Secondly, the Filipino people are very warm, and welcoming to foreigners who wish to settle amongst them, providing their customs and traditions are respected, the Filipino people can be the most welcoming people in the world, for the first time visiting the Philippines as a foreign traveller is pretty exciting but living and retiring in the Philippines is said to be a dream come true.

Many dream of living an expatriate lifestyle, beautiful beaches, clear blue oceans, and amazing mountain views, can be the first thing you see when you wake up every morning, the great thing about visiting and living in the Philippines is that the sun always shines there, and that can make a lot of difference to your state of mind.

I have found througout my travels, that almost all Filipinos and Filipinas adore foreigners, expatriates, (expats) who live here or retire here. And they welcome and appreciate the tourist visitor, wherever you travel around the Islands, you seem to attract stares, but not the negative stares you would expect in Western Countries, more of a admiring stare, I love to see beautiful Filipina's smile, no seriously, you cannot beat those beautiful bright smiling faces around the shopping malls, along the beach fronts, going about their business down a busy street, I also love to see the smile of the Filipino, that is the guys as well you find the smile is genuine and tends to come from their hearts, that is why so many foreign tourists end up in the Philippines, and sometimes just never come back.

I first arrived in the Philippines in early 2004, it was not long before the Filipino way of life was in my blood, Even after the first visit, I knew I would be back. But it did not take long before I went back, exactly 3 months, I could not stay away, I had to get back to my bit of paradise, and you will too become addicted to the sunshine, smile and laughter if you come over to this best kept secret in the world, or it was until the Internet gave people access to information about the joys and wonder of living in the Philippines.

 Why you will love the culture of the Philippines

Generosity is part of the culture in the Philippines. Getting to know the Filipino culture will greatly enhance your living or traveling experience. But it is not something you have to do. The Filipino people are very tolerant of foreign culture and customs. They understand it's hard to adapt to another country right away. Filipinos have traveled the world as contract workers, and know the problems of acculturation, thats what I love so much about them, they seem to accept anyone, doesnt matter where you come from, you will be immedeatly accepted into the Filipino Community in which you visit or live in, I've often said, that I have this resentment of the Government of the Philippines, referring to me as an 'Alien" or as a 'Foreigner' thats them, dont worry too much about that, the Filipino's around you, will not be like that, they will treat you as one of them, if a Filipino makes freinds with you, you are like a brother to him, if you end up falling for a Filipina, they often say, that to court a Filipina, is to court the Family as well.

The Filipino people make you feel needed and wanted here. Sometimes in the UK, I feel we have lost the plot, we have become consumed by our own greed to clamour for materialism and acquisition of material goods, in the Philippines, its more about living a quality of life, rather than living to work. admittedly, you cant't be poor in the Philippines and expect to live like a King, but you can live like a King if you have a reasonable amount of income coming in, which we will discuss later

 Why you should find your ideal partner in the Philippines

Many of our members at the FilipinoUK Fourm are married to or involved in a relationship with Filipinas. This website has many links to pages within it, if you are interested in contacting ladies in the Philippines you can browse some of my web pages, for example such as A Filipina for You is helpful, to get you on the right track or if you want to have an inside knowledge of courting a Philippines Lady, Filipina Courtship Secrets is a place where you can learn about the inner workings of the mind of a Filipina and what she expects from love and Romance.

At the FilipinoUK Forum, we talk about the challenges involved in trying to relate to another person's culture and about the family relationships of the Filipinas. We discuss the pleasures and the challenges, the involvement with so many Filipina members, its good to get their input as well, It is important to know all this, and of the inherent risks of getting into a long distance relationship. And it is important to understand how valuable it is to first take a trip here, before becoming involved or falling in love. It is very easy to come here and meet wonderful women, in person. Surely you will find the one who will appreciate you. And you will know who they really are, not just their "Net Face", the hardest part of making a life with a Filipina is after the honeymoon is over, that is the First visit, then you start to really find out about the person you have given your heart too.

If you dont take the time to get to know the culture, I can tell you now, you will never know your intended partner, though you may swear you do. Take it from the guys who have found out the hard way. You may find a Filipina wife, bride, fiancée or girlfriend, but will you be happy together? to make a happy life with a Filipino, you simply have to understand her way of life, if you don't embrace her culture into yours, your partnership, marriage, or romance will have little chance of success, I know of many relationships that fall by the wayside due to lack of cultural integration.

