Getting together with my philippina

The first time I took my girlfriend out of the Philippines, on a trip to Thailand, she and I were both separately questioned for about 20 min by officers. She was 36 at the time but also looked younger - maybe 30. We had to describe our relationship, show pics together, etc. So yes, it definitely happens. I'm not sure they would stop a 64 year old woman from going, but hard to know for sure.

Vietnam will require a visa in advance, at least they always did before.

- @pnwcyclist

Vietnam will require a visa in advance, at least they always did before.

- @pnwcyclist

The first time I took my girlfriend out of the Philippines, on a trip to Thailand, she and I were both separately questioned for about 20 min by officers. She was 36 at the time but also looked younger - maybe 30. We had to describe our relationship, show pics together, etc. So yes, it definitely happens. I'm not sure they would stop a 64 year old woman from going, but hard to know for sure.

Vietnam will require a visa in advance, at least they always did before.

- @pnwcyclist

I have read that Filipinos can enter Vietnam for 21 days with no visa. For citizens of the UK it is 15 days.

- @Cherryann01

@Wellsfry I had problems taking my previous GF to Vietnam for her first overseas travel. She had to prove that she had an actual relationship with me for many months. She did that by showing them her Facebook Account with many pics of both of us together over a period of time. Scary Process in Immigration agents office at airport. Took an extra hour or so of our time. Get there EARLY before your flights and clear security AND Immigration Gates well before your flight departure. Good Luck and Safe Travels.

We are trying again to travel to Bangkok on the 1st of September... Will see!  Will be her first trip out of Phillipines it they let us go... If anyone has any suggestions, I would appreciate it! 

- @Wellsfry

@Wellsfry

Good plan.  as long as it goes as intended, they won't have a single thing to stick to you, and you should be in the clear.

@Patient pete, your girlfriend will need to get a CFO and then also she might be scrutinized by immigration officers at the airport, as she will be a single female traveling unaccompanied. Others are correct about immigration offloading single Pilipinas; mostly they are very young Pilipinas. I don't know about a 64-year-old, but she's still single and unaccompanied, so you never know.

Some other folks who replied to your thread are correct about the issue of human trafficking and immigration being pretty strict. Since you have a two-year relationship, even though you've never yet met in person, you should have an abundance of information to show for her CFO interview and any immigration questions.

The standard to prepare for this type of vacation would be: printouts of your bookings for airline and hotel/Airbnb stays, printouts of your Thailand Passes, an itinerary for travel (where will you go in Thailand, what will you see, what do you plan to do), and proof that you can support her throughout her stay and longer if necessary. Her having a positive balance in her bank account and ties to the Philppines are not bad things to have either. Also, sending her a signed and notarized document that is a Letter of Invitation is a good idea, as well, essentially asking her to accompany you on vacation (with the aforementioned itinerary briefly described). Additionally, send her documentation of your income, such as bank statements showing your balances, proof of income, an apostilled birth certificate, and photocopies of your passport. When my now wife and I first met, we also went to Thailand because of the pandemic. Immigration took everything at the airport and kept it in case they ever needed to locate me for any reason.

Check the Royal Thai Embassy's webpage if you haven't already to see what their entry requirements are. The last I knew, you could travel there if not vaccinated, but you had to quarantine much longer than the 24-hour test-and-go scheme they used to have. And the hotels were taking advantage, hey...like hundreds of dollars per night because it was a required stay. But it included meals and everything you needed, which was cool. The Sha+ hotels are generally pretty darn nice. I think the sandbox scheme in Phuket is still going strong.

So, it's just a matter of documentation, my friend. Send printouts of your call logs and some snippets of conversation through Whatsapp (if you use it). Screenshots of you video chatting...the more people the better (like her family, your family, etc., if possible). For Whatsapp, you can export your chat log, and just print out like one page per month so it's not hundreds of pages. 24 pages is enough to establish two years, and make the printouts good, meaningful snippets if you can.

Good luck with your vacation! I really hope you two get to meet! Prepare for the CFO and immigration, and you'll be fine. My wife is over 30 years old but still 17 years younger than me, and she was allowed to travel the first time we met in person. We just had lots and lots of documentation for the CFO and immigration.

Warmly,

Jason