After the New Year festivities we made plans to visit the
Bureau of Immigration in Manila so that we could submit our application to
amend my status as a ‘Probationary Resident Alien’ into a permanent resident.
Similarly to last year, we researched the requirements online using the BI
website as well as ex-pat sites to get advice from those who had been through
the process. There was not a lot of guidance out there, other than do it early!
It was decided that we should go up on a Wednesday, leaving
early to get as much done as possible, stay overnight in an hotel in Intramuros
so that we had the opportunity of Thursday to finish anything off if needed. In
order to execute the plan, we rose early and skipping breakfast for now, we set
off around 5:30; the journey was relatively easy, driving along SLEx and SkyWay
to come off the end and turn onto Buenida and then onto Roxas Boulevard which
would take us up to Intramuros. We arrived and parked the car outside the BI a
little after 6:40, so we took advantage of the nearby Starbucks for breakfast.
We needed to get some documents notarised, and from previous
experience we knew that there are attorneys working just behind a BDO bank
branch just to the side of the BI, we walked over to find that we were the
first in line for the service. For a nominal fee, we had the documents
professionally formatted with the correct details and two copies of each printed
(you always need duplicates and it is worth the additional cost to have
notarised copies not just photocopies just in case) and notarised, next stop
the BI………
At this time of year, the Philippine authorities require all
registered resident aliens (i.e. people like me) to attend and complete a
verification exercise that you are still here and living in the same place etc.
This was the first time I would have to do this, although I had hoped the visa
amendment process would cover this, but sadly no. Anyway, the point of all this
is that the BI opens early in the morning for the first 60 days of the year, which allowed us
to get cracking with the submission of documents. This is pretty much how it went:-
- A very helpful gentleman at the enquiries desk, who we first met last year, he quickly checked our documents, removing a number from the ‘set of copies’ I had prepared returning those to me. He then indicated that I should go to Window 18.
- The lady at Window 18 informed me that I had incorrectly assumed that I was exempt from the annual registration and that I should go and do this; I asked whether it was a pre-requisite for this visa amendment and although it wasn’t, she wanted me to do it anyway, which meant going back outside and queueing up again.
- From looking at Annual Registration process last year and the online form, I was not overly happy with this, I would have preferred to do it later, but like the lady said, we are here now. I was now mentally prepared for a nightmare of form filling, with each box needing some form of answer even if N/A (and there are a lot of boxes). It turned out my fears were largely unfounded, as I was eligible for ‘online processing’ and with a little guidance of exactly what the system was asking for (anyone who had completed a government document knows that not all questions are easy to answer with some being ambiguous at best) I completed the registration and was then issued with a small ticket with a reference number. Thinking we were done with the proces I was happily walking away to ask where to pay, when I was informed that I needed to get a queue number, and how did I get this you ask, yes by queuing up……
- Queue number obtained, we went back inside to pay for the registration, once I had the receipt which included the mysterious “express lane” fee I was able to return to Window 18 to start the submission process again.
- Back at Window 18, the lady I spoke to earlier informed me that there are a few boxes which I should mark N/A as I had left them blank.
- We needed to take the documents to another window for some additional checking and then were directed to go upstairs and see an immigration lawyer, this got both of us a little excited as the interview is a key step in the process and if we could do this today, that would be great.
- The lawyer looked through the papers, asked a few questions and then directed us to go downstairs, returning to the window we had just been at. We were then directed to go and pay at Window 23 and return with copies of the receipts, now at this point, I have to make it clear that the payments are recorded electronically, the receipts are printed on NCR paper in triplicate and they still want another copy on A4 or legal size photocopy paper, come on guys, think about the trees……
- Copies of receipts obtained we submitted these and were told that it was all done, except the interview bit, which was to be next week as indicated on the receipt, another interview, what was wrong with the one we just had? It also transpired that it was to be the same lawyer…….
We left the BI, happy that we had submitted the documents
and completed the annual registration, but a bit deflated that we had to come
back the week after. The dates offered were the Monday or the Thursday (on
which day the Pope was arriving, so most of the country would be on holiday).
We returned to the car and drove round to the hotel, after all we had paid for
it already, even though it was only 10:30.
The next day, having plenty of time, we decided that we
could stop off and renew Kat’s driving licence (as we had failed the previous
week as the office we went to didn’t have the ability to change addresses or
names (Reodica to Byrne) and it was also important to change Kat’s status as
she is now married (although quite what that has to do with driving ability is
beyond my understanding). We had been told that we could get it all done at the
LTO in Alabang Town Center, however that office can’t do name changes, so we
went to the Muntinlupa office, where we met up with a former med school
colleague of Kat’s. Dr James was most helpful and was able to assist us in
getting all the right forms to the right windows (it’s all about windows when
dealing with bureaucracy here). Although we completed the process, there are no
plastic blanks on which to print new licences, so we shall have to wait, they
also forgot to change her marital status, so we had to wait longer to get the
new receipt, so long in fact that we had to leave and come back the next week.
Whilst we were in ATC we stopped off at an appliance store,
I was looking for something for home, but had talked with Kat over dinner the
night before when the topic of her parent’s old and broken down washing machine
had come up (exciting conversation) and I had offered to contribute to getting
a new one for them. Upon seeing what was on offer and that there was a
significant discount for cash or straight card payment we made the purchase
there and then, on the caveat that they could deliver the next day, before 5pm.
We were assured that all would be fine and the machine would be at Kat’s
parents house before 5.
