An Introduction an Seeking Future Guidance

[smore 19]

New here and really am seeking general info and guidance, and certainly more help and guidance in the future. I know this seems like a site for the VISA process and info which I hope to be in that process sometime in the future. Mine and the woman I met our Journey has started but been on hold due to Covid.

 

I guess some info about my situation would be helpful. Over a year and a half ago I decided to expand my horizons or search for a relationship outside of the USA, it was actually friends and family who suggested it. I was on your typical mainstream dating site, nothing specific like an overseas one or that, searching of course my local area, when again at the advise of family and friends I expanded my search and seen in the drop down list Philippines. I did like anyone does on those sites, browsed profiles and sent out a few messages to those I might be interested in. I was very upfront that I was from the USA and what I was seeking (of course something real, genuine, serious). A wonderful woman responded to me and we have been talking ever since. We started out like most relationships do on a dating site, you talk on the site for however long until feeling comfortable and than move to talking off the site, but unlike the next step of meeting like when dating locally that step is a bit more difficult for someone who is far away, certainly not impossible as many of you have done that, its just not like meeting someone local and saying we have been talking for awhile how about we meet tomorrow night. We met online before covid, but in the process of getting to know one another along comes news about Covid and than quickly it develops worldwide (we all know the story of that as we all lived it and are still living it).

 

So our only option was to continue getting to know one another which was OK, but we really liked one another and had already spent a good amount of time getting to know one another to determine that yeah we should move to the next step of planning to meet. However any plans for meeting were certainly on hold due to covid, we just kept thinking oh maybe in a few months, than it became a few more months, than a few more months, now its been a year and a half and counting and we are still in the "hopefully we can plan meeting soon" thought process. Its been wonderful getting to know one another all this time, but also difficult as you want to move forward to meeting and hopefully forward from there with a K1 Visa process and being together and enjoying life together. Covid certainly has blocked things for many on this site and many of you were already in that K1 Visa, or other type of Visa process, my heart goes out to you and how it has delayed you starting life together. Life certainly is short and we all want to be able to enjoy that life together with that person we have met.  

 

So thats sort of a brief introduction to my situation. My situation is in waiting just like many of yours, my Journey started but was interrupted before even a meet in person and Visa process could start, unlike many of you who have already met in person and started the Visa process. Again my heart goes out to you and all that you have had to go through during covid and waiting and waiting.

 

Seeing this is the start of my Journey and I hope that Journey can move forward sometime in the near future to meeting and starting a K1 Visa process, I am hoping that I can rely on the community here for help, guidance, advise, information and also emotional support. This seems like a wonderful community of people who want to help one another.

For right now this is sort of just my introduction, but of course I will need as mentioned help, guidance, advise, information and also emotional support as my Journey moves forward.

 

Some of the things I will probably have questions about are:

- Traveling to the Philippines (covid certainly has made that tough, but hopefully as each day, week, month goes by travel should get easier, HOPEFULLY) I know we are all hoping for that. I am not expecting to fly over there to meet her tomorrow even know we both would like that, but realistically hopefully in another 6 months. I am not a person who has flown outside of the USA so certainly will need help with any info about what I need to travel to Philippines, places to stay, just general info advise,  and especially updated info with covid and whatever restrictions may be in place (again not looking to travel for at least another 6 months, hopefully that is a realistic goal).

- Of course I will need help with the K1 Visa process, I have heard some use a lawyer but many say you don't need to, so will need guidance on filling out that paperwork and the process.

 

Thank you ALL for everything you have done for others here, your advise, help, guidance, experiences and how its helped so many others. I hope to create many friends here who can relate to the Journey and also be able to help others as well someday.

