USA passport holder

An American only needs a valid passport to go to the USA. There are no other requirements or documents needed.

One should however be aware of customs rules concerning what one can bring in; like no meat, cheese, fresh fruits, nuts or soil, any currency or things like gold, jewels etc. that are worth more than the equivalence of 10,000 USD must be declared and they will ask where they come from. There are limits on the value of things to be given as gifts or to import for personal use. The levels are dependent on if one actually resides in the States or is only visiting. Bringing one's expensive laptop, camera etc. that were bought outside of the US will usually mean a duty fee - but might be able to be refunded if one takes them back out of the US within a limited period of time.

Obviously smuggling things like drugs is likely to get one arrested and put in jail. Bringing in un-allowed food will not just mean confiscation but often a penalty. Not declaring money/valuables over 10,000 USD can mean confiscation and a huge penalty even though there is no limit to the amount one can bring in if they declare it.

Customs and immigration officials profile people. They are used to hearing that someone is an accountant from Iowa and just came back from a 2 week trip to Europe. When someone has a more exotic story, like having an US passport but having grown up abroad and never having visited, then they are likely to be curious and pose more questions. It does not mean that they can keep a US passport holder out of the country – but they might scrutinize one about the above mentioned things.
within a limited period of time.

Do the Phillipines require citizens to exit and enter with a Phillipine passport?

twostep wrote:

Do the Phillipines require citizens to exit and enter with a Phillipine passport?

Good question. I only answered the question as asked concerning entering the US. But most countries require one to use the passport of that country to enter if one is a citizen - rather than any other passport one might have. Thus re-entering the Philippines, the poster might be expected to show a Filipino passport. But I looked in the internet and didn't find any information to confirm this so maybe it isn't an issue there.

Philippines immigration requires every filipino citizen -including those with dual citizenship- to carry valid Philippines Passport to enter and leave the country.

Of course you would still need a valid visa to enter the country you are going to, or as in this case a valid US passport.

I got this information from the horse's mouth.
You can take to the bank.

Of course keep in mind that immigration rules change easily at any time

Thank you!!!!

argawanon wrote:

Philippines immigration requires every filipino citizen -including those with dual citizenship- to carry valid Philippines Passport to enter and leave the country.

Of course you would still need a valid visa to enter the country you are going to, or as in this case a valid US passport.

I got this information from the horse's mouth.
You can take to the bank.

Of course keep in mind that immigration rules change easily at any time

Sounds reasonable since that is the rule in most countries; I was surprised though that I couldn't find any verification even on official Filipino government sites. Some times things might just be so obvious that they don't think it is necessary to explicitly state it.

twostep wrote:

Do the Phillipines require citizens to exit and enter with a Phillipine passport?

My wife is a dual citizen, travels only on her USA passport, has paperwork showing she is a dual citizen and a copy of our marriage license.  She does not have an updated Philippines passport, uses the paperwork to show that as a spouse of a Philippines citizen I can stay in the Philippines for a year without any other kind of visa or extension.  We have done this going into and out of the Philippines 10 times in the last 3 years.

mugtech wrote:

twostep wrote:

Do the Phillipines require citizens to exit and enter with a Phillipine passport?

My wife is a dual citizen, travels only on her USA passport, has paperwork showing she is a dual citizen and a copy of our marriage license.  She does not have an updated Philippines passport, uses the paperwork to show that as a spouse of a Philippines citizen I can stay in the Philippines for a year without any other kind of visa or extension.  We have done this going into and out of the Philippines 10 times in the last 3 years.

Interesting. Does she get hassled or delayed? The thing is that one cannot refuse entry for a citizen. If they don't have a valid passport then they usually get no punishment in most countries but then have a hassle of verifying who they are and their status – and get a dressing down from the immigration officials for wasting their time. Is there any reason to do this other than to save the cost of a passport, which are usually valid for 10 years anyway?…

TominStuttgart wrote:

mugtech wrote:

twostep wrote:

Do the Phillipines require citizens to exit and enter with a Phillipine passport?

My wife is a dual citizen, travels only on her USA passport, has paperwork showing she is a dual citizen and a copy of our marriage license.  She does not have an updated Philippines passport, uses the paperwork to show that as a spouse of a Philippines citizen I can stay in the Philippines for a year without any other kind of visa or extension.  We have done this going into and out of the Philippines 10 times in the last 3 years.

