Has any US Citizens moved to Philippines and worked there?

[Chris Duffy 1,256]

The laws are so restrictive there for working in a profession.   It ok for a person from Philippines to go to USA and become a RN here, but it's against the law for a US nurse to lake license exam to practice in PI.  I assume it is like this in many other professions.  

 

Seems like export is ok,  but other than that hard for a US Citizen to make a go in Philippines.  I used to think I could move there and make a modest salary from a business, but now of days I think it's a really not feasible

 

 

[John & Rose 7,237]

6 hours ago, Chris Duffy said:

The laws are so restrictive there for working in a profession.   It ok for a person from Philippines to go to USA and become a RN here, but it's against the law for a US nurse to lake license exam to practice in PI.  I assume it is like this in many other professions.  

 

Seems like export is ok,  but other than that hard for a US Citizen to make a go in Philippines.  I used to think I could move there and make a modest salary from a business, but now of days I think it's a really not feasible

 

 

I do know a couple Dual citizens that have started Mango businesses.  I'm not sure how successful they are.  Both are retired and their 401k money goes A LOT farther there.

[Hank_ 9,171]

Lots of foreigner work in the Philippines, but not the way you are talking about.

 

Working in the Philippines is like owning land in the Philippines, for the average person ... need to be a citizen.

 

You can have a business there but you pretty much need to do it through your asawa.

[RO_AH 1,614]

Very good topic. I plan to move there with my asawa after I retire here. I will take the earliest retirement allowed by SS which is currently 62. Even though the SS will be enough to get by I am still young and will want to have some sort of business there. It more than likely will all need to be done through my asawa. I could never see working a "job" there. When I look at the Philippines I see so much opportunity to make money. From what I see there is way more freedom there in the Philippines than in the "land of the free". My asawa has a sari store. If she wants to sell alcohol, she buys it then sells it. Same with cigarettes or anything else. Here in America, the licensing, regulations, and requirements are so much that it's almost not worth it to have a business.

 

I toss around ideas in my mind all of the time on what type of business I want to do when I go there.

[javadown2 308]

1 hour ago, RO_AH said:

Very good topic. I plan to move there with my asawa after I retire here. I will take the earliest retirement allowed by SS which is currently 62. Even though the SS will be enough to get by I am still young and will want to have some sort of business there. It more than likely will all need to be done through my asawa. I could never see working a "job" there. When I look at the Philippines I see so much opportunity to make money. From what I see there is way more freedom there in the Philippines than in the "land of the free". My asawa has a sari store. If she wants to sell alcohol, she buys it then sells it. Same with cigarettes or anything else. Here in America, the licensing, regulations, and requirements are so much that it's almost not worth it to have a business.

 

I toss around ideas in my mind all of the time on what type of business I want to do when I go there.

I want to do the same thing, but...I would like to get it up and running before I retire. My wife's family already has a sari sari store and we have helped them make it more viable (adding more storage, increasing store front, a glass display refrigerator and more. But.... I'm tossing around the idea of storage units, they are everywhere in the US and I read a post by an American living in the Philippines and he listed storage units as something that might be viable. Of course my asawa would have to own it and she and some family operate it while I'm away. Maybe everyone can brain storm other ideas, because I do agree that the Philippines seems like there is lots of potential to make some money. 

Edited November 4, 2017 by javadown2

[Greenbaum 12,258]

When my wife and I were "dating" I helped her with some seed money to start a loan business. I kept track of the loaners and what their payments were using an simple excel spreadsheet. It was fun being "partners" in this endeavor and it was very profitable. The money that she made on the interest paid for most of her/kids visa process. As you all are finding out or have found out, it can be expensive to process for a visa. For us, we had 3 that were processing so everything was times 3.

 

My wife bought eggs from a chicken farmer and resold them. She started small but soon she was delivering eggs in larger quantities in a very short period of time. 

 

And then there was a third business and that was she would take a boat to Cebu and buy new clothing and return and then she would have a 4 day sale at her house. She had a contact list of clients and they would come and shop for the bargains. Of course, it wasn't second hand pricing but for her clients they could afford above that but not department store prices.

 

All and all she did pretty well with those jobs to pay for "her living expense" and the visa. She has always been good with money. I am so proud of her.

[RO_AH 1,614]

Shortly after our relationship started we also built a small internet cafe. They built everything there on the side of her house based on drawings I sent. I built the commuters myself and brought them with me on my second trip there. I taught her the basics but set up remote access so that I could easily manage it from here. It was a very good thing because shortly after that I became unemployed and for the next 6 months that (and her store) were her only income. Internet cafe's have died since then with the availability of smartphones so we have since closed it.

 

Through the process my wife has become much more business minded. She treats the sari sari store more like an income than a convenience now. Just in soft drinks and beer she goes through about 25 cases a week and is by far the most popular and busy store in her area.