 

[JeanneAdil 6,562]

yes,  your story is like most of us

but can i say you are fortunate to have this long time to get to know each other

this time is for dating (local or long distance)  and have the romance that needs to happen to find love and a long life together

once the petition is sent to Immigration ,  all couples can think about and most of the time talk about is that

it takes the romance out of the picture for a lot of couples and turns chats into immigration and the frustration of the waiting game for news

and the very best to you after meeting and good luck with the K1 and the future

 

the word guides above will walk you thru the entire process for the K1 petition

you can also find out anything you want from USCIS or asking here on VJ

most of us don't require a lawyer as you will discover all the documents for the petition have to be supplied by u 

he copies for his files ,  fills out the petition and u read to find if all is as should be and sign (u are responsible for the truth of all things in the petition)

so a lawyer doing an application and mailing ???  unless you have issues that prevent the visa /  lawyer is not needed and can be expensive

[Joe Kano 327]

First off she is just a chatmate, until you spend time face to face and spend days and nights together then you will start to get a better feel if you are really compatible.

 

Best suggestion is when you finally can travel to Philippines is to meet here for a few days spend time and then fly off to another city, you can easily catch a flight to another city for $50 bucks.  Go there and meet other people, chit chat, date etc.  Then after a few days fly off to another city and do the same thing, no need to sell yourself short.  

 

I would would put Cebu, Davao City and Manila on your list of city to visit first trip, those are the big 3 there and planes fly there hourly within the country.

 

The K1 visa process is very simple and visajourney will be an great asset in learning the process.  Your main goal is to find the right person and don't worry about the paperwork at the moment.  

 

I have dated many girls in the Philippines and made many trips there, get to know the culture and the country and the way life works over there, it will greatly aid you in your search for a partner.

[B_J 2,752]

First off, I went to the Philippines after talking over a year with my gf, now wife, and I went with the intent of proposing. Your situation is whatever you feel it is, there is no set definition.

 

Best suggestion, when you finally can travel to the Philippines, is to meet her and then spend every second of your time with her.  You are going there to find out if the two of you are truly compatible and spending time together is how you do this.  You will have great times and bad times, you'll fight and you'll make up (hopefully), but this is part of what a real relationship is.  Also, get to know her family because they are, most likely, a huge part of her life.

 

Traveling in the Philippines is great.  Some seek out bars and other nightlife activities, I always look for things we can do with her family.  That will depend on what the two of you want.

 

The K1 process is very simple.  With the way things are now, when you decide on the future of this relationship, you may want to consider the CR1 route.  You will get excellent advice on this forum, and Hank_ will be able to help you a lot.  There are many who participate on this forum but there are some who are extraordinarily helpful.  They will be the ones that you will rely on when you begin the process.  

 

I have dated one woman from the Philippines and she is now my wife of almost 10 years.  Get to know your gf, her family, and enjoy your time together; whenever you are able to actually be together.  Good luck.

[RO_AH 1,659]

First off, as you can see by the replies here some people are more helpful than others. My suggestion is that if you want to speed up the process maybe meet in another country. It's a fairly quick flight to other Asian countries from PH. If she does not have a passport yet she really should get started with that process anyways if she ever plans to leave the Philippines.

 

Since you have never met in person yet you should be very cautious. There are a lot  of scammers in the Philippines and they are professionals. Meaning that is their life and how they support themselves and their families and they are very convincing to the people they scam. Like I said...Professionals and very good at their trade. At the same time there are those that are true, loving and among the most loyal partners you could ever find. Make sure you know which one you are with.

 

When you finally make it to the Philippines. Spend every moment that you can with her. Make sure that you spend time with her, her friends and family. Not out at some resort but where she lives. If she is true she will be proud to have you around everyone she knows and to have you meet them and see how she lives her life. If she wants to stay away from her friends and family it means she wants to keep you a secret. My first trip there we stayed in a hotel about 20 minutes from her home. This way I could have the conveniences of flushing toilets and air conditioning but we could still go to her house every day and hang out. After several trips there I stayed with her and lived like her.

 

I met my wife just over 10 years ago. We have been married almost 4 years. We have 2 children now. I have never been out to "clubs" or felt the need to meet lots of girls in the Philippines. My desire was to find a life partner. My wife was my 3rd Filipina girlfriend but the first one that I went there to meet. The other 2 were in it for the wrong reasons if you know what I mean. I am grateful for my first two because I learned the warning signs of a scammer and allowed me to find my wife.

