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Will I be allowed to enter the Philippines on a one way ticket? How about if I plan to stay six or more months and am not sure when I am returning? I've heard you're given 21 days when you enter the country. Is it easy to get an extension once you are in the country?

Traveler wrote:Will I be allowed to enter the Philippines on a one way ticket? How about if I plan to stay six or more months and am not sure when I am returning? I've heard you're given 21 days when you enter the country. Is it easy to get an extension once you are in the country?

Risky but manageable. First, many airlines won't let you board a flight to Philippines unless you show a return or onward ticket. But, you can get your travel agent to kinda fake something. Reserve an onward or return flight with different airline, have them send you the booking itinerary complete with reference number, then just cancel it a couple days later before paying. Make a copy of the itinerary to show the airline you have the one-way flight with.

Usually Immigration in Philippines doesn't even ask to see your onward or return booking. They just do random checks once in every so often. I've never had to show them mine in well over a dozen trips. But in case you do get selected, show them the same reservation copy. I highly doubt they will take the time and trouble to check-out whether or not the booking is still in force.

You get 30 days on arrival and can easily keep extending 2 months at a time by going to immigration. But first time, I think they will also require you to apply for a one year Alien Certificate of Registration which will be an extra expense.

DON'T DO IT...They are very strict now a days...I was specifically told by my Indian Visa officer, airline guys that, you must have return ticket as just few weeks back they had multiple instances of people been send back from Manila for not having return ticket.

You can buy 20 dollar cheap outward ticket from PH to Kota Kinabilu in malaysia if you intend to stay long...but make sure you have return ticket

starchild5 wrote:
DON'T DO IT...They are very strict now a days...I was specifically told by my Indian Visa officer, airline guys that, you must have return ticket as just few weeks back they had multiple instances of people been send back from Manila for not having return ticket.

You can buy 20 dollar cheap outward ticket from PH to Kota Kinabilu in malaysia if you intend to stay long...but make sure you have return ticket

Possible that Whites (like rock) are not held to the same standard as are folks from India.

Nevertheless good advice!

When you say "return ticket", you actually mean any ticket for "onward travel", like the one you described, right? Just that, not an actual return to the US -- right?

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Ghost wrote:If you a white "first world" guy, then it won't be a problem. I'm in Phils now and came on a one-way. Got 30 days both times on a tourist visa, too. Not sure why some people get only 21 days.

Visiting Philippines since more than 30 years, neither Philippine Airlines nor Cebu immigration were asking me for a return ticket or onward ticket.

I think, 21 days does not exist anymore.

http://www.dfa.gov.ph/index.php/site-ad ... nformation

Visafree days were extended last year from 21 to 30 days for almost all countries.

http://philembassy-uk.org/philippines-t ... to-30-days

http://www.philippineembassy-usa.org/ne ... o-30-Days/

You can renew up to 6 months at a time now for up to 36 months, then you have to fly out somewhere for a few days and come back and do it all over again. That's what I do. You need an onward ticket to somewhere though cause whatever airline you are flying has to now check whether you have an onward ticket rather than immigration, that's wy they don't check your ticket status on arrival cause the airlines are supposed to do it before you leave.

If you stay over 90 days they make you get an ACR card and pay for that, it's 50 bucks or whatever the peso equivalent of that is. It's good for one year and it's basically a government ID card.

PI is probably one of the easiest countries to live in s a non-resident foreigner as long as you can afford the visa fees and occasional visa-run flights out and back.

The two times I flew into Manila I had a return ticket but I flew into Bali on a one way. The airline assured my cousin and I that it would be no problem, "It is checked here". Yeah it is. Yet somehow when we arrived immigration knew and wouldn't let us in. We had to put some greenback grease into the immigration machine to get things rolling. Don't chance it.