Interesting. Does she get hassled or delayed? The thing is that one cannot refuse entry for a citizen. If they don't have a valid passport then they usually get no punishment in most countries but then have a hassle of verifying who they are and their status – and get a dressing down from the immigration officials for wasting their time. Is there any reason to do this other than to save the cost of a passport, which are usually valid for 10 years anyway?…

No problems, no delays.  The Philippines passports are only good for 5 years.  It is easier if we both travel on USA passports.  She has the paperwork she got from the Philippines consulate in NYC proclaiming her a citizen of the Philippines, Just shows it at immigration along with our marriage license and we sail right through, both of us good for a year, no exit transportation proof required.

mugtech wrote:

TominStuttgart wrote:

mugtech wrote:

My wife is a dual citizen, travels only on her USA passport, has paperwork showing she is a dual citizen and a copy of our marriage license.  She does not have an updated Philippines passport, uses the paperwork to show that as a spouse of a Philippines citizen I can stay in the Philippines for a year without any other kind of visa or extension.  We have done this going into and out of the Philippines 10 times in the last 3 years.

Interesting. Does she get hassled or delayed? The thing is that one cannot refuse entry for a citizen. If they don't have a valid passport then they usually get no punishment in most countries but then have a hassle of verifying who they are and their status – and get a dressing down from the immigration officials for wasting their time. Is there any reason to do this other than to save the cost of a passport, which are usually valid for 10 years anyway?…

No problems, no delays.  The Philippines passports are only good for 5 years.  It is easier if we both travel on USA passports.  She has the paperwork she got from the Philippines consulate in NYC proclaiming her a citizen of the Philippines, Just shows it at immigration along with our marriage license and we sail right through, both of us good for a year, no exit transportation proof required.

The question is not how does your wife do it but what is the law. I have a friend who lived in a European country with a US passport and travels within the EU frequently. Has no health insurance. It has worked for her so far. Legal? Absolutely not.

twostep wrote:

mugtech wrote:

TominStuttgart wrote:

Interesting. Does she get hassled or delayed? The thing is that one cannot refuse entry for a citizen. If they don't have a valid passport then they usually get no punishment in most countries but then have a hassle of verifying who they are and their status – and get a dressing down from the immigration officials for wasting their time. Is there any reason to do this other than to save the cost of a passport, which are usually valid for 10 years anyway?…

No problems, no delays.  The Philippines passports are only good for 5 years.  It is easier if we both travel on USA passports.  She has the paperwork she got from the Philippines consulate in NYC proclaiming her a citizen of the Philippines, Just shows it at immigration along with our marriage license and we sail right through, both of us good for a year, no exit transportation proof required.

The question is not how does your wife do it but what is the law. I have a friend who lived in a European country with a US passport and travels within the EU frequently. Has no health insurance. It has worked for her so far. Legal? Absolutely not.

The  Philippines consulate in NYC told her it is legal, none of 10 immigration officers disputed it.  I know another couple who does the same thing, no problems.

mugtech wrote:

twostep wrote:

mugtech wrote:

No problems, no delays.  The Philippines passports are only good for 5 years.  It is easier if we both travel on USA passports.  She has the paperwork she got from the Philippines consulate in NYC proclaiming her a citizen of the Philippines, Just shows it at immigration along with our marriage license and we sail right through, both of us good for a year, no exit transportation proof required.

The question is not how does your wife do it but what is the law. I have a friend who lived in a European country with a US passport and travels within the EU frequently. Has no health insurance. It has worked for her so far. Legal? Absolutely not.

The  Philippines consulate in NYC told her it is legal, none of 10 immigration officers disputed it.  I know another couple who does the same thing, no problems.

I really do not care what "none of 10 immigration officers not disputed".  What does the law say?

twostep wrote:

mugtech wrote:

twostep wrote:

The question is not how does your wife do it but what is the law. I have a friend who lived in a European country with a US passport and travels within the EU frequently. Has no health insurance. It has worked for her so far. Legal? Absolutely not.

The  Philippines consulate in NYC told her it is legal, none of 10 immigration officers disputed it.  I know another couple who does the same thing, no problems.

