Dear Vizard,
Have visa, will travel. Now you just need to attend the CFO seminar!
I got my fiancée visa last week. However, the airline did not allow me to get on my flight as I did not attend this thing called a Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar. I thought I only needed my passport and my visa to travel. Do I really have to attend this seminar? Is there a way to get out of it?
Sincerely,
Xena Dinavaza
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Hi Xena!
Filipino law says that anyone emigrating has to attend the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar with the Commission on Filipinos Overseas. Only emigrants aged 12 years and younger don’t have to attend.
Although the U.S. Government requirement doesn’t require the seminar, we do make this information available to all fiancé(e)s and immigrant visa applicants. The US Embassy will attach to your visa packet an information sheet so that you know about the seminar.
Want more information on the seminar? See below for a direct quote from the Commission on Filipinos Overseas:
The Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar is for emigrants petitioned by their parents, siblings, and immediate relatives. Travel regulations, immigration procedures, cultural differences, settlement concerns, employment and social security concerns, and rights and obligations of Filipino migrants are some of the topics on the PDOS Seminar.
Filipino spouses and other partners of foreign national are given guidance and counseling program. They are given advice on the realities of intermarriage and migration, rights and obligations overseas, available support networks for women in distress, cultural and social realities overseas, and other information which may help them make informed decisions about cross-cultural unions and settlement overseas.
– Excerpt from the CFO Information Sheet
Sounds pretty helpful to me!
For additional information, such as registration and counseling requirements and the seminar schedule, please visit the Council’s website at: http://www.cfo.gov.ph/.
Later, skater!
Vizard
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Good afternoon, i just want to ask something about this DSWD travel clearance, we are under F2A category and i am a mother of a 3 year old boy and at the moment we are waiting for our priority date to be current. if ever we have our visa on hand and will travel to the US do i need to get a travel clearance from DSWD? thanks in advance
We suggest that you contact the Philippine Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Philippine Bureau of Immigration (BI) regarding this matter. The DSWD is located at Constitution Hills, Batasan Pambansa Complex, Quezon City, and can be reached by telephone at 931-81-01 to 07. Additional information is available on their website at: http://dswd.gov.ph/index.php/faq/1886-travel-clearance-for-minors.
The BI address is Magallanes Drive, Intramuros, Manila, with telephone number 527-3248. The BI’s website is http://www.immigration.gov.ph/.
thank you for the quick reply
Regarding I-407, I was advised to submit the form and the Permanent Resident Card to Window 25. Is there any other document required? What will be the next step after that? How long will I wait for the result? Thank you!
Thank you for your interest in the VISAtisfied Voyager.
You may send your concerns to the DHS/USCIS office in Manila by email to MPHInquiry.CIS@dhs.gov.
Hello. My family finally have their visas and we’ll be attending this seminar(s). Unfortunately, my wife has specific questions that are not answered here or on the CFO website. She tried calling various numbers and all she got was an answering machine that again, did not answer her questions. Do you have a valid number for CFO where someone actually answers the phone and can answer questions? Thanks in advance!
Philippine law requires all departing Filipino emigrants or those leaving the country to settle permanently abroad to attend the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) with the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO). The PDOS is not a U.S. Government requirement. You may wish to contact the CFO regarding your concerns. Their contact details are available at their website at http://www.cfo.gov.ph.
Hi,
My fiance’s application for my petition just got approved today. What will be our next step for this? Thanks!
Thank you for your interest in the VISAtisfied Voyager.
Philippine law requires all departing Filipino emigrants or those leaving the country to settle permanently abroad to attend the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) with the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO). Only emigrants aged 12 years and younger are exempted from attending the PDOS. Although this is not a U.S. Government requirement, we do make this information available to all fiance and immigrant visa applicants. An information sheet regarding the CFO/PDOS seminar is routinely attached to a visa packet to ensure that applicants are aware of this requirement.
For additional information (registration and counseling requirements, PDOS schedule, and schedule of guidance and counseling sessions), the applicant may visit CFO’s website at: http://www.cfo.gov.ph.
hi, i went thru a k1 interview at USEM last Oct 18, it went smoothly and i heard the magic word that everyone wants to hear “GOODLUCK, your visa is approved” i was so happy then, 3 working days passed i tried to call the USEM to ask about the status of my visa application and they told me that my application was still under review..my question is, is there any possibilty that they will not going to issue me a visa? please help me, i really need your answer because my fiancee had scheduled my flight already…thank you very much.
Thank you for your interest in the VISAtisfied Voyager.
For privacy reasons, the Embassy does not address specific case concerns publicly on this blog. For specific information regarding your visa case, please send an email to IVManilaReplies@state.gov, with your complete name, date and place of birth, and the 10-digit visa case number, clearly indicated.
Hi,
I just want to ask. My case status is under review right now, we are hoping that this week we will receive our Visa. My question is, I’ve been working in singapore for 7 years, do I still need to attend the PDOS when my visa arrives? Thank you
Thank you for posting a comment on VISAtisfied Voyager, U.S. Embassy Manila’s visa blog.
In order for us to be more responsive to your inquiry, you may send an email to IVManilaReplies@state.gov with your complete name and case number, clearly indicated.
Hi, I went to your office today here in cebu. They asked me to bring proof that my partner is single and proof of our relationship. We applied as conjugal parnertship. I already have my visa. Do I really need to give them proof of our relationship?
Thank you for your interest in the VISAtisfied Voyager.
For privacy reasons, the Embassy does not address specific case concerns publicly on this blog. For specific information regarding your visa case, please send an email to IVManilaReplies@state.gov, with your complete name, date and place of birth, and the 10-digit visa case number, clearly indicated.