Balikbayan Visa Balikbayan Visa - Success & Other Stories

This is one of the examples of even government websites are not kept up to date. There are policy bulletins that are released and followed (in this case removing the one year requirement, no I can't find it again but dozens of expats on the few forums that I am on have not had an issue because of the one year point), and the website is not updated. For example, getting an ECC at the airport as a tourist between 6-12 months in the country. The BI website FAQ page still says no but several expats have including me last week.

 

I agree with you on that. Recently, it cost me some pesos and anxieties for following all requirements written on a Fil website only to be told "these are not needed anymore".

 

I think that's pretty much correct. The literal translation of the two parts of the word are return (balik) and homeland (bayan).

 

do you both have to have the same married name on the passports for the balikbyan visa....?? in our case we got her passport before marriage and still has her maiden name. We are planning to go to Singapore in October after 3yrs of visa extensions and come back and apply for balikbyan but will still have different names in passports

 

My impression is they very much prefer matching passports. In our case, her new passport was held up in the delay at the end of November so we did not have it when we traveled (picked it up the day after we returned). The BI officer will then want to see an original of you marriage license. I have gotten 3 from NSO to date. One DFA kept when we applied for her passport name change, one in case another organization wants/needs to keep an original also, one so we always have an original ourselves.

There is no reason you couldn't go ahead and get your wife's new passport now and you would have no issue in October. Name change due to marriage is a valid reason for applying for passport renewal early, no questions asked.

 

yes thought about a new passport but have already booked and paid for our flight in October and I guess it would be a bit complicated changing the names on our bookings

 

You get the old one back also. Would be the opposite of us. I booked under her married name but did not get the passport back in time. Just showed the girl at the ticket counter our marriage license (both at NAIA going to Hong Kong and at Hong Kong coming back) had no problem at all. BI didn't look at the tickets at all.

 

Any chance of a link to that please? I have that issue (my wife retained her former name) ... it was questioned by BI when we arrived at Manila in 2016 but did not stop me getting a BB Privilege. Will be trying again soon and better be safe than ....