 

But for future plans. I am thinking if I want to make real and sizable income I need to get involved in exporting. When I look at her beautiful wedding gown that we paid $90 usd for and know that in the US it would be $2-3k, I can't help but think that there is opportunity there. Same with school uniforms. Imagine being the the supplier of school uniforms to say 50-100 private schools across America. The cost to have custom uniforms made and then ship to the US leaves a lot of room for profit and still offers a great savings to the school. I know this because I always had to buy uniforms for my son. Having a US based website and marketing to the US while in the Philippines would be a simple thing to do.

 

Those are just some of the thoughts running around in my head. I know there will be a lot more details involved once I choose a path, but I am confident that I will find something to keep me busy in my later years after retirement as well as build something that I can leave behind to support my family once I am gone.

[Chris Duffy 1,256]

15 hours ago, Hank_ said:

You can have a business there but you pretty much need to do it through your asawa.

Most guys from what I have seen, do it thru a girlfriend, it about a 50/50 split between GF and Wife.

[Chris Duffy 1,256]

11 hours ago, RO_AH said:

Very good topic. I plan to move there with my asawa after I retire here. I will take the earliest retirement allowed by SS which is currently 62. Even though the SS will be enough to get by I am still young and will want to have some sort of business there. It more than likely will all need to be done through my asawa. I could never see working a "job" there. When I look at the Philippines I see so much opportunity to make money. From what I see there is way more freedom there in the Philippines than in the "land of the free". My asawa has a sari store. If she wants to sell alcohol, she buys it then sells it. Same with cigarettes or anything else. Here in America, the licensing, regulations, and requirements are so much that it's almost not worth it to have a business.

 

I toss around ideas in my mind all of the time on what type of business I want to do when I go there.

I know a handful of guys who have retired to Philippines and took SS Disability which got them over there in there 40's or early 50's age range.  I have came to the conclusion you will need some type of supplemental income or have a large amount of cash in the bank if you want to try to live in Philippines.  Rental income from Real Estate or some kind of pension or SS income.

 

 

[Chris Duffy 1,256]

10 hours ago, javadown2 said:

I want to do the same thing, but...I would like to get it up and running before I retire. My wife's family already has a sari sari store and we have helped them make it more viable (adding more storage, increasing store front, a glass display refrigerator and more. But.... I'm tossing around the idea of storage units, they are everywhere in the US and I read a post by an American living in the Philippines and he listed storage units as something that might be viable. Of course my asawa would have to own it and she and some family operate it while I'm away. Maybe everyone can brain storm other ideas, because I do agree that the Philippines seems like there is lots of potential to make some money. 

Storage Units sound interesting.

 

I think renting out rooms or an apartment would be a pretty safe investment in Philippines. Seems like finding a place to stay or live is always in demand.

 

I always wondered what a Breastaruant would go in Philippines.  Have a Sports Themed and have the girls wear sexy outfit like they do at US locations.  No hanky panky allowed, but concentrate on serving cold beer and wings and other finger foods.  Have a lot of TV's on the wall with Rooster Fighting, Boxing and billard playing all the time.

Edited November 5, 2017 by Chris Duffy

[AKteacher 101]

On 11/4/2017 at 9:59 AM, Hank_ said:

You can have a business there but you pretty much need to do it through your asawa.

Yeah, pretty much. My in-laws have a small chain of motorcycle repair shops. Ideas along that line come to mind - tricycle cabs, rentals, etc.

[Hank_ 9,171]

Just now, AKteacher said:

Yeah, pretty much. My in-laws have a small chain of motorcycle repair shops. Ideas along that line come to mind - tricycle cabs, rentals, etc.

Yes.   My wife has started to "play around" with calamari stands,  she sort of tripped over the idea.  She already owns stores and rental homes.

[javadown2 308]

43 minutes ago, Hank_ said:

Yes.   My wife has started to "play around" with calamari stands,  she sort of tripped over the idea.  She already owns stores and rental homes.

Great ideas, sounds like the theme is rentals and property though, pretty much same everywhere! 

 

Calamari, so fried squid?

[Hank_ 9,171]

Just now, javadown2 said:

Great ideas, sounds like the theme is rentals and property though, pretty much same everywhere! 

 

Calamari, so fried squid?

Yes.  Deep fried ... very popular street food.

[javadown2 308]

9 hours ago, Chris Duffy said:

Storage Units sound interesting.

 

I think renting out rooms or an apartment would be a pretty safe investment in Philippines. Seems like finding a place to stay or live is always in demand.

 

I always wondered what a Breastaruant would go in Philippines.  Have a Sports Themed and have the girls wear sexy outfit like they do at US locations.  No hanky panky allowed, but concentrate on serving cold beer and wings and other finger foods.  Have a lot of TV's on the wall with Rooster Fighting, Boxing and billard playing all the time.

I really think the storage units are viable, with all the overseas workers...and EXpats maybe viable. 

 

rentals and property always seem like a safe bet for sure. 

 

Oh, like Hooters, but they have pretty much died off in the US. Where I live the "Bikini Baristers" are everywhere and seem to do well. And you know what I don't think my asawa would have a problem with this idea, sports bars are great! Oh..and you forgot basketball on the TV's!