Marriage Visa "Marriage Visa" (13A)

Before when I did mine I was told it could take 3 to 5 trips doing it yourself, good to see things are improving and cutting down on the amount of times you need to go to Cebu. Using the Agent I only needed to go two times which was two times too many for me! hehe

 

Yup, that's the way i am going to try it also. Let us know when you finished the next visit. Saves me the costs of the medical in holland and going to the hague.

 

I got my 13A visa in the States before coming over. My doctor ordered all of the medical tests, and medicare paid for them, so I had zero cost for the medical part. Flew to San Francisco, went into the Embassy, and walked out with my 13A visa packet in less than an hour. I am staying now in Sibulan, but last week took the morning flight over to Cebu arriving at about 11:30AM. Took taxi to BI, first go to visa office and they stamped my passport, next to immigration office and they sent me over to the quarantine office (half hour taxi ride). 30 minutes at quarantine office, they opened my 13A visa envelope and took out the medical forms and photos and put them into their own packets in triplicate and stamped my passport again, then back to immigration office. There they told me that now the ACR process needed to be completed next and it would take two days. I told the immigration officer I wanted to finish up now and catch the afternoon flight back to DGT, he said, "impossible to do unless we really try to expedite your processing, then maybe a chance"; I said well let's do that then. He got up from his desk and walked out to the hallway, I followed him out, he looked at me and said "you know there are expenses associated with expediting". I put 2000 peso in his hand, and we walked back into the office and he walked up to the window where there were already people standing in line, he pushed my form under the window and said "priority processing, get this one done quickly". They jumped on it, I was finger printed and photographed my forms were printed and put into a packet, everything that he told me would take two days to complete got finished in less than an hour. Then he said, you're done, come back in 60 t0 90 days to pick up your ACR card. Mad taxi dash back to the airport, and flew out and back to Sibulan same day. 13A visa arrival check-in and activation process, ACR card application process, all completed in about 3 hours. Proof it can be done.

 

Don't blame you at all .... but unfortunate that this is the only way to get it done with speed.

 

When I did mine I also had expedite it and pay the fee. Still took approximately 6 months before I received my ACR Card and Passport back via the Agent here in Dumaguete who helped me with the process due to some issue, and no one could explain that issue with my Card going to Cebu and then being resent back to Manila to be issued again.

 

hmm, never had an agent or any type of expidition fee. I guess I'm used to the old way of multiple trips, multiple docs, a lot of xerox copies of everything and following the list they gave me of needed documents. I did it all myself and took around 3-4 months to gather paperwork 4-6 to get approved once submitted.

 

I never had an agent, Last week went to (implement) my Passport for the ACR card, got told to come back next week (yesterday) to pick up the passport and ACR card, only to be told its still in Manila come back in 3 months, so that will be a total of 6 months. WTF.
This smells like corruption, I won't be giving any handouts to anyone, anyplace so they can go and xxxx themselves.
Rant over

 

Sorry, I meant to say pick up the ACR card in 3 months, they gave me back my passport. Thought they would have had the card ready, but making me wait for an extra 3 months and another journey to Cebu which I hate.