I'm new here and need help/ advice

[PetenClaire]

Good Day to all!
I'm new here i just registered at this helpful website, i am always reading the informative thread here and decided to registered today. I'm Claire, we lodged our application with my daughter Kate in Manila last July 4, 2013 visit visa application we had biometrics and had a few questions at the uk visa office that day. I received sms that our visa app processed already at the british embassy and 2 weeks after on July 19 i received sms said that our visa application is couriered back to us through aboitiz 2GO express mail that day i was nervous and the postman sent me a text asking the landmark at our rented bachelor's pad. I was nervous when the postman hand our documents to me i say a prayer before i open my parcel i was shaking and overyjoyed when i saw my daughter passport it has a uk visa stamp visit visa 180 days we are granted and God answered our prayers. My passport too has a visa stamp thankful to our good Lord he grant our favour.My fiance was very happy and his family too they look forward to meet us.

My question now is do we need to attend the cfo or Commission at filipino overseas seminar with my daughter as we have our visit visa stamp on our passport? thank you in advance and God bless us all! Hope to hear an answer soon.

[joebloggs]

All Filipino emigrants leaving the country to settle abroad permanently are required by law to register with CFO

not required for a visit visa

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1301:registration-and-pre-departure-services&catid=110:frequently-asked-questions&Itemid=858

[PetenClaire]

Thank you Sir Joebloggs! and to all the helpful informative filipino uk forum.
Any member here had a visit visa granted lately?

[grahamw48]

Congratulations, and I hope you and your little one have a wonderful time here. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

Yes, others have been granted visas recently I think. Check on the visa section of the forum...maybe details there. :smile:

[irishman12]

Hello Claire ,welcome ,been to cdo many times ,hope all ok there now ,if you like to contact /ask any question -u can find my ym on profile :smile:

[PetenClaire]

Good day sir Grahamw48, thank you for welcoming me here at this friendly helpful forum, thank you all!

I have a question again, sorry we are confused with my fiance because he sent an email to get quiries to cfo seminar in Manila from Mr. Arthur Joseph Vitasa he said Sir, I’m sorry for this very late reply..i was out of the office for quite a long time and I cannot access my email outside the office..the policy of the Philippine government is that all Filipinos having foreign partners should attend CFO guidance and counseling before leaving the country whether on a tourist visa or resident visa. Thank you.



arthur

Hope we can clarify this and get some answers from some members here that had a visit visa granted, do we really need to attend the cfo seminar with my daughter visit visa? We are worried because we already sorted our return flights on Sept. 10 heading to Uk and March 5 coming home in CDO. Thank you and hope to hear soon your answers! God bless us all!

Sincerely,
Claire

[PetenClaire]

Thank you for welcoming me here Sir Irishman12, all is ok here in CDO now.

[Arthur Little]

Congratulations, Claire, on being granted *Visitor Visas for yourself and your daughter - no mean feat, I assure you (since *those can be notoriously difficult to obtain at the best of times) - also, be sure to make the most of this fairly unique opportunity and, of course, :welcomex: to our very friendly, online filipino/uk community. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[tiger31]

congratulations on your visa ,can I ask how much you had to show in bank account as I wish to apply too and don,t know how much to put in bank account for my g f thanks

[grahamw48]

Can anyone answer the young lady's question ? :smile:

[PetenClaire]

Congratulations, Claire, on being granted *Visitor Visas for yourself and your daughter - no mean feat, I assure you (since *those can be notoriously difficult to obtain at the best of times) - enjoy this fairly unique experience, and :welcomex: to our very friendly, online filipino/uk community. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

Thank you so much sir Arthur Little, for the warm welcome. We are thankful and blessed that i have found the fil/uk community, we gathered our supporting docus from the thread visit visa checklist here. We are counting down with my daughter, we will be re-united soon with my fiance. Have a good day to all!

[PetenClaire]

congratulations on your visa ,can I ask how much you had to show in bank account as I wish to apply too and don,t know how much to put in bank account for my g f thanks

Thank you,sir tiger 31, i don't have any show money with my daughter but we have the monthly remittances from my fiance i submit all the receipts from the atm and western union receipts. I did the microsoft excel to organized it, i got the idea from here. hope it helps, and good luck to your g/f application! Keep faith!

[rani]

Per my experience, no, you dont need to attend any seminar to visit the uk.

Congratulations and enjoy your holiday!

[jake]

Hi, welcome to the forum.

What you need to know...

As Filipinos going abroad as fiancé(e)s, spouses or other partners of foreign nationals, you are required to attend the CFO's guidance and counseling session in order to secure the Guidance and Counseling Certificate (GCC) and the CFO sticker. You need this certificate to renew or apply for a new passport at the Department of Foreign Affairs (per Department of Foreign Affairs Order Nos. 11-97 Implementing Rules and Regulations for Republic Act 8239, "Philippine Passport Act" and 28-94). You will also need to present this certificate together with your spouse/partner visa, at the Immigration office at the international airport on your day of departure.

