Exit clearance in the Philippines

[lowell1123 6]

With my eldest son who is with me here in the US, I've spent almost 30000 pesos then when we got to the airport he only showed his US passport and that was it. We boarded the plane and arrived at SFO with no problems. So that 30000 that ive spent was just a waste of money. But just FYI passports are only like 1500 right now that's I what I was informed. Huge difference. And that's how it is in the philippines. They tell you one thing and then you find out something else. And you can't get your money back either. Philippine immigration is so screwed up they themselves don't know what they are doing. 

[Randy12572 0]

Get them both US and PH Passport and then you wont have any issue.  I had to get my daughter an exit clearance and pay the bribes to Immigration our flight to US was the next day.  Wasted day and lots of peso at BoI

[Joe Kano 327]

19 minutes ago, lowell1123 said:

With my eldest son who is with me here in the US, I've spent almost 30000 pesos then when we got to the airport he only showed his US passport and that was it. We boarded the plane and arrived at SFO with no problems. So that 30000 that ive spent was just a waste of money. But just FYI passports are only like 1500 right now that's I what I was informed. Huge difference. And that's how it is in the philippines. They tell you one thing and then you find out something else. And you can't get your money back either. Philippine immigration is so screwed up they themselves don't know what they are doing. 

Did he have a Philippines passport at the time? Or only a US Passport?

[lowell1123 6]

He only had a US passport at the time. But you get what I'm saying about wasting money. Agency passporting in the philippines is 3500 pesos. At the regular immigration office us only 1500 pesos. Now im assuming if we ask for expedited passports they will charge another maybe 3000 or 3500 on top of the regular fee at the agency. So I'm looking at 14000 for 2 passports. Plus to rent a car and driver  plus foods and toll maybe 20000 just for the passports

[flicks1998 1,044]

58 minutes ago, lowell1123 said:

He only had a US passport at the time. But you get what I'm saying about wasting money. Agency passporting in the philippines is 3500 pesos. At the regular immigration office us only 1500 pesos. Now im assuming if we ask for expedited passports they will charge another maybe 3000 or 3500 on top of the regular fee at the agency. So I'm looking at 14000 for 2 passports. Plus to rent a car and driver  plus foods and toll maybe 20000 just for the passports

Using an agency is not the same as dealing directly with the Bureau of Immigration.  Agencies will often take advantage of you if you are unaware of the procedures.  If you do the passport yourself, you pay the stated prices. Ive done many Philippine passports and renewals over a 16 year period and never had any issues.

 

@seekingthetruth provided correct advice in his posts.  The problem you ran into is that Philippine citizens must present their Philippine passport when leaving the country.  If you search the Immigration laws, its stated in there.  When your child is born in the Philippines they are legally allowed to stay in the country for as long as they want because the birth certificate proves this.  However once you decide to leave the country, even if they have obtained a US passport, they are still a Philippine citizen.  As soon as my son was born, we immediately did a PI passport as we traveled often in the region.  I didnt even start his CRBA and US passport until he was almost 6 years old as we had no plan at that time to go to the US. 

 

I worked directly with PI Immigration for almost a decade.  We were the only foreign company in the Philippines who obtain permission to not have to deal with 3rd party immigration attorneys as a go between from the foreign company to Immigration.  I had direct contact with immigration and the thousands of immigration "cases" I worked on, all fees were substantiated. Immigration is actually one of the least corrupt departments in the Philippines although you sometimes do get bad apples.  It seems you were taken advantage by an agency and Immigration provides a ton of advice to not deal with agencies.  

 

The problem with Agencies as well is they take all of the new appointment times as soon as Immigration releases those time slots.  They then charge a "fee" for it.  That is not legal but has been going on for as long as I can remember.  Pre-Covid, you did not even need an appointment for a child passport.  People who were pregnant, seniors, people with children could just show up and go to the expedite line.  Its what we did.  Times have changed though.

 

Also ECCs are only for foreigners.  I had to do an ECC when I downgraded from a 9g to a 9a.  They had my passport for 3 weeks.  That was normal.  If your spouses US visa wont expire for awhile, I would get a PI passport for your child.  Alot appointment slots may be full but if you check daily and 30-40 times a day, you will find slots to open up here and there.  

