Philippines

If having the green card immediately upon entering is important to you, you could actually save time and money in the long run by filing for a spousal visa instead. The fiance visa is a little bit shorter and quicker up front, but in the long run, because it does not include the green card, is actually longer and more expensive in the long run.

"What is the CFO Seminar (Philippines) and why is it required?" The CFO (Commission on Filipinos Overseas) Seminar is a Philippine government requirement for Filipinos leaving the country. It's partially for their internal counting of people expatriating, but also it gives a crash-course on a few things Filipinos should know when emigrating out of the […]

On July 5th, 2019, USCIS will permanently close its field office in Manila, Philippines, as part of the Trump Administration’s efforts to reduce legal immigration. After this date, there will be no USCIS international field office located in the Philippines.

Many US embassies accept joint sponsors for fiance visas. However, unfortunately, the most popular country for the K1 visa, the Philippines, doesn’t allow them. They do allow joint sponsors for married couples applying for CR1 visas, but not the fiance visa. It’s unfortunate, but it’s at the discretion of the embassy and consular officers.

If you get married in the Philippines (civil), you will need to take the certificate of marriage to the local Philippine Civil Registrar where one the parties is a resident. The certificate of marriage will be registered by the local civil registrar. You may obtain certified true copies of certificate of marriage from Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The CFO Seminar is a specific requirement for immigrating from the Philippines. It’s important to point out that there are two different seminars at the CFO offices, and there are four different offices that you can go to in the Philippines. Be sure that you’re going to the seminar for fiances and spouses relating to an intermarriage with a foreign citizen.

You may be able to get married, but the USCIS and Department of State are not going to accept that as a legal marriage. In order to legally marry and receive an immigration benefit with USCIS and Department of State, you have to be legally married. And in order to do that, you have to prove that all prior marriages were legally terminated (by death, divorce or annulment).

So you are a Filipina with a fiance in the US and you want to visit him on a tourist visa. What are your chances for tourist visa approval?

Honestly, they’re not good, unfortunately. Issues that face most people in this situation are regards to strong ties.

Sharlene asks: “Hi. I just want to ask about the CFO in the Philippines. I came across it when I was checking out your site. Do I need to do it now even before we start the visa process with you?”

Next question comes to us from Instagram: "Do you guys mainly help with the Philippines? My fiancee is from the Dominican Republic." Excellent question. Last time I checked, I believe we've processed visas from over 174 countries. We do mention Philippines a lot because we do have a couple of call centers over there, and […]