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1348&Itemid=918

[tiger31]

Thank you,sir tiger 31, i don't have any show money with my daughter but we have the monthly remittances from my fiance i submit all the receipts from the atm and western union receipts. I did the microsoft excel to organized it, i got the idea from here. hope it helps, and good luck to your g/f application! Keep faith!wow I thought you had to show that you could support yourself for that visa well this is news to me thanks for that :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[PetenClaire]

Per my experience, no, you dont need to attend any seminar to visit the uk.

Congratulations and enjoy your holiday!
Hello Rani, thank you for the reply, we're confused because my fiance send an email to ask the cfo at Manila, and he got an answer from Mr. Arthur Vitasa from cfo that we need to attend the cfo seminar though we are visiting the UK. I am afraid they changed the rules now regarding the visit visa must to attend the cfo seminar.

[Arthur Little]

Can anyone answer the young lady's question ? :smile:

Question, Graham? :Erm: ... if you mean does Claire need to attend a CFO seminar prior to her visit, then the answer's NO ... :nono-1-1: since ... as Joe has already explained (see #2 above) THEIR "sticker's" only required by applicants for Settlement and/or by Filipinos who are intending to work overseas.

[PetenClaire]

Hi, welcome to the forum.

What you need to know...

As Filipinos going abroad as fiancé(e)s, spouses or other partners of foreign nationals, you are required to attend the CFO's guidance and counseling session in order to secure the Guidance and Counseling Certificate (GCC) and the CFO sticker. You need this certificate to renew or apply for a new passport at the Department of Foreign Affairs (per Department of Foreign Affairs Order Nos. 11-97 Implementing Rules and Regulations for Republic Act 8239, "Philippine Passport Act" and 28-94). You will also need to present this certificate together with your spouse/partner visa, at the Immigration office at the international airport on your day of departure.

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1348&Itemid=918
Thank you very much for the informative link sir Jake, God bless!

[jake]

Hello Rani, thank you for the reply, we're confused because my fiance send an email to ask the cfo at Manila, and he got an answer from Mr. Arthur Vitasa from cfo that we need to attend the cfo seminar though we are visiting the UK. I am afraid they changed the rules now regarding the visit visa must to attend the cfo seminar.

You need to attend the CFO. If you don't there is a chance you will not be allowed to exit.

The seminar is easy to pass so don't worry :smile:

[PetenClaire]

Question, Graham? :Erm: ... if you mean does Claire need to attend a CFO seminar prior to her visit, then the answer's NO ... :nono-1-1: since ... as Joe has already explained (see #2 above) THEIR "sticker's" only required by applicants for Settlement and/or by Filipinos who are intending to work overseas.
Hello sir Arthur, my fiance received an email from the cfo in Manila yesterday, he verify if we really must to attend the cfo seminar, Mr. Vitasa from cfo answered his quiries that> Subject: RE: CFO inquiry
>
> Sir, I’m sorry for this very late reply..i was out of the office for quite a long time and I cannot access my email outside the office..the policy of the Philippine government is that all Filipinos having foreign partners should attend CFO guidance and counseling before leaving the country whether on a tourist visa or resident visa. Thank you.
>
>
>
> arthur ( this is the email he got from the cfo yesterday)

[jake]

Hello sir Arthur, my fiance received an email from the cfo in Manila yesterday, he verify if we really must to attend the cfo seminar, Mr. Vitasa from cfo answered his quiries that> Subject: RE: CFO inquiry
>
> Sir, I’m sorry for this very late reply..i was out of the office for quite a long time and I cannot access my email outside the office..the policy of the Philippine government is that all Filipinos having foreign partners should attend CFO guidance and counseling before leaving the country whether on a tourist visa or resident visa. Thank you.
>
>
>
> arthur ( this is the email he got from the cfo yesterday)

In theory you could be allowed to exit without doing the seminar.

Better to follow what they have said to be sure.

[PetenClaire]

You need to attend the CFO. If you don't there is a chance you will not be allowed to exit.

The seminar is easy to pass so don't worry :smile:

Thanks sir Jake, i will send a message to my fiance now and let him know that we really need to attend the cfo seminar, is it ok that we will fly in Manila before the day we will have our main flight going to the UK? Is it easy to get the appointment there in cfo? Thank you and sorry i have many questions here.

[Michael Parnham]

Welcome to the forum Claire, yes best to be safe than sorry, good luck! :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[joebloggs]

wow I thought you had to show that you could support yourself for that visa well this is news to me thanks for that :xxgrinning--00xx3:

you need to show someone has the funds to support your visit (self funded or a 3rd party)

[jake]

Can anyone answer the young lady's question ? :smile:

You started a similar thread last year :smile:

http://filipinaroses.com/showthread.php/40317-Leaving-the-Philippines-as-a-Spouse-Fiancee

Different members have had different experiences.

So the answer to do i need a CFO sticker to visit on a tourist visa is Yes-No-Maybe :cwm3:

[grahamw48]

Doh !:doh

Must be 22 years since I fell asleep in that daft seminar, so can't be much help these days, but yes, that link does give a few ideas.