 

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by flicks1998

[lowell1123 6]

That I'm afraid your wrong at. They became US citizens when they got their US passports. Yes they lived their whole life and they even went to school there but once you report them at the US embassy birth abroad and get their US passports they lose their philippine citizenship and become US citizen. 

[flicks1998 1,044]

13 minutes ago, lowell1123 said:

That I'm afraid your wrong at. They became US citizens when they got their US passports. Yes they lived their whole life and they even went to school there but once you report them at the US embassy birth abroad and get their US passports they lose their philippine citizenship and become US citizen. 

Are your kids 18 years old or over?  If not, I advise you read the Philippine immigration laws.  Not trying to be nasty, unfortunately you are misinformed and people in this thread have already informed you on what to do.  Please follow their advice to save yourself more problems.  You are getting free immigration advice   If you do not believe us, I can recommend you to a PI Immigration lawyer to reconfirm what has already been stated.

 

If your children are over 18, then yes, Im wrong and you can disregard everything.

Edited September 27, 2021 by flicks1998

[lowell1123 6]

my kida are not 18 years or older. they both are still minors. im not dwelling on the corruption in the philippines im just letting everyone know how they are to their own people. anyways trying to get their passports now but by appointments only. and they wont open up the site for making appointments until oct 1. i dont understand why they need to wait until oct 1 for letting people start making appointments. 

[lowell1123 6]

he Child is a citizen of the United States of America.

If a child, has a mother or father who is an American; even if that child is born abroad, that child is automatically an American Citizen. By American Blood.

If you have problems, go straight to the Embassy of the United States of America in Manila. This should be facilitated quickly.

US Citizens will be given priority in US Embassies.


God Bless.

Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=18656.0

 

[lowell1123 6]

Under section 301(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, ("INA"), when a child is born with one foreign parent and one United States citizen parent who are married, the child is entitled to American citizenship by birth. This law is true so long as the United States citizen parent was a resident of the U.S. or the U.S. outlying territories for at least the minimum time required by the law. Prior to 1953, this period was 5 years and between 1956 and 1986 it increased 10 years. The American citizen parent also has to be genetically related to the child to transmit citizenship to him/her. Under section 309(c) of the INA, a person conceived out of wedlock by one U.S. citizen parent is able to get citizenship. This law is true so long as the American Citizen parent had physical presence within the U.S. or one of its outlying possessions for at least a full year prior to when the child was born. When genetically proven, the Citizenship can be passed on to the child. The procedure for acquisition of citizenship is as follows: The child can always apply for U.S. citizenship and must be done as soon after the birth as possible to avoid complications. Basically, the simplest and much cheaper way to obtain his birthright citizenship is by reporting his birth to the nearest U.S. Consulate General or Embassy. And to be able to have the issuance of a U.S. Birth Certificate accepted on all accounts as rightful and legal proof of citizenship, his birth abroad must be filed and reported before his 18th birthday. For a child born in the Philippines to an American citizen father, the application must be done at the Embassy of the United States in Manila. The following are the list of instructions: � Acquire the application forms and document checklist. You can not schedule an appointment until all application forms and documents are submitted and reviewed. Forms and checklist can be obtained in person at the Embassy (from 7:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. at the American Citizen Services window) or by downloading the DS-2029 form online. � Complete the required documentation together with the application form. All documents must be in their original form or certified by the seal of a notary. Documents not in English must be supported by a notarized translation. Provisions may be made for documents that are not available. In certain instances, additional evidence may be required to ensure full compliance with citizenship law. Documents include the following: child's Philippine Birth Certificate, Evidence of the father's U.S. Citizenship (could be his passport, birth certificate or naturalization certificate) and the child's Parents' Marriage Certificate, Evidence of Termination of any previous marriages of the parents (divorce/ annulment decree, or death certificate). � If the child is born outside of wedlock, the father's parentage must be legitimized by either providing a written sworn oath of parentage, financial support, proof of residence in the United States and possibly a court establishing parentage and a DNA test. If more documents or procedures will be required, the U.S Embassy will inform you before you attend the appointment. � Submit all required supporting documents together with the application form to the U.S. Embassy via mail or courier to: Citizenship and Passport Unit American Citizen Services, Consular Section U.S. Embassy, 201 Roxas Boulevard, Manila � Wait for the Embassy to receive and review your application. The embassy will notify you via telephone about the possible dates and times and if there are any additional documents required to schedule your appointment. � Attend the appointment. It is advised that you must be there 30 minutes before your appointed time to clear embassy security. A $100 application fee (may be in U.S. dollars or the local currency equivalent in cash or credit card only) must be paid at the appointment. The child must also be present at the appointment accompanied by one of the parents (although both parents being present is more ideal) to finalize the application. Once the application has been approved, you can immediately apply for the child's U.S. Passport.

