. you can bring cash but you will need customs papers to show you brought it in with you. and do you want customs to know your carrying $20 000 no so you can get a us dollar cheque. as always good luck your flying soon

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sorry i think lost a few words at the start should read trust your mum and dad etc etc

Re: visas
 

If you have more than 60k sterling you can open a HSBC UK account and they will open a HSBC PI account for you, allowing you to transfer money free on-line between the accounts - which also let you time it so that you can get the best exchange rate as well as having the money safely tucked away in the UK until you need. Not very good UK interest rates, though.