Waiting Time for Settlement Visa

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by walesrob@Jul 30 2005, 10:18 PM
I'm thinking maybe they've partially gone back to using CAVA, but this time to process applications, and to let the Embassy deny or grant visas.

Quoted post

I'm pretty sure I read today on the embassy puzzle page that settlement visas have to be done in person, not by courier.

Whereabouts does it give the average waiting time on the web page, as I never saw anything like that today in the few hours I spent working my way round the maze.
Cheers, Paul

[ginapeterb]

Originally posted by Pauldo@Sep 4 2005, 08:33 PM
I'm pretty sure I read today on the embassy puzzle page that settlement visas have to be done in person, not by courier.

Whereabouts does it give the average waiting time on the web page, as I never saw anything like that today in the few hours I spent working my way round the maze.
Cheers, Paul

Quoted post

The average waiting time for the British Embassy in Manila, is currently 13 weeks, the next batch of appointments are for October 2005, (accurate trust me)

[peterdavid]

Originally posted by Pauldo@Sep 4 2005, 08:33 PM
I'm pretty sure I read today on the embassy puzzle page that settlement visas have to be done in person, not by courier.

Quoted post

It's both. You need to ring the courier to collect the visa, and pay them for the privilege (even if, like us, you lived a stone's throw from the Embassy in Makati), and then they get in touch and tell you when to go for your interview.

So you still get the fun of queuing outside in the heat, only now, you've paid the courier a day's philippine wages just to collect your package from you as well.

Or something like that - it keeps changing and may have changed again - for a while they experimented on giving straightforward settlement visas out with NO interview!! Can you imagine how good those golden days must have been?

Another possibility they may be doing now is no longer having the courier pick up your stuff for a settlement visa, but you still need to ring their expensive rip off premium rate number which only about 3 phone lines in the Philippines are able to connect to (woe betide you if you don't have pldt, they make it as hard as possible for you right from the first phone call), i order to book an interview date.

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by peterdavid@Sep 6 2005, 08:15 PM
It's both. You need to ring the courier to collect the visa, and pay them for the privilege (even if, like us, you lived a stone's throw from the Embassy in Makati), and then they get in touch and tell you when to go for your interview.

Quoted post

My wife called the Manila embassy yesterday, from the UK. She was told you have to phone them to make an appointment, then they give you a date to roll up personally and hand in your application. (13 weeks wait currently)

They will eyeball the paperwork there and then, and decide if you will be one of the lucky ones to be granted a visa that day. It may take two weeks to issue the visa. (course, 'two weeks' in the Philippines means 'less than a year&#39

If they want an official 'sit down' interview it can take many more weeks to wait for that.

'course, that was yesterday Today may be totally different :(

[walesrob]

Originally posted by Pauldo@Sep 7 2005, 07:54 AM
My wife called the Manila embassy yesterday, from the UK. She was told you have to phone them to make an appointment, then they give you a date to roll up personally and hand in your application. (13 weeks wait currently)

They will eyeball the paperwork there and then, and decide if you will be one of the lucky ones to be granted a visa that day. It may take two weeks to issue the visa. (course, 'two weeks' in the Philippines means 'less than a year&#39

If they want an official 'sit down' interview it can take many more weeks to wait for that.

'course, that was yesterday Today may be totally different :(

Quoted post

Wow they changed it again? Elsa must have been the lucky one - she called CAVA in late December (she also had to pay ££££££££££££££'s to call premium rate numbers - I think about £6 in all) and got interview 3rd February, visa issued 28th February, so we had a fairly short wait, even with the local checks.

So my assumption is that its now standard to issue the visa 2 weeks after it is granted? This was the case with Elsa, so maybe now they are doing local checks on ALL granted visas before issuing them.

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by walesrob@Sep 7 2005, 09:25 AM
Wow they changed it again?

Quoted post

This what worries me about calling for information:the person who aswers the phone is probably just a telephone operative, and don't actaully KNOW any hard facts. As with most asians, telling anybody that you don't know something goes against the grain, so they will often give you their opinion, or what they think the facts are, to save losing face.

When I tried to get the 'Certificate of Non Impediment' to marry my wife, I rang the embassy on three occsions, to see if the information gelled. It did: Turn up any week day between 10am and 4pm.

Nope! :blink:

I rolled in at 2pm, all the way from Angeles in a hire car, and was told, "Oh no sir, you need to come before midday. Just come back tomorrow" :P

Well, I didn't spend four hours in a car, at 3000 pesos, just to do it all again the next day, so made an official complaint there and then, spoke to a 'whitey', who was a touch obnoxious, telling me I should have called up to get the correct information.

"I did" cried I, "three bloody times, and was told to come 'tween 10 and 4"

Off he went for a few minutes and came back looking a little cowed and far more friendly. It transpired he had asked the telephone operatives what time they were giving out for consular business, and, true to Filipino form, they had the wrong info.