[Adventine 3,189]

Nobody's challenging the kids' right to have US passports. People are just giving you advice on how to avoid the PH exit clearance fees. And that is easily solved by getting them the PH passports.

[lowell1123 6]

Whether the child has Philippine citizenship: Yes

Whether the child has US citizenship: This depends. A child born abroad to one US citizen parent and one alien parent will only be a US citizen at birth if the US citizen parent had been physically present in the US, before the child’s birth, for a cumulative total of 5 years, including 2 years after turning 14. Furthermore, a child born out of wedlock to an American father can only be a US citizen if certain additional conditions are met before the child turns 18:

• The father must acknowledge the child’s paternity in writing, or the child’s paternity must be determined by a competent court, and
• The father must make a written statement, under oath, to support the child until the child turns 18

The second requirement above will basically only be met if the father applies for a CRBA for the child before the child turns 18. So whether the child has US citizenship largely depends on whether the father applies for it at a US consulate before the child turns 18.

[lowell1123 6]

If a child was born in the Philippines but have a full Filipino mom but only have a US citizen and a father which is a Russian citizen, what will be the citizenship of the child?

The Philippines follows the jus sanguinis principle in respect to children of Filipino parents. What this means is if you are born to parents who are Filipino citizens at the time of your birth, you are automatically a Filipino citizen.

if you are born only to a Filipino parent (Dad or Mom) while being married to a foreigner, you have a choice to elect a Filipino citizenship upon reaching the age of 21. However, it is important that your Filipino parent should register your birth in the Philippine Embassy or Consulate of the country of your birth. If you are born in the Philippines, such requirement is not important because your Philippine birth certificate will attest to the place of your birth, however you need to elect your Filipino citizenship upon reaching the age of 21 by your actions or by public records.

If neither your parents are Filipino citizens at your birth, your birth in the Philippines will not become you a Filipino citizen. The jus solis principle will not be applied in your case. You automatically follow the citizenship of your parents.

[lowell1123 6]

so like i was saying my sons are us citizens becaause we already processed them to be us citizens meaning they given the filipino citizenship up to become us citizens

[flicks1998 1,044]

14 minutes ago, Adventine said:

Nobody's challenging the kids' right to have US passports. People are just giving you advice on how to avoid the PH exit clearance fees. And that is easily solved by getting them the PH passports.

The problem is he is not understanding that.  He thinks his kids lose the right to PI citizenship once they get their US citizenship which is not at all true.  All he needs to do is get the PI passports (which his kids qualify for) and his problems are solved.  Quoting USEM or the US government is not useful as they have no jurisdiction over PI immigration laws.   

 

@lowell1123  Your not quoting the correct things.  You have been told what to do to help your situation.  If you dont want to take the advice, then we will let you do as you please.  Your children qualify for both citizenships.  Many in this PI section of the board have children with dual citizenship and we have applied for both US and Philippine passports for them.  My son is 9, I have traveled in and out of the Philippines with his Philippine and US passport many times.  When your kids got that CBRA, they DID NOT lose the right to Philippine citizenship.

 

Also, once your spouse arrives in the US and she applies for US citizenship, she will temporarily lose her Philippine citizenship, but can reapply to get that back.

Edited September 27, 2021 by flicks1998