 Why you can live like a King on less than £700.00 a Month in the Philippines

Few people in the UK really visit the Philippines, they know very little about this jewel in South East Asia, Thailand is more publicized, but the costs of a holiday in the Philippines, is so much better value, if you know the country, you might be surprised to know how far money goes in the Philippines if you know how to manage the money you have

Tourists who arrive in the Philippines for their first visit tend to stay at the 1st class hotels,they eat at the most expensive restaraunts, thats because they are used to spending heavily on holiday's ! (whats that British Phrase oh its ok, were on holiday, you only do it then, but I wouldnt do it at home )

Well thats true !, living in the Philippines is simply so much different to what youre used to at home, Learning to budget money is an art form, best put to good use by your Filipina companion, most of them are excellent money handlers, which is why you can live like a King for less than £700.00 a month thats around P56,000 a month at the current exchange rate (March 2008).

Although Metro Manila the capital city is more expensive, the provinces, like Visayas, or Mindanao, some have been known to live on less than P30,000 a month, thats around £400.00 per month.

So what do you think things cost in the Philippines ? first let me give you a short run down on the vices and other things you feel you should have. Beer, the local one is San Miguel is UK 30p a bottle and its a quality beer. There are other brands too. Rum is 65p per liter, can you believe it ? gin and Vodka a little more. There are also local kinds of liquor, like Tanduay and Emperador, and this is 20 pesos for a small bottle and 60 pesos for the larger bottle, So you can get drunk as a Judge on 70p a night, if thats your thing. Some more vice for you, a pack of 20 fags costs around 30p, the bars stay open all nights, but most close up at around 3am, there is snooker, pool, videoke, a kind of kareoke, but much better, with scenic pictures of swiss railway journeys for some reason, you can hire a private videoke room, if you want a private party.

What I love most about the Philippines, is that you won't get stopped for driving drunk around town, there are no tickets for that ! having said that, if you are driving then the responsibility is yours to watch out for tricycles with no lights on, that appear from no where, Jeepneys that seem to stop dead in front of you to pick up passengers, if you don't want the aggro of driving in the Philippines wich is similar to the Grand prix then hiring a driver is the most inexpensive way to get around, taxis are plentiful and cheap, minimum flagdown is 40P, dont laugh too loud at this, but also, there are no speed cameras, overhead cameras, gatso's lasers or police cars with connected computers to DVLA in the provinces, when I drive in the Philippines I feel so relaxed, as I never have to slow down for speed gatsos or watching in my rear view mirror all the time for Police patrol vehicles hidden in the bushes, or Traffic Agency vehicles, driving in the Philippines is a joy, and very relaxing, once you get out into the country.

Whenever I travel to the Philippines I always take money on the basis of what I think it would cost to have 2 weeks in Tenerife, then I am so suprised that by the time my holiday is over, I end up coming back with money I thought I would have spent, it seems ludicrous to say, I can't get rid of it, at the bars and paying traffic fines, (liability insurance for you car is required and about $14 per year) can you beleive that ? since the prices are so low for everything from eating out, to petrol for your car, hiring a car is so cheap as well, around £18.00 a day will get you 4 x 4 6 Seater Nissan Terrano, or similar vehicle, there are lots of imaginative ways to spend your money, but as I said, the secret to living on a lower budget, is to learn to be thrifty, and being thrifty doesn't mean living like a pauper, or a monk, those of you who are forunate enough to be married to one of those Filipina beauties, will be taught how to be thrfity, One of the favourite sporting activities in the Philippines is cock fighting, The shopping malls have large bingo parlors seven days a week. There are lotteries legal and illegal, the legal one give the best odds.

Nightlife in the Philippines is fantastic and cheap and abundant. I guess the Philippines is known for that, more than anything else. The Filipinas are fantastic, there beauty, loyally and kindness world famous. Filipinas are an at least an article or a book in themselves, however there are many pages on my website dedicated to that subject, when I am in country I spend less time on the nightlife, because I married to one of these Filipina beauties two years ago. She is certainly the best thing that has happened in my life, if you want your Filipina wife to go to bars with you, they will oblige, they may not drink or do other things, a true Filipina will leave the drinking and "outside activities" to the man.

If you like Gambling, nightlife, booze, wine, women and song allday thats okay, but forget illegal drugs. One leaf of marijuana or one grain of crack will cost you 12 years in a Philippine prison seriously, this is not the country to get caught having a spliff, Filipino prisons are hell holes, you might die in one of them easily, once you get thrown in with all the crack heads, delinquents and cross dressers that inhabit Filipino prisons, you have been warned.

  Why you will never run out of ways to Entertain yourself in the Philippines.