I really do not care what "none of 10 immigration officers not disputed".  What does the law say?

Hire a lawyer, let us know

twostep wrote:

mugtech wrote:

twostep wrote:

The question is not how does your wife do it but what is the law. I have a friend who lived in a European country with a US passport and travels within the EU frequently. Has no health insurance. It has worked for her so far. Legal? Absolutely not.

The  Philippines consulate in NYC told her it is legal, none of 10 immigration officers disputed it.  I know another couple who does the same thing, no problems.

I really do not care what "none of 10 immigration officers not disputed".  What does the law say?

I think it is insightful to hear people's experiences of what is enforced or not. The problem is when people take such a comment out of context and think such a strategy will always or probably succeed, especially not looking at what the consequences are compared to the cost of complying. Not having a valid passport or visa is a foolish idea because in the overall cost of what one spends to travel, getting the proper travel documents is insignificant. But one could get refused entry if a non-citizen without the proper visa or really hassled if a citizen without the right valid passport. And a Filipino passport for example costs less than 20 USD if gotten in the Philippines and 60 USD if acquired abroad. Even if only good for 5 years this is nothing!

TominStuttgart wrote:

twostep wrote:

mugtech wrote:

The  Philippines consulate in NYC told her it is legal, none of 10 immigration officers disputed it.  I know another couple who does the same thing, no problems.

I really do not care what "none of 10 immigration officers not disputed".  What does the law say?

I think it is insightful to hear people's experiences of what is enforced or not. The problem is when people take such a comment out of context and think such a strategy will always or probably succeed, especially not looking at what the consequences are compared to the cost of complying. Not having a valid passport or visa is a foolish idea because in the overall cost of what one spends to travel, getting the proper travel documents is insignificant. But one could get refused entry if a non-citizen without the proper visa or really hassled if a citizen without the right valid passport. And a Filipino passport for example costs less than 20 USD if gotten in the Philippines and 60 USD if acquired abroad. Even if only good for 5 years this is nothing!

We travel on our USA passports, always good for 30 days in the PI and easy extensions if required.  And we have exit tickets available.  So far all smiles, no hassles I get BB status every time, good for a year.  In addition we pay no exit fees.  Noticed no one has said what the law is concerning dual citizens and passports.

I would imagine that if a consulate in a city like New York tells people that an immigration/entry issue is legal, it is most likely legal.

mugtech wrote:

We travel on our USA passports, always good for 30 days in the PI and easy extensions if required.  And we have exit tickets available.  So far all smiles, no hassles I get BB status every time, good for a year.  In addition we pay no exit fees.  Noticed no one has said what the law is concerning dual citizens and passports.

Actually argawanon posted above that one has to present a Filipino passport if one is a Filipino citizen or dual citizen.  This is the standard rule in all countries I have heard of but I could not confirm it anywhere in the internet so I don't know the source of his claim. But for a foreign visitor, of course they would not apply for a visa when not rrequired.

Khalida.UNC wrote:

I would imagine that if a consulate in a city like New York tells people that an immigration/entry issue is legal, it is most likely legal.

Speaking of personal experience - you are incorrect. You do not walk into a US embassy with immigration questions. Even getting an info pass is a procedure. You get directed to a call center and techs handling calls are not well trained.

Walked into the US Embassy in November, 1994, showed proof of my divorce, my future wife showed letters that we knew each other for two years.  Embassy worker complimented me on my Moody Blues In Search of the Lost Chord t-shirt ( I always dress to impress), handed me the paperwork saying I could get married, and after a five minute meeting we were on our way to the province.  Sorry to hear it is harder now days to get info at the embassies.

mugtech wrote:

Walked into the US Embassy in November, 1994, showed proof of my divorce, my future wife showed letters that we knew each other for two years.  Embassy worker complimented me on my Moody Blues In Search of the Lost Chord t-shirt ( I always dress to impress), handed me the paperwork saying I could get married, and after a five minute meeting we were on our way to the province.  Sorry to hear it is harder now days to get info at the embassies.

What does a personal experience with a US embassy employee 25 years ago have to do with with are the legal requirements for a Phillipino citizen to exit and enter the country. US embassies authorize marriages?