The British Embassy, Manila Republic of Philippines

The British Embassy provides a number of services in its role as foreign representative of the UK Government in the Philippines, those are mainly Visa Services this is the main pre-occupation of our information portal here at British-Filipino.com, and secondly but just as important Consular Services these are mainly services to UK Citizens, like passports, birth registration, application for assistance, information on lawyers, Doctors etc, and much more importantly obtaining a Legal Capacity to contract marriage in the Philippines.

The British Embassy also supports British Companies in the Philippines, gives advice on doing business in the Philippines, represents British Interests in the region, a number of British Companies are carrying out civil engineering works as part of a long term programme of bridge building, also there are exhanges of training and expertise from the UK for the Philippine National Police, the United Kingdom is also supports political and economic reforms in the Philippines

We will be mainly focusing here on the role of the Visa Section at the British Embassy which we assume will be located similarly within the embassy itself, and specifically on those British Government Civil Servants who are the 'Entry Clearance officers', Entry Clearance officers are civil servants who have been posted abroad to work in Foreign Embassies and have the job of interpreting the rules allowing overseas visitors to enter the United Kingdom, whether it be as a tourist, an investor, a business person, but more of interest to us, as the spouse or fiancee/fiance of a person 'who is presently settled in the United Kingdom, The entry clearance officers are now officials of the New UK Border and Immigration agency, and executive branch of the Home Office.

The visa application fees levied by British Overseas missions such as the British Embassy Manila, seem to be the highest in the world, a typical visa fee for a spouse application to enter the United Kingdom is at present £500.00 or around P50,000 with variations subject to the exchange rates, the rate given is generally in the UK Governments favour.

Sponsors and applicants alike will at some stage have dealings with the Visa Section of the British Embassy, no matter how the treatment is viewed, its the reality of life, therefore, we at british-filipino.com will attempt to make that process as smooth as possible for you, it should be noted here, that some applicants have reported that some Entry Clearance Officers are very pleasant, very professional, and extremely courteous, sadly other applicants have reported the reverse, being interviewed at the British Embassy is rather like a 'box of chocolates' "you never know what youre going to get', so if you follow on, we will now try and talk you through the whole experience from start to finish.

All applicants who have been given an appointment, should endeavour without fail to arrive at the Embassy's new premises at least 45 minutes before their given time, lateness is not an excuse, if you are late, you will be sent away, due to the high volumes of appointments made, excuses will fall on deaf ears.
You should arrive with any supporting documents and other items of evidence that we spoke about in Evidence of Relationship it would be wise for you to think about having the following items close to hand, we always say here at BF.com that the more evidence you supply the better, even if not much of it is seen by an Entry Clearance Officer, they may ask for some of it, or all of it, who is to say, naturally the more the better, so here are the main items required:

1. Your Marriage Certificate from the National Statistics Office plus 2 photocopies (not the original marriage contract you signed at your wedding ceremony this is not accceptable, you must produce a Marriage Certificate on NSO Security papers, if you do not have time to get this document as processing can take up to 2 months, (you may go to the Municipal registry where your marriage took place and ask them for (secpa papers) which shows that you are married) This will be acceptable to the Embassy but you must still obtain a final copy of your marriage, at a later date on NSO Security Paper.
2. The applicant's Original Birth Certificate on NSO Security paper, and 1 Certified true copy.
3. The birth certificates of any children that the applicant has from a previous marriage (if Annuled) or relationship, (if not married) plus certified copies.
4. The applicants' Filipino passport, plus a certified copy.
5. The applicant must produce the 2nd copy of the "Legal Capacity for Marriage" raised seal copy that was obtained by the Sponsor, when they first arrived in the Philippines if the marriage took place within the Jurisdiction of the Philippines.
6. If the sponsor has been married before, the original Divorce Decree Absolute from the UK court that issued it, and if the applicant has been legally Annuled, a copy of the Annulment papers, (notes: Filipino's who have been previiously married, must be legally annuled, the British Embassy may seek to carry out local checks to check the status of an applicant, if the applicant is still legally married under Philippine law, serious consequences can arise for declaring that they are single and free to marry, this could result in the current marriage being declared invalid, and not recognized for Visa purposes).
7. Evidence of of adequate Financial Support, the sponsor's' wage slips, if self employed up to date bank statements, and credit slips showing amounts credited and source of income, if not available, your weekly or monthly pay statements, also, you will need your last 6 months bank statements.
8. Evidence of stable accomodation in the UK, the sponsor must supply details of where he/she and the applicant he/she will live without recourse to public funds, if the sponsor is an owner, the mortgage documentation, deeds, if private renting, a copy of the sponsor's Assured shorthold tennancy agreement, also a letter from the sponsor's landlord/lady will be most definately required to validate that the applicant is allowed to live with the sponsor as a co-habiting couple.
9. Provide a supporting letter, this has in the past helped with a positive result, If you are are applying for your loved one as the fiancee/fiance then a covering letter stating where and when the marriage is to take place in the UK, including venue, timings, etc. this will help the ECO dismiss any suspicions they might have about the genuiness of the application, especially as the ECO will be able to quiz the applicant about the venue, timings and any other information to hand.