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Did you know that 90 per cent of the people going to work today hate the jobs they do, just look on the train tomorrow when you commute to work, or when you stop at a traffic light, watch peoples faces, do they look happy ? you can bet your bottom dollar they are not, they are simply existing, or living to work, did you know that people who say " I am going to work" are trapped in a system they might never break free from. Let me tell you my definition of work ! "Work is, anything you're doing right now this moment, when you would rather be somewhere else, like for example, in your 3 bedroomed 2 bathroomed house at the side of the beach in the Philippines, sipping a juice and lying in the sun, yes I know it sounds like paradise and a dream, but the reason people look so depressed is that when they are working to acquire the bigger house, the bigger car, the boat, the cruise, the new Kitchen and Conservatory, they spend more money on relaxation in foreign holidays, and have little time or no time to enjoy life, and in the UK Economy and other Western Economies, there is little left over at the end of each month for savings, and planning for the future, if you don't beleive me, call out a financial planning consultant and have a financial health check done on your situation, when they start telling you, you need to put £1000.00 a month away now for youre retirement and £250.00 a month away for your life cover, and Income protection policies, then you will start to beleive what I am saying, the cost of living in the UK is simply escalating at a frighetening pace, the Philippines may provide the answer to youre retirement plans.

 Why you will be amazed with the cost of Hiring and engaging people to do the things you would rather not !

Cheap Quality Labor: A welder or maintenance technician is lucky to make £2.00 per day and begs for your work does not require an appointment, same for a mechanic, bricklayer, electrician, plumber, and locksmith. You no longer have to go to garages like in the UK and they tell you " Can't do it today, can't get the parts " and then get fleeced on the final bill for the privilidge. People want your business in the Philippines, Craftsmen want to work for foreigners who may pay them more appreciate them more and be kinder to them than they ever imagined. A Filipino handyman will turn his hand to anything you ask him to do, and gets close to 30-50p for doing it, and is so happy when you give him a bit more as a tip

The secret to easy living in the Philippines is to employ a maid or two if you want, they are normally termed 'house helps' you can get 2 of them for about 25.00 per month and of course if they live in its customary to provide them with a room, and you feed them. Of course having helpers really makes life so much easier for you, they will do almost anything, such as cook your meals, clean the house, wash the clothes, iron them, and generally do other errands for you, now you know what I mean when I say you can live like a King, having servants is essentially what you have, although its good not to refer to them as such, If you have a Filipina wife with you, she can also enjoys the freedom from housework and errands.

 Why you will love the Medical Facilities in the Philippines

Going to the Doctor in the Philippines is not like in the UK, the first thing I notice is that you don't get fobbed off on the phone, and told to come on Thursday for an appointment when its only Monday and youre sick as a parrot, and also, you don't have to go and see a GP when you know its a problem with your ear, or your eye, then have to be shunted for a specialist appointment in 6 months time, in the Philippines you can access excellent medical facilities within the same day in the majority of cases.

Medical Treatment is good value, speedy, and effective, a Doctor's consultation will cost you approximately P300.00 or about £3.50, if the Doctor prescibes, the prescription is paid by yourself, depending on the medicine, most Doctors can see a patient immedeatly, some take slightly longer if they are busy with many patients, a consultation would normally last from 15 minutes to 1 hour depending on the required diagnosis and treatment, not like in UK where youre allowed 6 minutes.

Many local people subscribe to Phlhealth, which is a Government plan, most people pay according to salary band, this is where the Government picks up some of the cost, and the individual pays a contribution, this is mainly used for hospitalization charges, however the point to note here is that Healthcare in the Philippines is a mixture of private and social, the social is for people who are unable to pay, Westerners can well afford to pay privately.

 Why you would love Dental treatment in the Philippines.

Dental Surgeons in the Philippines are highly trained and provide excellent standards of care, they are board certified but much more importantly, they are excellent value for money, a dental consultation costs around P500.00 or about £5.60 not £60.00 like in the UK, for that, you could obtain a tooth extraction and other root canal treatment, other work such as cleaning or time consuming work, would be priced on application, however all Dentists in the Philippines work to set charges which are universal among Dentists, access to dentists is widely availabe, no NHS Problems in the Philippines, dental care is good, cheap and effective, many UK Expats who travel between the Philippines and UK, tend to leave any major dental work to their next trip in country, where they then arrange to have the work carried out.

