How long can a US citizen stay in the Philippines?

There is no visa to apply for before you fly. At the airport, immigration gives US citizens 30 days. To board the plane and get through the counter, have these ready:

• A passport valid for at least 6 months beyond the date you plan to leave the Philippines. Some sources say 6 months beyond arrival. Use the stricter reading so it never becomes a problem.
• A return or onward ticket out of the Philippines. Airlines usually check this at check in, and they can refuse to board you without one.
• An eTravel registration, done online at etravel.gov.ph or in the eGov PH app. It is free. The Bureau of Immigration asks arriving passengers to register at least 72 hours before travel. Ignore any website that charges for it.

Every extension is filed with the Bureau of Immigration (BI), either at a BI office or on its online portal at e-services.immigration.gov.ph. You can file up to 7 days before your current stay runs out.

Those fees come from the Bureau of Immigration's own fee table, which says it was last updated in March 2014 and may change without notice. Expect to pay a little more at the counter, and check the current amount when you file.

You keep stacking these until you reach the limit. For US citizens, and others who do not need a visa to enter, that limit is 36 months, counted from your latest recorded arrival. Visitors from countries that do need a visa get 24 months.

Once your stay goes past 59 days, you must also get an Alien Certificate of Registration Identity Card, called the ACR I-Card. It costs US$50 plus PHP 500, and BI usually issues it along with your extension. If you leave and come back later, it is reissued for PHP 250 the next time you stay past 59 days.

If you have been in the Philippines for 6 months or more, you need an Emigration Clearance Certificate (ECC) before you can leave. Get it from BI before your flight, not at the airport. The fee on BI's table is PHP 700 for adults.

Build a few days for this into your departure plan. At the BI main office it requires showing up in person.

BI's rules count the 36 months from your latest recorded arrival. In practice, people who reach the limit leave the country and come back in, which starts a new count. BI does not publish a written procedure for this, so confirm with BI before you plan around it.

If you already know you want to live here long term, this is the point to look at a resident visa instead. A retirement visa or a marriage visa removes the cycle of extensions and the exit runs.

Overstaying is fined, about PHP 500 per month on BI's table, plus the extension fees you skipped. It can also get you placed on BI's blacklist, which bars you from coming back until it is lifted by a letter to the BI Commissioner. Anyone who overstays more than 6 months, or past the 36 month limit, must also give BI a notarized letter of explanation.

The fix is simple and cheaper than the problem: put your expiry date in your calendar with a reminder 2 weeks ahead.

• Flying in on a one way ticket with no onward booking.
• Paying a website for eTravel. The official registration is free.
• Forgetting the I-Card after day 59, then finding out at the next extension.
• Booking a flight out without allowing time for the exit clearance after 6 months.
• Treating 36 months as a plan. It is a ceiling, and the rules behind it can change.