 

The K-1 process is fairly easy however processing K-1's requires that you meet in person at least once. That's why I suggested meeting in another country because who knows when the Philippines will open up for travel. There is also a huge backlog of cases pending so the K-1 process may take a very long time. They are processing spousal visas so I doubt there will be as much of a backlog with them. Either way you go, you are in for a long journey. Good luck!

[smore 19]

JeanneAdil - Thanks for your reply.

I agree about being fortunate to have this time during covid to keep getting to know one another, as much as we would like to be able to meet, we also see this as an opportunity to keep getting to know one another as well, we are patient or at least trying to be patient as I am sure we all are trying to be patient with how covid has effected our lives and the progression of our lives and of course our relationships. I can see how once the petition is filed alot of conversation with one another is about the frustration and the waiting for news and yes I can see how that takes away from the actual romance of the relationship, but when we get to that point of being in the petition process I also hope its about conversation about the excitement of being able to finally be together.

 

Thanks for wishing me best wishes after we meet, and with the K1 process and future. I am really hoping to make some really great friends here so I really appreciate your response, kind words and advise. It sounds like with the K1 visa there is lots of help on here about how to complete the paperwork and a lawyer is not needed, and I course sounds like lots of others who will provide help on here if I have questions when we get to that point. I just want to be prepared so I thought I would start asking questions now and also want to build friendships with those who can relate.

 

Joe Kano  - Thanks for your reply

Yes Joe for right now we are just getting to know one another, however I do not think of her as just a chatmate, after all this time I feel certainly more than just chatmates, but I also am a realistic person and until we actually meet and spend time together in person, that is when those feelings of more can surface and be expressed and we can move forward. I agree we will not know we are fully compatible until we meet and spend time together.

 

As far as your suggestion about flying off to different cities. As one who has not flown overseas I am not sure what the plan will be, I know flying into Manila as far as I know is the only option as its the major airport. I do know she does want me to meet her family so we would fly to that area, would we have time to go elsewhere? would it be necessary? I am not sure, I know meeting her family is really important to her so that might be where alot of the time is spent, although we also need time one on one to get to know each other as well. I know I will not be able to go there for to long as I have work and all, but hope to spend a week or so. Once we are able to plan meeting as restrictions lift I am sure we will have conversations about places to see, people to see, etc, again spending time with her family is really important to her. And that is something that I really admire about her that she is so family oriented.

 

I am glad to here that the K1 Visa process is simple and that there is alot of help here. I agree about not worrying to much about the paperwork now, I just want to be prepared and a bit familiar with the paperwork, I am very much a planner and organized person and she knows this about me, and admires it about me.

 

I want to learn more about the culture for sure, and in mine and hers conversations I have learned alot already, and I sure hope that I have found "THE ONE" and don't have to re-search and date, after all we only need "THAT ONE" in our life, so again I am being realistic and hoping that I have found "THE ONE", we will see.

 

Thanks again for your reply and advise, I appreciate it.

 

B_J   - Thanks for your reply

I hope my situation is much like yours, you communicated for awhile, you met, you proposed, you married. I agree there is no set definition, its whatever we both feel it is. We have communicated for 1 1/2 now and only being able to communicate will certainly go on longer due to covid before we can actually meet,  but its OK we are getting to know each other more and more and have shared in lives sorrows as well as we both have lost family during this time.

 

I agree going to the Philippines is about spending time together and seeing if we are compatible, again I am a realistic person so until we meet we will not know for sure. Same as if your dating someone local, you don't talk online or on the phone and know, you may have a feeling you like each other, and have a feeling your compatible but you have to go out on that date or dates and spend time together to know for sure and build and build that relationship. She certainly wants me to get to know her family and YES you are right they are a huge part of her life, and I really admire that about her, many women I have dated in the USA they actually hated there family, I have a wonderful relationship with my family so it was tough in those relationships, they actually resented me for having a great family who welcomed them with open arms but they still felt resentment which I guess I can understand as they did not have that welcoming family, but it created tension in those relationships for sure. So I really admire family means so much to her, and that they want to meet me, and we have even talked a few times and have plans to talk more.

