Tourist Visa Best Posts in Thread: Immigration law "modernization" visa changes

In the past, tourists could only stay for 2 years. The only difference was more frequent Visa Runs. No big deal. 3 years was just acknowledging what people were doing and realizing that was money lost every time the tourists went for a Visa Run. But each new set of politicians have to bring it up and justify their existence.

Take Canada for instance, (as I know my own country) "There is no statutory limit on the number of times a person can extend visitor status. Instead, the officer will consider the history of the applicant, the purpose of the visit, and whether there is a valid reason to continue visiting."

 

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The new law (still to be approved by the Senate, but approval in the House went unanimous, so it'll probably be a hammer piece in the Senate also) does redraw the visa schedule for the Philippines.
A lot of it is still unclear, because many things will be decided in an IRR separate from the law at a later stage.

This much is clear:
1. tourists from most countries will get a 59 day initial visa upon entry, rather than the 29 day now.
2. all foreigners in the country who stay beyond 59 days will have to register (ACRI-card) and if tourist, get emigration clearance before exit.

The future IRR (rules and regulations) will decide:
1. whether the 3 year max stay for tourists stays unchanged,
2. whether the balikbayan stamp will survive (current "visa-exempt 1 year stamp")
3. what the future procedure to get a spousal "non-quota immigrant status" will be (the current 13a visa isn't mentioned in the law).

We better be prepared for a period of uncertainty.
Link to the Law text (it's a long read, I only skimmed through it)

 

NO! I am not going by Miss Pea, as nice as I think she seems to be in putting information across.

She had a Philippine Visa Expert with her and we assume he knows how to read the proposals. If these 'experts' are not valid then who do we go to when an immigration problem crops up? Do we say that all of them are hopeless?

Do we say the same for every 'expert' in medicine and dentistry? If we do, then why do members here ask for recommendations. Unless you have used or heard about the Visa Expert (whose name I did not make a note of) then how do you know his validity?

To answer my own quandary: Maybe we just wait until the new laws are solid - and then let every different official and different office interpret then in whatever way they want! That is the Filipino way.