The next evening, a little after 5pm we phoned Kat’s mum to
ask if anything had arrived, only to be told that no, it hadn’t. Kat called the
shop to ask and to get the driver to text or call to let us know what was
happening. To cut a long story short, the van had broken down, so another van
arrived at the house, but without the machine. Kat then called the shop back and
made it very clear that she was not happy with the level of service, and we
expected the machine delivered before 10am the next day. Well, it arrived a
little after 10, but was delivered by the shop manager and a couple of staff;
Kat’s mum told them that she was upset as the special surprise from her
son-in-law had been ruined, I think they understood our point, but it made me
smile, poor manager….
We had seen Kat’s OB earlier in the week, she was still not
happy with the quantity of amniotic fluid that Kat has and was concerned about
her going into early labour. We have been trying hard to keep Kat’s blood sugar
under control but in the last trimester this is quite hard and it is this which
is primarily the cause of the excess amniotic fluid. To help prepare the baby
for any possible early arrival, it was recommended that he receive steroids to
speed up lung maturity, the only downside is that this could elevate her blood
sugar to a risky level. We could manage this at home, but it was decided to
admit Kat to Asian Hospital and have any necessary care managed here. The
problem with this was that we had planned it for the Monday and Tuesday with
discharge on Wednesday, so we had also planned to attend the BI on the Thursday.
As we got closer to this, we realised that they were likely to be shut because
of the Pope’s arrival, so we were forced to take the other option, Monday
morning, with the hope that the whole thing wouldn’t take too long and we could
get out of Manila around lunchtime.
To give us the best opportunity for a prompt 9am start, we
booked into the Bayleaf Hotel in Intramuros for the Sunday night. We have
stayed there before, actually at the same stage of the process last year, a
nice hotel, with good facilities and nice rooms. We drove up to arrive early
afternoon on the Sunday, unfortunately, on the way up I hit a small rock with
the front offside wheel which blew out the tyre and buckled the alloy wheel
beyond repair. This posed us with a problem on the SkyWay of needing to replace
the wheel and having only the scissor jack provided with the car, and it’s a
big heavy car!! Not only that, but there is only a 1m wide shoulder, not an
entier lane, so you have to work on a live carriageway. One motorist who passed by stopped to aske
whether I needed any help, and although it would have been nice, I was at the
‘nuts off, wheel hanging on the studs’ stage, so didn’t need too much more
help. I had wrestled the old wheel off and the replacement almost full size
steel one back on by the time the tollway assistance guys turned up. At least
they had a lot of strobes on the vehicle to make our predicament a little
safer. That completed, we followed pretty much the same route as 5 days earlier
to get to the hotel.
The interview the next day was fairly quick and despite the
need to get a couple of photocopies of receipts from the annual report process
and further copies of our marriage certificate (they had two of these last
year) and Kat’s birth certificate we were done in less than 30 minutes. We then
went down to the biometric verification office, to be told that since these
were all taken last year they are not required. This meant that we were done,
finished. The next step is to return once my name appears on the BI website to
have the visa stamped into my passport and to get a new ID card, that is
assuming the application is approved, I need to check on the BI website to see the announcement.
Departing the BI on a much more energetic note than last
week, we returned to the hotel to collect our stuff and then went to Asian
Hospital to get Kat admitted for her treatment. I have only had a limited
experience of hospitalisation using a system not the NHS, which I miss more and
more. There is a lot of paperwork to be completed as well as computer records
to be updated. I can’t put my finger on the actual problem and even less so on
a possible solution, but if all the players were to come to a consensus on what
was needed and use common forms or a system to record patient data then we
could probably reduce the time processing patients considerably. It is not
helped by the mix of totally private and semi-governmental agencies providing
health insurance, each requiring a form to be completed and therefore
duplication of information etc..
It was during some of this form filling that I got a little
annoyed with the office of PhilHealth in the hospital; most Filipinos are
members of this government insurance organisation as it provides a basic level
of cover for a relatively low cost. Large hospitals, such as Asian have, what
is in effect, an ‘implant’ where members can transact the necessary
documentation to make a claim for their hospital care. We were informed that it
was necessary to get a copy of Kat’s membership data (aka MDR) and also a
record of her up to date contributions, something that can’t be done by the
member at home online, but needs to be done at the nearest PhilHealth
accredited office. I wasn’t made aware of this at the outset, but Kat was and
asked her parents to get this for her, requiring a drive of some 30km each way
from Santa Rosa to Calamba as well as finding a parking spot and queueing at
the office and again at the hospital to drop off the documents (parking at
Asian is a nightmare if you arrive much after mid morning, I decided to use the
valte parking option for the first time here). However, upon enquiring directly
to PhilHealth over the phone, Kat was then informed that Asian Hospital has
access via a web portal to check all of this information and shold be using it
to save patients the trouble of getting it themselves. Just prior to Kat’s
discharge I had to go and sort out the bill, this is how it went:-
- I entered the PhilHealth office to make the claim against Kat’s insurance
- I was asked to provide the member data and contribution record
- I refused telling them that they should be able to look it up online
- Somewhat abashed the young lady looked to her supervisior for help with this difficult foreigner
- The supervisor smiled nervously and proceded to log onto the system, where he quickly found the necessary information and informed me that I was “OK and we don’t need the records, thank you”
- I asked why they had required us to ask Kat’s elderly (sorry Lolo and Lola but it adds to the complaint) parents to make a special journey of some 80 or 100km with the attendant queueing , waiting , stress and polution when they (PhilHealth) could have moved a mouse and made a few clicks to get the same result “It’s the SOP” he replied “the portal is sometimes offline”
Those who know me well can only imagine my reaction to this,
I managed to keep my voice calm although I was livid, as I infomed him that it
might be time to review the SOP so that the first action would be to check
whether the portal was online and to get the information that way and avoid
uneccessary travel and stress on patients and their relatives. Woe betide them
if they pull that stunt again when Kat is admitted for the baby’s delivery!
