JRC consultancy service.

[Onemore52]

Any feedback about this consultancy appreciated.

[Ram1957]

I used them to renew my 13A ACR Card. I have no complaints.

[Onemore52]

Thanks

[BrettGC]

38 minutes ago, Onemore52 said:

Any feedback about this consultancy appreciated.

They come highly recommended by a few people I know.  We're about to start using them for my 13a;  that's going to cost us 36k PHP, but includes all BI fees for the process as well as one of their agents from their Cebu City office accompanying us to the interview in Cebu.  This of course only covers obtaining the probationary, it's extra for the final phase.  Another agency quoted us 21k but pay the BI fees yourself and no hand-holding come interview time.  

JRC are also the people The Filipina Pea interviews whenever there's a change to entry, etc (and there's been a few over the last couple of years) and they've hit the mark with regards to accuracy of information every time.  They have specialist immigration attorneys on their staff.  In case you're unaware, the Filipina Pea is a Youtuber whose audience is potential and current expats.  Most of her content is "fluff" but her videos on the practical aspects of living here are generally spot-on. 

Edited January 3, 2023 by BrettGC

[Onemore52]

Thanks Brett, I have started correspondence with them today for my visa extensions...Cheers Jack Tar.

[gbmmbg]

6 hours ago, BrettGC said:

Another agency quoted us 21k but pay the BI fees yourself and no hand-holding come interview time

21K? It takes less then an hour to fill out the paperwork. That's good money.

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, gbmmbg said:

21K? It takes less then an hour to fill out the paperwork. That's good money.

I did mine by myself when we were in Hong Kong.  From memory, it wasn't that onerous. 

[Peaceful John]

One, I strongly caution you about doing any kind of business with them.  In my dealings with them they displayed questionable honesty, did not follow through on their assurances, they require their fee upfront, then after they got it from me, I could no longer reach or get any response from the agents or reps and the only person I could get to respond to me was a secretary who knew absolutely nothing about obtaining an SSRV, or anything related to it.  I was able to get an email response from the CEO, and I viewed him as nothing but a parrot who also couldn't answer simple questions about my SSRV process.  I ask for my money returned and they refused all or any part of it but admitted they had done nothing in regard to my processing, and also admitted they had "dropped the ball on my application" but said (CEO) the staff would discuss the "shortfalls" in my application to ensure it wouldn't happen again.  The manager in Cebu was handling my application, and again, after he got my money, he would not respond to my messages and refused to accept my phone calls.  For 3 weeks of calling or messaging every day there was either no answer or I was told he was not in the office that day.  I ask the CEO about this, and his response was, "I'm not sure where he's at".  When I ask the secretary about the processing I was supposed to accomplish, she gave me the wrong, or incomplete information on 4 different steps causing me to waste over a month of processing time as it all had to be done over again.  If you have additional questions, feel free to message me.  Bottomline, I lost over $600 ($400 in the 10 days) trying to work with them, and once I interacted with the CEO, I totally gave up on them as I had no confidence whatsoever that they knew, or even cared, about my application.  It's hard to believe that any reputable agency could actually FORGET about a client (right after I paid the initial fee).  So, I pursued my needs on my own and realized everything that was required to get the Visa, I had to do it myself anyway.  The only thing they do for the fee is take your money.  Nothing else.  I recommend you try it on your own or seek another agency.  There are hundreds of them that will actually try to help you and will actually return your calls or messages.  If you do nothing else, insist that you get EVERYTHING in writing and that they give you a certified list of things/items that they promise to accomplish for the fee you are paying.  You will see very quickly that any tangible items on the list are nonexistent, except for the bank deposit of the money to the Gov Agency for the VISA.  For some strange reason they DEMAND you give the money to them to deposit versus going to the bank and depositing it yourself (so you're sure the thousands of dollars you are paying the government for this has actually been deposited). To this day I still find this demand very strange.  If after you see what you're actually paying them for, if that's OK with you, then it's your decision.   Good luck to you, my friend.

j

Edited January 3, 2023 by Peaceful John

[Onemore52]

Thanks for the warning, I appreciate you taking the time.

Alarm bells are going through my head already. 
In my initial contact with them I explained that I am needing a 4 week visa extension before heading back to Australia at the end of this month.

They replied that the fee would be 1500php, not bad considering that the trip to the local BI would be 3000php plus a day lost in travel there and back.

I then sent my receipt for my last extension to which they replied that I needed to send them 10,500 php for a ACR card, so I sent them a scan of my current card which expires in April, explaining also that the official at the BOI office stated I would be exempt from that charge because my card doesn’t expire until April, they replied that I should send them the aforesaid figure just in case.

The clincher came when I searched for their details on orbit remit when I searched for their bank details and the details was some obscure outfit in Cebu.

My gut feeling is to forget it and hire a driver to go to the BOI satellite office when the time comes.

I could be wrong but….

[BrettGC]

Interesting the different experiences, the 2 guys I know personally that did their 13a with them were nothing but complimentary.  That's the Dumaguete JRC branch though, so may vary by location.