How to Apply for Balikbayan Visa: Requirements, Fees and Other Information

What's the Balikbayan Visa Privilege:

For former Filipinos who have since embraced another nationality

A Foreigner/Expat/alien with a Filipina wife planning to retire in the Philippines or at least visit the country for a year. The balikbayan visa is the best thing (and cheap too) in addition to the 13a Philippine visa.

3 Easy Steps in obtaining the Balikbayan Visa:

1. Enter the Philippines with the returning Filipino/balikbayan or Filipina spouse.
2. Request a balikbayan visa at the airport immigration counter. Have these things ready when required by the immigration officer: canceled Philippine passport, birth certificate, naturalization papers, marriage license and certification from adopted country.
3. Pay the required immigration fees
3. After obtaining the Balikbayan visa stamp on your passport, you now have one year of fee free stay in the Philippines. You can renew the visa by exiting the country then re-entering to get another year


Balikbayan Visa FAQ (from Philippine Consular Office):

1) What is the Balikbayan Visa Privilege?
2) Who may avail of the Balikbayan Visa Privilege?
3) What steps have to be followed and what documentation is required to enter the Philippines under the Balikbayan Visa Privilege?

a) for former Philippine citizens
b) for the foreign spouse and foreign children

4) No visa shall be required for a maximum stay of one (1) year for Balikbayans (returning Filipino citizens or former Filipino citizens), every time they enter the Philippines to visit, regardless of the frequency of their travel.
5)
a) Balikbayans (returning Filipino citizens or former Filipino citizens)

b) The balikbayan privilege is extended to the foreign spouse and the foreign children of Philippine citizens, provided that:

I. they are nationals of Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Norway, Oman, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Venezuela, or Vietnam; and

II. they are traveling together to the Philippines with the balikbayan family member;

III. they pay the immigration fees;

IV. they observe and comply with immigration rules and regulations.
6)
a) The former Philippine citizen shall declare before a Philippine Immigration Officer at the port of entry that he/she is availing of the balikbayan privilege and shall present his/her valid passport in addition to any of the following documents:

1. cancelled Philippine passport;
2. birth certificate;
3. naturalization papers to show former Philippine citizenship; or
4. certification from the adopted country.

b) The accompanying foreign spouse and children holding foreign passports of Filipinos and former Filipino citizens shall declare before a Philippine Immigration Officer at the port of entry that he/she is accompanied by a Filipino or former Filipino spouse or parent and that he/she is availing of the Balikbayan Visa Privilege, and shall present his/her valid passport in addition to the following:

1. Foreign spouse: Valid passport and Marriage certificate
2. Foreign children: Birth certificate
3. Adopted children: Adoption papers

Sources: Bureau of Immigration and Consular Affairs

Related Post:
Unaccompanied Minor Traveling to the Philippines