Immigration bureau: Foreign spouses of Filipinos may enter PHL if they have valid visas, certificate of registration identity cards

(Eagle News)–The Bureau of Immigration has clarified  foreign spouses of Filipinos do not need to get another visa to enter the country if they already carry a valid visa previously issued to them by the bureau.

Immigration commissioner Jaime Morente said only foreigners married to Filipinos who do not possess any visa at all are required to secure entry visas to be able to enter our country.

“For example, a holder of a valid 9(g) working visa or a Special
Retiree’s Resident Visa (SRRV) can enter the country if he or she is married to a Filipino. They need not apply for a new entry visa from our Philippine Consulates abroad,” port operations acting chief Grifton Medina said.

According to Morente, all foreigners who wish to enter the country, however, also need to have valid Alien Certificate of Registration Identity cards.

In other words, they need to renew these before traveling to the Philippines if they are already expired.

“The bottomline is that no foreigner can enter the country without a visa even if he is married to a Filipino. All of them
must have a valid visa or they will be turned back upon arriving in our ports of entry,” Medina said.