Hi Guys this page is to help you marry a female from the Philippines as when I did it there was not much information on the net & what there was turned out to be fairly useless.

One of the most important things you need to know is unless you have lived together in the same house for over a year you can only get her a visitors visa to come to New Zealand. The NZ embassy in Manila only issues Visitors visas.This visitors visa is only good for 3 months to 12 months ( 11 months in NZ ) & you have to keep renewing it when she is in New Zealand. The 3 month visitors visa can only be renewed for a maximum 9 months in NZ.

You can try & get a work permit for her but I have no first hand information just hearsay from guys who have tried it. I keep on hearing how long it takes & how much harder it was to get so I did not try to get my wife a work permit in Manila.

I have never been married before so I was able to get my wife an 11 month visa. I also meet the embassy staff when I visited manila to marry my wife. Most of the other men I have talked to here in NZ only get three to seven month visa's.

You need to get her a Work visa in New Zealand which will help her stay in New Zealand for the year you need to live together. She does not need to work. If you get a work visa in Manila it goes to the embassy in Thailand which takes longer.

Then when you have been together for a year in the same house you can start the partnership residence visa or permit.

So you need to decide if you want to marry in the Philippines or marry in New Zealand.

Getting her a visitors visa is easier if you have married her in the Philippines but I have meet guys who have just sponsored their girlfriends.

First of all you have to decide do you want to marry in the Philippines?

http://www.bdm.govt.nz/diawebsite.nsf/wpg_URL/Services-Births-Deaths-and-Marriages-Getting-Married-Overseas?OpenDocument

I decided to marry my wife in Manila out of respect for her & her family.

It was easy to get my, 'Certificate That There is No Impediment to Marriage'. It only took two weeks to get it. I did think it was funny that at age 45 I still needed a letter from my parents to say there was no reason they knew why I could not marry.

To get a Certificate of No Impediment you will need to fill out the form Notice Of Intended Marriage Of New Zealand Citizen In Another Country (BDM 189).

It was a lot cheaper to marry in Manila than in New Zealand if you want a great wedding. I paid $80,000 PHP for the Wedding & I have to say it was a great day.

Your marriage should be registered in the country where it took place. Most marriages that take place overseas in accordance with the laws of that country are recognized by New Zealand law.

"There is no legal obligation to register your overseas marriage in New Zealand, however you may do this if your marriage ceremony is witnessed by an authorised official from a New Zealand post. You should contact the nearest New Zealand overseas post in the country where you plan to marry to determine whether they are able to provide this service."
The only advantage of registering your marriage in New Zealand is that a marriage certificate can be issued to you from New Zealand. This certificate does not replace the marriage certificate supplied in the country where you plan to marry.

The cost for doing this in Manila was too great. We were quoted a price of over a $1000 NZ for this service .The cost for doing it outside Manila would be in the thousands of NZ dollars.

This is the women in the New Zealand embassy in Manila who deals with New Zealand's who are marrying filipinos. She was very patient with me & very helpful.
"CAMPBELL,Jackie \(MLA\)" <Jackie.Campbell@mfat.govt.nz>

To make it easier for your wife to move to New Zealand you should of visited her in the Philippines at least twice as the, 'Commission on Filipinos Overseas', is a pain in the ass to deal with.

Helpful links for New Zealanders who want to marry Philippine citizens.

http://www.immigration.govt.nz/nzis/operations_manual/5068.htm

Getting married was the easy part.

Getting the visitors visa to come to New Zealand was the hard part.

You need to get the following files from

Rainier Sales
Technical Adviser - Immigration
New Zealand Embassy Manila
23rd Floor, BPI Buendia Center
Sen Gil Puyat Avenue
PO BOX 3228, MCPO 1272
Makati City, Philippines

Tel: +632-891-5358 ext. 230
Fax: +632-891-5353
Email: rainier.sales@dol.govt.nz

Files:
Work_Visa_Guide.pdf Work_Visa_Guide.pdf (491k)

Temporary_Entry_Xray_Cert.pdf Temporary_Entry_Xray_Cert.pdf (68k)

VV_App_Form.pdf VV_App_Form.pdf (107k)

Panel_Doctors_Philippines.doc Panel_Doctors_Philippines.doc (47k)

Supplementary_Questionaire.doc Supplementary_Questionaire.doc (94k)

Med_Xray_Form_Aug_2005.pdf Med_Xray_Form_Aug_2005.pdf (401k)

Partnership__Visitor_and_Work__Checklist_28_Nov_2005.doc Partnership__Visitor_and_Work__Checklist_28_Nov_2005.doc (95k)

The waiting for the visa to be approved is not easy. I had to email Rainier to get it finished.

Links

http://www.gov.ph/faqs/marriage.asp

http://www.weddingsatwork.com/realweddings_2000.shtml

http://www.chanrobles.com/executiveorderno209.htm#EXECUTIVE%20ORDER%20NO.%20209

Questions we have been asked

Can you use or exchange NZ money in the Philippines. Answer No. You should get USA cash to exchange for Philippine Peso's.

Can you use a NZ credit card in the Philippines. Answer Yes you can use a NZ Visa or Mastercard issued in NZ

Our current News

But the first part is over she is in New Zealand.

The next part is getting her a work permit. This took about 15 minutes in the Immigration dept in Christchurch.

If you live together for 6 months or more the immigration officer can give you a 1 year work permit from the time you apply but it is a big may be. We did not want to chance it. It depends on the mood of the immigration officer at the time you apply.

They delete the visitors visa & give you a work permit starting from the time you arrive in NZ. You only need a work visa if you want to travel out of NZ & come back.

You can extend the work permit when it is about to expire so you you can live together for 12 months so you can start your residence application.

Anyway my wife & I are very happy.

My wife Elizabeth & I ( Neal ) live in Christchurch, New Zealand.

My wife has turned out to be better than I could of hoped for. We have lived together for 8 months & I must say I am very happy. My wife is now working so we are saving money for a trip back to Manila in 2008.

Christchurch has a fairly active filipino community with dances, sports, every month or so.

Sinulog Fiesta of Christchurch Jan 27, 28 th 2007 is the next major event here.

The Pinoy Country & Western dance video at the bottom was taken by me at one of the Filipino dance evenings. The second video is at the same venue but on a different night.

our email is nealchch@ihug.co.nz