We were allowed to lodge our request that day, and no more problems ensued.

Not right away anyway, but that's another tale :huh:

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by walesrob@Sep 7 2005, 09:25 AM
Wow they changed it again?

Quoted post

This what worries me about calling for information:the person who aswers the phone is probably just a telephone operative, and don't actaully KNOW any hard facts. As with most asians, telling anybody that you don't know something goes against the grain, so they will often give you their opinion, or what they think the facts are, to save losing face.

When I tried to get the 'Certificate of Non Impediment' to marry my wife, I rang the embassy on three occsions, to see if the information gelled. It did: Turn up any week day between 10am and 4pm.

Nope! :blink:

I rolled in at 2pm, all the way from Angeles in a hire car, and was told, "Oh no sir, you need to come before midday. Just come back tomorrow" :P

Well, I didn't spend four hours in a car, at 3000 pesos, just to do it all again the next day, so made an official complaint there and then, spoke to a 'whitey', who was a touch obnoxious, telling me I should have called up to get the correct information.

"I did" cried I, "three bloody times", and was told to come 'tween 10 and 4

Off he went for a few minutes and came back looking a little cowed and far more friendly. It transpired he had asked the telephone operatives what time they were giving out for consular business, and, true to Filipino form, they had the wrong info.

We were allowed to lodge our request that day, and no more problems ensued.

Not right away anyway, but that's another tale :huh:

[peterdavid]

Originally posted by Pauldo@Sep 7 2005, 09:25 AM
This what worries me about calling for information:the person who aswers the phone is probably just a telephone operative, and don't actaully KNOW any hard facts. As with most asians, telling anybody that you don't know something goes against the grain, so they will often give you their opinion, or what they think the facts are, to save losing face.

When I tried to get the 'Certificate of Non Impediment' to marry my wife, I rang the embassy on three occsions, to see if the information gelled. It did: Turn up any week day between 10am and 4pm.

Nope! :blink:

I rolled in at 2pm, all the way from Angeles in a hire car, and was told, "Oh no sir, you need to come before midday. Just come back tomorrow" :P

Well, I didn't spend four hours in a car, at 3000 pesos, just to do it all again the next day, so made an official complaint there and then, spoke to a 'whitey', who was a touch obnoxious, telling me I should have called up to get the correct information.

"I did" cried I, "three bloody times", and was told to come 'tween 10 and 4

Off he went for a few minutes and came back looking a little cowed and far more friendly. It transpired he had asked the telephone operatives what time they were giving out for consular business, and, true to Filipino form, they had the wrong info.

We were allowed to lodge our request that day, and no more problems ensued.

Not right away anyway, but that's another tale :huh:

Quoted post

I had the exact same thing happen to me, like everything with the Embassy, you just have to keep fighting your ground. But everything there is a battle isn't it - even going in for what should be the simplest thing will always turn into some form of battle with them. It's a killer for the blood pressure.

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by peterdavid@Sep 8 2005, 11:00 AM
I had the exact same thing happen to me, like everything with the Embassy, you just have to keep fighting your ground. But everything there is a battle isn't it - even going in for what should be the simplest thing will always turn into some form of battle with them. It's a killer for the blood pressure.

Quoted post

You're so right.
Just collecting the wifes visa was another conflict. We rolled up at 8am, as instructed, took our turn in the queue, got served straight away, and were told to go sit down and we'd be called. Well, three hours later, 11am, and we're sat there still waiting, with the daughter, getting a bit cold and bored now as the air con was set to cryogenic. So, I went up and asked how much longer it would be?
"Oh, you have to come back at 3 o'clock to collect it"

WHAT?????

I asked her if she had actually intended we sit there for seven hours or whether she might have used her pea brain to summon the grain of intelligence necessary to tell us we could leave, then come back at 3 o'clock. The arrogant bitch still argued the toss until a white girl heard the commotion and came across, and I explained to her what had happened, and that we had our year old daughter with us, (with no pram due to security guard monkeys over diligence that we may use it as a weapon&#33.

We often day dream about going back and living in the PI, but things like this always pop up to remind us that every occasion, every operation, will so often turn into a $hit fight against ignorance and apathy.

I hope my ramblings aren't putting anybody off going through the visa process. I see it as more a warning of what to expect than a complaint. I'm sure there are guys out there who expect to arrive at the embassy and be greeted with some respect, escorted in, asked to sit down. Maybe offered tea in the greatest British tradition, and maybe have a friendly word with the embassy staff about cricket or the weather 'back home'. Then a few gentle enquiries and a visa will spring forth unhindered. bwaaahaahaaaaa

Forewarned is forearmed I reckon B)