Me, I'd just book an appointment for it, regardless.

You can't have too many bits of blinkin paper to help you get out of Colditz Philippines. :smile:

[joebloggs]

Hi, welcome to the forum.

What you need to know...

As Filipinos going abroad as fiancé(e)s, spouses or other partners of foreign nationals, you are required to attend the CFO's guidance and counseling session in order to secure the Guidance and Counseling Certificate (GCC) and the CFO sticker. You need this certificate to renew or apply for a new passport at the Department of Foreign Affairs (per Department of Foreign Affairs Order Nos. 11-97 Implementing Rules and Regulations for Republic Act 8239, "Philippine Passport Act" and 28-94). You will also need to present this certificate together with your spouse/partner visa, at the Immigration office at the international airport on your day of departure.

http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1348&Itemid=918

people who are married or leaving the phils on a fiancee visa definitely need one, as for 'other partners ' maybe that's a family permit or unmarried partner visa would need one.:Erm:

your not married and you've applied for a visit visa not a fiancee visa so i would have thought you don't need a CFO sticker :NoNo:

as it states you need to present this cert with your spouse\partner visa something you don't have :doh

give them a call to check , but make it clear he's your fiancee but your not leaving on a fiancee visa and intending to marry and live in the UK your only going for a visit on a visit visa, you will be returning to the Phils.

[raynaputi]

You don't need a seminar and CFO sticker if you're a tourist. CFO Seminar & sticker are for fiancé(e)s, spouses or other partners of foreign nationals who are emigrating overseas.



What is pre-departure registration?

Pre-departure registration is a process which generates an information resource on Filipino emigrants, which in turn, provides accurate reference for policy formulation and program development. It is a requirement to all Filipino emigrants or those leaving the country to settle permanently abroad.


What is CFO's Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS)?

Pre-departure Orientation Seminar is conducted for emigrants to address their adjustment concerns in their destination countries. It is a discussion of various topics such as travel regulations, immigration procedures, cultural differences, settlement concerns, employment and social security concerns, and rights and obligations of Filipino migrants.


What is CFO's Guidance and Counseling Program?

Per Department of Foreign Affairs Orders Nos. 11-97 (Implementing Rules and Regulations for Republic Act 8239, "Philippine Passport Act") and 28-94, Filipinos proceeding abroad as spouses and other partners of foreign nationals, are required to attend the CFO's guidance and counseling program as a pre-requisite to the issuance of passports.

The guidance and counseling program is a country-specific discussion which provides Filipino spouses and other partners of foreign nationals with adequate information and advice on the realities of intermarriage and migration, rights and obligations overseas, available support networks for women in distress, cultural and social realities overseas, and other information which may help them make informed decisions about cross-cultural unions and settlement overseas.


(http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1301:registration-and-pre-departure-services&catid=110:frequently-asked-questions&Itemid=858)http://www.cfo.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1301:registration-and-pre-departure-services&catid=110:frequently-asked-questions&Itemid=858

[andy222]

Congratulations and have a safe journey here. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[jake]

Joe, Rayna and Rani your are correct :xxgrinning--00xx3:

The problem is the immigration officers at the airport do not always follow their rules to the letter. They can quite easily turn round and use the 'anti trafficking law' as an excuse to deny any filipino boarding. Sadly despite not needing a CFO sticker to visit a boyfirend/girlfriend people are still be denied their right to travel. :cwm25:

[rani]

To be safe, just tell the immigration officer that you are visiting your boyfriend. Don't use the word "partner".

[jake]

To be safe, just tell the immigration officer that you are visiting your boyfriend. Don't use the word "partner".

:xxgrinning--00xx3:

The email your boyfriend sent to the CFO probably mentioned the word fiance. They will automatically think you are going to the UK to be married.

[joebloggs]

Joe, Rayna and Rani your are correct :xxgrinning--00xx3:

The problem is the immigration officers at the airport do not always follow their rules to the letter. They can quite easily turn round and use the 'anti trafficking law' as an excuse to deny any filipino boarding. Sadly despite not needing a CFO sticker to visit a boyfirend/girlfriend people are still be denied their right to travel. :cwm25:

:xxgrinning--00xx3: its not just the rules you need to worry about, meaning of 'partner' could mean different things to different people.

but its also some immigration officers who don't fully understand the rules and regulations that can cause problems,

but as always better be safe than sorry, and always check b4 you fly, you dont want to be stuck at the airport and miss your flight :mad:

[PetenClaire]

Thank you to all, we appreciate so much all your answers:smile:

[PetenClaire]

I will go to Manila friday not sure what date yet to make sure and better to be safe, May i ask, how long is the validity of the CFO seminar and the sticker? we are thinking that we will not need to go next time when we process our settlement visa and dependant visa for my daughter.My daughter Kate, 8 years old will she need to attend the cfo seminar too? or is it only me? thank you so much in advance. God bless us all!