My Move to the Philippines

Visas for visiting and living in the Philippines are one of the first things I researched. Legal talk and government regulations are generally hard to read so I researched many of the ex-pat sites especially www.liveinthephilippines.com. I have settled on going with the tourist visa which will permit me to stay in the Philippines for two years at a time if renewed. I don’t plan on staying two years without leaving the country until possibly I get too old to travel. I plan on visiting Hong Kong, Singapore, and Thailand every so often and of course we will visit the states to see our family. But in my later years I will not travel out of the country as often so then it will be a concern.

My second option would be to take advantage of the balikbayan visa which lets former citizens and their spouses stay for one year with a renewal option of one more year. It is not a guarantee that it would be granted to me but from what I read nobody has been turned down.

I have been doing much research since and before I decided to make a move to the Philippines. I have been Googling keywords related to moving to the Philippines and international moves. Of all the suggestions I’ve received the most helpful one is to make a list, a checklist actually of things needed to be done before I make the move. Of course different people have different ideas on what should be on such a list but I think I’ve narrowed it down to the most important. As I go through the months ahead I will share the progress on this checklist but for now I’ll just give you an idea how it looks.

1. Passports and visas what will I need and what type visa will I obtain.
2. Banking needs and access to my money.
3. How will I get my mail from the states.
4. Disposition of my personal property in the States.
5. Notifying banks and credit card companies that I’ll be in the Philippines.
6. Deciding what to bring with me and what to leave behind.
7. Health insurance and medical care in the Philippines.
8. Any other concerns.

What I really need at this point would be input from ex-pats who have made the move and suggestions on any of the above items. Thanks in advance for your help.