BrettGC

I was really pleasantly surprised how good Jack Ryan is. I found it to be a bit of an amalgam of the the earlier books but put in a present day context. Yep, I'm an Amazon Prime Video subscriber.

Retracting some of my previous points based on your post Tommy

Yeah, it was only relatively recently for PI, around 5 - 6 years ago, they announced it. They only updated the website at the beginning of '17 I think, so as usual things take time to filter through. It was actually a member here, JJReyes, that made us all aware of it when it was announced. At the time, he used to do a lot of liaison between PI authorities like BI, PRA etc and the US I believe. I should qualify my initial remark by saying that the consulate in Brisbane was completely unaware until they made inquiries themselves. Much like you, the other SRRV options aren't really a consideration given the cost benefits, or lack thereof. Yeah you can invest the deposit in property, or used to be able to, but for me that's a bit of a waste as we already own a lot and house about 2 hours North of Dumaguete. I guess an AirBnB investment could be an option? I didn't look too closely at the requirements on that front as they didn't/don't really apply to me and may not still be allowed.

The Angry Midget was here in our tropical "winter" last year, she's only 4'10 and 99lbs so we couldn't find warmer clothes to fit. She went nuts on Amazon.au, there's some amazing deals on there. Here's the crunch when it came to payment time: Turns out Amazon Aust is only a shopping portal for numerous vendors and she had to pay shipping for each item individually sent from different locations, some outside Australia. So for the $300 AUD she spent, the postage bill was around $100 effectively negating any savings. Needless to say, her anger level rose significantly. Target Au's store is pretty good. Electronics JBHiFi or Harvey Norman. I only mention those 3 as they're the only ones off the top of my head I can guarantee are located here and will honour statutory warranties; same goes for any of the major brick and mortar chains here. Many of the others are portals for overseas operations and your goods could quite literally end up on a slow boat from China.

We have 4 tiers of police checks in Australia, both federal and state, with and without fingerprints, varying expense and it's not clear anywhere which one is required for the visa. NBI, surprisingly, may be the path of least resistance in this case.

Just a post to answer right off the bat, any questions with regards to the SRRV. Requirements as they stood this year: Completed and notarized PRA application form; Passport with current visa; Medical examination clearance (either completed by a licensed physician abroad and authenticated by the Philippine Embassy, or a PRA medical certificate completed by a licensed physician in the Philippines); Police clearance from your country of origin or, if you’ve stayed in the Philippines for more than 30 days prior to your SRRV application, you will need to obtain clearance from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI); Marriage contract; Birth certificate; 6 copies of 1”x1” and 6 copies of 2”x2” pictures; Bank certification of dollar time deposit You will also need to pay the following fees (may vary at time of application): Application fee – principal applicant: $1,500 Application fee – dependents: $300/dependent Annual fee – covers 3 family members: $360 Annual fee – additional dependents: $100/dependent Your deposit amount will vary depending on which class you apply for and more info can be found here: https://pra.gov.ph/srrv/ It states deposits into accredited banks, I don't know which ones are accredited so you'd have to actually contact the PRA directly. If anyone that has successfully gone through the process is willing to share their experience, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, when the time comes, I'll just bring my police clearance with me or go through the NBI process and do the medical locally.

Tommy, it wasn't made clear to me at the time, but can you complete the application process whilst on a tourist visa in PI? Each official I asked gave me a different answer. Sorry for off-topic on your thread JGF.

It changed about 6 years ago and they extended it to all former members of the military of countries that have military agreements with The Philippines. I misspoke, it's actually only $1500USD. When I made my initial inquiries a few years back I satisfied all the requirements; this was through the old PI Consulate in Brisbane, before they closed it, and the PRA website backs this up. SRRV Expanded Courtesy Visa at the bottom of the linked page below. https://pra.gov.ph/srrv/ It doesn't list the application fee which was, at the time of my inquiries, also $1500, so 3K USD all up.... Pros and Cons...

This is one of the reason's I'm still considering the heavily discounted ex-military retirement visa (2kUSD vs 10K). Haven't done all the sums yet or know anyone that's been through it so can't say it'll be any less complicated, at least at the initial application stage. but barring the spouse visa it does seem a little bit less "up in the air" than the tourist version. Many pros and cons to consider. It's more fun in The Philippines?

I haven't seen much around Steve and given the apparent lack of "truth in advertising" in PI - blatantly false claims made on some products, "whitening" cream comes to mind, I'd be dubious of any similar claims made on any product at all.

I go with the Angry Midget every now and then - It's an hour every couple of weeks and makes her happy. Besides, the local bishop here does the Sunday night mass and when he gives his homily he's so out of touch with reality it's a bit of a comedy show which provides some amusement - Despite herself, AM sometimes chuckles along with me. I'm in the same boat Snowy.

When we renovated the place in Guihulngan City a few years back (3 hours North of Dumaguete) we added a floor. Downstairs is the ubiquitous cinder block but the new addition is wood framed. Around the wood framing is the blue backed, silver (foil?) insulation and the facing was put over the top. It was cheaper than filling the wall cavities with foam or some other material. The ceiling cavity is filled with roll out matting, again foil backed, chosen over the spray in products as they can block access to electrics if required in the future. On the roof itself are the self-powered vents, the type that spin when the hot air in the roof cavity naturally moves up through them. Solar panels are next on the list, not so much for the insulating factor but yep, power. Having said that, they do do a great job insulating too. Yeah, can't argue with that Scott, but insulation does help take the edge off.

Jack, my suggestion was tongue in cheek. Introduction of foreign wildlife to control something native rarely goes well. Cane toads are a major environmental issue in Australia right now.

Rats are rats no matter where you are. Clean up what attracted them, then lay down some sort of rat poison. Remember that if you do this, their bodies are going to attract other vermin so as soon as you find a dead rat, dispose of it in a timely manner, preferably off your property so as to not attract aforementioned vermin. Rats are like cockroaches: If you see one, there's probably 20 more hiding somewhere.