 Why you will want to live and build your own house in the Philippines

Obtaining suitable accomodation in the Philippines is amazingly simple, you can pay around £150.00 a month for a huge house, with 6 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms Living room, kitchen, powder room, (downstairs wc and basin), maids rooms, car port, surround wall, protection gate, and just about everything else you can think of, renting houses is so cheap, you will be shocked at just how cheap, but the smart way to plan your retirement in the future is by having a house built for you, prices for buiilding houses in the Philippines are much lower than the UK where the property market is way out of control, you can build a lovely 4 bedroomed 2 bathroom house for around P1 Million to P4 Million depending on your requirements, but in the provinces, the prices are much lower, If you look at the photos here, this is the model of my future house which will be around P1.5 Million or £17,000

 Rules regarding Foreign ownership of real estate land and property

Non-Filipinos don't have the right to acquire real estate properties in the Philippines. The easiest way for a foreigner to acquire real estate properties is to have a Filipino spouse purchase the property. Having a Filipino partner (business) is also another alternative when acquiring a property. Either both share the property with equal rights, or the partner owns 51% or more and the remainder is owned by the foreigner. Special visas are available for foreigners who want complete and total control of a property.

Only Filipino citizens and corporations (at least 60% Philippine-owned) are entitled to acquire land in the Philippines. As an exception to this rule, a foreign acquisition of a Philippine real estate is allowed in the following cases:

1. Acquisition before the 1935 constitution.
2. Acquisition thru hereditary succession if the foreign acquire is a legal or natural heir.
3. This simply means that when your married to a Filipino citizen and your husband/wife dies, you as the natural heir will become the legal owner of his/her property.
4. The same is true for the children. Every natural child (legitimate or illegitimate) can inherit the property of his/her Filipino father/mother even if he/she does not any Filipino citizenship.
5. Purchase of not more than 40% interest in a condominium project.
6. Purchase by a former natural-born Filipino citizen subject to the limitations prescribed by law.
7. Filipinos who are married to aliens who retain their Filipino citizenship, unless by their act or omission they have renounced their Filipino citizenship.
8. Owning of houses or buildings is possible as long as the foreigner does not own the land on which the house is build. The land can be leased by the foreigner on a long term contract, and the house can be legally his. (More information on foreign leasing later).

 Ownership of a House as the Foreign Spouse of a Filipino Citizen

 Why you will want to live and settle in the Philippines

Manila is the capital of the Republic of Philippines and has just about everything you could ever want, and is the heart of the Philippines. It is the "National Capital Region", consisting not only of the city of Manila, but also the larger area of Metro Manila, Manila is a very big, exciting city, with a population of over 15 million people, and most of the time its pretty hard for some to deal with and not reflective of the Philippines as a whole.

If you have only been to Manila sadly you have not been to the Philippines. There are many places to live, simply and on a much lower budget, Some are very inexpensive, remarkably so. On a £500.00 to £700.00 a month in some places you will feel like a millionaire and be treated as one, a strange experience for some, certainly for me, its rather strange to eat out on a 3 course meal, then have several Sang Miguels, to find the bill is only £4.00 for the night, depending on your comfort level. in a small city or town you can have a good life on as little as £350.00 per month. In Manila you will not be comfortable with less than £700.00, unless you don't have many materialistic needs. A grand a month is paradise in Manila if have the money, but it is not really required, not convinced, hmmmm try it you will see.

 How to Survive and live in the Philippines on a much lower income.

You need a good steady stream of income, preferably from your pension, or investments, or a serious amount of capital and investment expertise, and some good business skilles to make it in the Philippines and become self sufficient, the Philippines is in the Southern Hemisphere, and is starved of any meaningful capital to start busineses, most business capital is invested in the Triad, that is United States, Japan and European Union, With just a little capital and a lot of study you can double your money every year and a half in the provinces.

You can do the same in two to three years in the cities, if you know what you are doing. However, very few do that when they arrive here. No one in their right mind is going to tell you business is easy for a foreigner here. But business it is not easy anywhere. It is much easier if you have a loyal and smart, business minded Filipina wife.

Your Filipino wife/partner can be your best asset, almost a necessity. And if you have the right one, she will bring joy and happiness into your heart and life. Beware always of local Filipino "friends". There will be many who "just want to help you". Most folks, like humans tend to be, are interested most in helping themselves, not that there is anything wrong with that. But as you know, free help is usually worth exactly what you pay for it.

