Moving to Philippines

The Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) describes the SRRV as a special non-immigrant visa issued by the Bureau of Immigration under its retirement program, and lists among a holder's benefits permanent residency in the Philippines, multiple entry and indefinite stay, and exemption from the Bureau's annual reporting and Alien Certificate of Registration (ACR) I-Card, from exit/re-entry permits and from a separate work or student visa or permit. The principal applicant must be 40 or older and may be a foreign national or a former Filipino citizen. SRRV Classic visa deposit: at 50 and above, USD 15,000 for a pensioner or USD 30,000 for a non-pensioner; at 40 to 49, USD 25,000 for a pensioner or USD 50,000 for a non-pensioner. A pensioner proves a lifetime pension of at least USD 800 a month for a single applicant or USD 1,000 a month for an applicant with dependents. A Classic holder may use the deposit for investment purposes allowed under the SRRV program. SRRV Courtesy for foreign nationals, for special categories such as retired diplomats, officers of international organizations recognized by the Department of Foreign Affairs, retired military service members from countries with recognized bilateral relations with the Philippines, and high achievers in academic, business, arts, culture, music and sports, including philanthropists: USD 1,500 at 50 and above; at 40 to 49, USD 3,000 for a pensioner or USD 6,000 for a non-pensioner. SRRV Courtesy for former Filipinos naturalized in another country who have not re-acquired Filipino citizenship: USD 1,500 at 50 and above, USD 3,000 at 40 to 49. The deposit is sent as an inward remittance from a bank abroad to a PRA-accredited bank. Each dependent in excess of two needs a further USD 15,000 deposit, except for former Filipinos. Dependents are a spouse legally married to the principal and unmarried children below 21 at application, legitimate or legally adopted. The principal also needs a passport with a tourist visa valid for at least one month while the SRRV is processed, a medical certificate, a police clearance, a Bureau of Immigration Clearance Certificate, an NBI clearance after more than 90 days in the Philippines, and photographs; applicants from countries the PRA identifies also supply a birth certificate, a national ID and a social insurance record or retirement certificate. Fees: a PRA processing fee of USD 1,500, USD 300 for each joining dependent, and a PRA annual fee, payable on joining and every year the visa is held, of USD 360 for SRRV Classic, USD 100 for Courtesy foreign nationals or USD 50 for former Filipinos (each for the principal and two dependents). The PRA page gives no processing time for the visa and does not say whether or when the deposit is refunded.

The Board of Investments' (BOI) SIRV questions and answers say the program requires investors to remit at least USD 75,000 into the Philippines and invest it in viable economic activities under Book V of the Omnibus Investments Code (Executive Order No. 226, as amended). An applicant must be an alien at least 21 years of age who has not been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, is not afflicted with any loathsome, dangerous or contagious disease, has not been institutionalized for any mental disorder or disability, is willing and able to invest at least USD 75,000 in an eligible form of investment, and holds a tourist (9(a)) visa with at least one month's validity. The money is remitted to an accredited depository bank, where a time deposit account is opened for it. Eligible investments are shares of stock in publicly-listed companies, in companies engaged in areas listed in the BOI's Strategic Investment Priorities Plan, or in companies in the manufacturing and services sectors, and government securities held for at least one year; shares in wholesale trading corporations and condominium units are no longer allowed, and a restaurant (retail trading) does not qualify. The application is filed with the BOI's Incentives Administration Service. A Probationary SIRV is valid for six months (180 days), within which the investment must be made, and is converted into an Indefinite SIRV on proof of actual investment; investing later incurs a penalty. Only the spouse and unmarried children under 21 qualify as dependents, and children over the age of 21 are no longer valid dependents, so their dependent SIRV is no longer honoured. Fees: the equivalent of USD 300 per person (principal and each dependent) to apply and PHP 2,000 per person for the SIRV ID card. There is no requisite period of physical presence, but the holder files annual reports and keeps the visa as long as the investment subsists; grounds for cancellation include failing to maintain the USD 75,000 investment at all times. The BOI gives minimum processing times only (seven working days at the BOI and at least ten at the Bureau of Immigration, for each stage). The page does not describe naturalisation.

Requires an Alien Employment Permit from the Department of Labor and Employment, which involves publication of the vacancy and a labour-market test showing no Filipino is able and willing to do the job, followed by the 9(g) visa petition filed by the employer with the Bureau of Immigration. The applicant needs qualifications matching the role, a clean criminal and immigration record, and medical clearance. The visa is tied to the sponsoring employer and role; changing employer requires a fresh AEP and visa. Typically issued for 1 to 3 years and renewable while employment continues. Spouse and unmarried children under 21 obtain 9(g) dependent visas but cannot work without their own permits. Time on a 9(g) counts toward the residence needed for naturalisation, which requires 10 years of continuous residence (or 5 in certain qualifying cases), but administrative naturalisation is restrictive and rarely pursued by ordinary work-visa holders.

Available to the foreign spouse (and unmarried children under 21) of a Filipino citizen, provided the applicant's own country grants reciprocal immigration privileges to Filipinos — this reciprocity test excludes some nationalities. Requires a valid marriage certificate registered with the Philippine Statistics Authority, proof the Filipino spouse holds citizenship, NBI and home-country police clearances, and medical examination. Granted first as a one-year probationary 13(a), converting to permanent status on successful review. Confers permanent residence with the right to live and work in the Philippines without a separate work permit and exemption from the annual quota. Foreign spouses become eligible for naturalisation after 5 years of continuous residence rather than the standard 10, but Philippine naturalisation is a judicial or administrative process that is slow and infrequently used, and naturalised citizens are expected to renounce prior allegiance.

The Bureau of Immigration's page says who can apply: nationals of countries which have diplomatic relations with the Philippines and grant Filipinos the same immigration privileges under the principle of reciprocity, with no more than fifty (50) of any one nationality, or without nationality, in any one calendar year — so entire nationalities can be ineligible. The application is filed at the BI Main Office with a checklist of documentary requirements, the Consolidated General Application Form and, if needed, additional information on the applicant's children; the applicant attends a hearing and then image and fingerprint capture for the ACR I-Card, and the visa is implemented in the passport once approved. The page lists no financial threshold, so ask the Bureau what it expects before relying on any figure you see elsewhere. The published fees are PHP 18,830 for the principal and for a dependent spouse, PHP 18,580 and PHP 18,080 for the two dependant categories the table labels DEP-B16 and DEP-B14, plus USD 50 for a one-year ACR I-Card; the Bureau notes that the fees were updated as of 06 March 2014 and may change without prior notice. Naturalisation is a separate process that this page does not describe.