 

Sounds like traveling to the Philippines is great. My days of bars, nightclubs, nightlife activities are done and as far as her personality she is very simple and not into those types of things, its something we very much have in common, we just enjoy the simple things in life, the outdoors, family, etc. I like that you said "I always look for things we can do with her family" I am thinking that is what she will want as well to plan things with her family which is completely fine with me.

 

Good that the K1 process is simple, I have heard of the CR1 thats the already married route correct, but I believe I have heard the K1 is a smoother and quicker process, not sure why it would be versus the CR1 and already being married, but thats what I have heard.

 

I will certainly look forward to others providing help and making some wonderful friends who can relate.

 

Thank you for wishing me luck. Congratulations to you and your wife on 10 years together.

 

RO_AH   - Thanks for your reply

She is currently an OFW going back home as soon as she can, her contract had to be extended due to covid and not being able to fly home. So that is also what we are waiting on as well, but due to covid restrictions even if she was home right now I could not travel to see here.  I would think she has a Visa already for those countries? I believe me and her have had a conversation about this as she has been an OFW for awhile in different areas and I believe she would need a visa to do that? The thought has crossed my mind that when she does get home in about 6 months that if the Philippines still has its restrictions that we might have to plan meeting somewhere else, that thought has crossed my mind but am certainly hoping by than the Philippines will have eased restrictions. I know meeting her family is very important to her, as it is to me so having to meet her in another country is not ideal at all, certainly hope covid numbers keep going down, restrictions keep easing up.

 

When I decided to expand my horizons and expand my search to outside of local dating and to another country being cautious was something I was very aware of, and being scammed as you are right there are lots of scammers, so in the beginning it took a bit of time to start to trust as we got to know one another. Over this 1 1/2 years she has never asked for anything and I believe she has proven she is genuine, just the way our conversations have went, things we have expressed, shared, learned, etc about one another, but again I certainly was skeptical in the beginning because its to bad there are so many scammers.

 

I do agree when I make it to the Philippines to spend every moment with her, and spend time with her family and friends and not at some resort, the resort thing may work for others, but I know she does not want that, she wants me to spend time with her, her family, her friends and I admire that she is like that, she keeps saying my cousins can't wait to meet you, it makes me smile as I am very family oriented. She is always talking about me to her family, friends, and when she has been around her friends where she is an OFW they have said Hi to me in the background, or while on video she will point the camera to them and they will say hi, wave, wish me well, and its a nice feeling when they wave at me, say hi to me. She certainly does not want to keep me a secret and it makes me feel great she talks about me to her family and friends.

 

Congratulations to you and your wife and your children. You sound very much like me, I am not into the clubs, bars, and not into the going out to meet lots of girls. My desire also is to find my life partner.

 

Sounds like the K-1 is fairly easy process, I was aware of that requirement to meet in person at least once, that has been the difficult thing with covid we could not move forward when we felt comfortable to move forward, and covid is still restricting us from moving forward, she would of been back home awhile ago, we could of met, we could of started the K-1 process, but OH NO covid had to come along and mess things up (and mess them up for many on this site). I am hoping in about 6 months when she gets home after her contract expires that the Philippines will be open for travel and we can plan to meet. I mean none of these countries can afford much more closure time, I totally understand about being safe, being cautious but there also must be a way to be safe and cautious but also open, especially now with vaccines being administered more and more and numbers going down. Hopefully the world is on track to return to normal and be safe.

 

Thank you again for your reply, my hopes are to find some wonderful friends on here who can relate, it helps to talk with others about there situation so I appreciate you replying.

Edited July 10, 2021 by smore

[Joe Kano 327]

11 hours ago, smore said:

Joe Kano  - Thanks for your reply

Yes Joe for right now we are just getting to know one another, however I do not think of her as just a chatmate, after all this time I feel certainly more than just chatmates, but I also am a realistic person and until we actually meet and spend time together in person, that is when those feelings of more can surface and be expressed and we can move forward. I agree we will not know we are fully compatible until we meet and spend time together.