 Why you won't want to work in the Philippines

Can foreigners get jobs in the Philippines and if they could would they want to ? In a word NO !, this is a country which does not have enough jobs for its own people, and you would not want to take a job in this country, where the average wage is about £2.00 a day, a Major-General in the Philippine Army makes about £400.00 a month, I think you have got the picture, the President of the Philippines Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, is not much better off either, her official salary ( I said Official !) is about £800.00 a month, of course she gets a multitude of allowances, and the family of Arroyo is probably very rich anyway, however having said that, Filipino jobs are poorly paid, Teachers in Manila probably get around P25,000 to P30,000 a month, Nurses around P9,000 a month, don't ever feel sorry for Guest Relations Officers, or bar girls, otherwise known as Prosti's they are far from being bottom feeders, they can make as much as P20,000 to P50,000 depending on levels of clients and tips, the majority of which they send home to the provinces for sustento for their families, and children to live on.

Most of the Jobs that expatriates do in the Philippines are those that work for foreign companies who have sent them out to work in the Philippines which is considered to be a nice little cushy assignment, as a foreigner attempting to retire you need to be running a small business to get any headway in this country.

 Why you would want to run a small business to survive in the Philippines

Cheap labour is the Key to many small businesses in the Philippines, as working capital is in such short supply, you can start a small business with a modest amount of capital and double your money within 1 year, if you know what to do. The few that have capital and smart Filipina wives, do very well. That is, if they take the time first to learn about the Philippine culture and business regulations, the Filipino mind, culture and sensitivities. Jobs for foreigners are extremely scarce, so here is where the cookie crumbles;

Though business opportunities abound even with little capital, a job, unless it is with a foreign company, is hard to find. If you don't work for a foreign based company, with a few exceptions you need be married to a Filipina to legally work here. Most foreign based companies send members of their existing staff here. Since Philippines is considered a nice assignment, there is competition even if you are in the company. There are many well educated, experienced and highly qualified English speaking unemployed Filipinos and Filipinas in the labor market, who can't get jobs for even $3 per day, so its going to be pretty hard for you as a foreigner to get a paid employed job in the Philippines

Work permits are not necessary if you are married to a Filipino citizen. You only need to register with the Department of Labor and Employment. But do you really want to work for local wages, maybe less than $3:00 a day?

Its far better to have your own business in the Philippines, the only real option unless you are married to a Philippine citizen. Even then, working for yourself in your own business or profession is the best option. But it is tricky. You must know the local culture and customs. And former successful business experience is a requirement. Don't try and arrive in the Philippines with little or no business experience, a culture much more different from yours than you may think. If you have even a modest pension to back you up, while you dabble, that is a good shape to be in, And you can still probably save enough to run a small business, for additional income and something to do. But business as a hobby is often costly. If you are going to do it, most of the time you have to be watching the store. Remember, you may find better things to do here to keep occupied. There are many things that are a lot more fun than business, especially in a culture you may not understand. If you still want to do business, start with learning the culture, reading the appropriate civil codes on taxation, labor, corporations, and such and tread softly until you get your Philippine business legs, its wise not to arrive in the Philippines and try to set up in business only to find, most of your capital is gone, and then you have nothing left to live on, its better to ease into thing slowly

 Non-UK Residency and Living Part time in the Philippines

The final option is of course semi-residency, you can as a UK National live in UK for 90 days a year and claim non-residency, this means you would not be liable for UK Taxation, as a non-resident, you can of course do what so many UK Expats do, and that is, commute between the Philippines and the UK to do business, there are lots of UK Citizens who commute between the far east and UK on a regular basis, doing business, or coming back to work making some money and then returning to the Philippines and Thailand.

Its not always an ideal way to settle in the Philippines, but many expats do this, it can sometimes be safer, doing this in relation to say, running a business in the Far East that doesnt work, its the old saying "If the wheel aint broke, dont fix it" in other words, if you are good at something, then stick to it, there is nothing to stop you coming and going as you please, making some money in UK and then returning to Philippines to live for an extended period, I would only recommend this to those who are possibly ex Forces, or other world travellers, who are used to living out of a suitcase and used to moving between continents, with a minmum of disruption to their lifes, its not hard to do these days, with mobile communicatiions, E mail and the World Wide Web

Some Expats leave their Filipino wives in the Philippines once they have established a home base, they spend maybe 2-3 months working back in UK, and then return for 2-3 months, and then come back again, its a revolving circle, other expats also work in the middle east, visiting the Phiippines in between leave, such is the life of trying to make a living overseas, whilst living in the Philippines

We hope you have enjoyed this section on 'Why you would want to visit, live and retire in the Philippines' if you have any questions, please visit the The FilipinoUK Forum where we discuss many of these issues, you will be able to join a group of dedicated Filipino enthusiasts