 

As far as your suggestion about flying off to different cities. As one who has not flown overseas I am not sure what the plan will be, I know flying into Manila as far as I know is the only option as its the major airport. I do know she does want me to meet her family so we would fly to that area, would we have time to go elsewhere? would it be necessary? I am not sure, I know meeting her family is really important to her so that might be where alot of the time is spent, although we also need time one on one to get to know each other as well. I know I will not be able to go there for to long as I have work and all, but hope to spend a week or so. Once we are able to plan meeting as restrictions lift I am sure we will have conversations about places to see, people to see, etc, again spending time with her family is really important to her. And that is something that I really admire about her that she is so family oriented.

 

I am glad to here that the K1 Visa process is simple and that there is alot of help here. I agree about not worrying to much about the paperwork now, I just want to be prepared and a bit familiar with the paperwork, I am very much a planner and organized person and she knows this about me, and admires it about me.

 

I want to learn more about the culture for sure, and in mine and hers conversations I have learned alot already, and I sure hope that I have found "THE ONE" and don't have to re-search and date, after all we only need "THAT ONE" in our life, so again I am being realistic and hoping that I have found "THE ONE", we will see.

 

Thanks again for your reply and advise, I appreciate it.

 

You probably gonna be punch drunk from the flight and transfers, and then add you will probably go thru culture shock for a 5 to 7 day, So hopefully you can spend more than one week, time flies since you loose a day just flying there.

 

Most girl will want to meet you at the airport especially if it's your first trip there, they will try to quarantine you off from others.

 

Meeting her parents is cool, but make sure you have chemistry first, and it might be possible she want you to take a bus or boat to visit her province which could be 12 hours, always try to fly planes in Philippines.

 

Be aware you time will fly very fast and then you will be adjusting to time zone change as well which takes a few days to adjust. As far as being family oriented this is pretty standard in the Philippines. 

 

Thing I look for to shy away from are individuals from:  broken families, poor, uneducated.  All these can bring more issues and problems in the future.  

 

Remember your gonna make a long flight and burn your personal time, so make sure you choose wisely

[RO_AH 1,659]

16 hours ago, smore said:

She is currently an OFW going back home as soon as she can, her contract had to be extended due to covid and not being able to fly home.

If she is an OFW she has her passport. But since she already is in another country you should go meet her there if they are allowing travel.

 

16 hours ago, smore said:

Over this 1 1/2 years she has never asked for anything and I believe she has proven she is genuine

If at this point she has never asked you for anything she is not a scammer.

 

May I ask what area of the Philippines she is from?

[smore 19]

8 hours ago, Joe Kano said:

You probably gonna be punch drunk from the flight and transfers, and then add you will probably go thru culture shock for a 5 to 7 day, So hopefully you can spend more than one week, time flies since you loose a day just flying there.

 

Most girl will want to meet you at the airport especially if it's your first trip there, they will try to quarantine you off from others.

 

Meeting her parents is cool, but make sure you have chemistry first, and it might be possible she want you to take a bus or boat to visit her province which could be 12 hours, always try to fly planes in Philippines.

 

Be aware you time will fly very fast and then you will be adjusting to time zone change as well which takes a few days to adjust. As far as being family oriented this is pretty standard in the Philippines. 

 

Thing I look for to shy away from are individuals from:  broken families, poor, uneducated.  All these can bring more issues and problems in the future.  

 

Remember your gonna make a long flight and burn your personal time, so make sure you choose wisely

 

I have researched the flight a bit just to get an idea but with covid it does not provide a normal picture of what costs and actual flights would really look like as there have been so many scale backs. But I am a planner and preparer so wanted to just get somewhat of an idea. Looks like about a 20 hour flight, and depending on options I only have to transfer once or twice. There used to be a direct flight to Manila from Los Angeles via Delta and I could fly from MN to Los Angeles easily than direct to Manila which sounds better than the South Korea route, but it seems Delta has pulled that route for now due to covid, hopefully it will return. I think Japan Airlines or something still goes from Los Angeles to Manila.

 

I am sure after that amount of time on a flight I will be tired, I think the flights I was looking at arrived at night there so at least I can just go to bed as that day is already over with anyone. Like you mentioned I am sure there will be some culture shock as well, but also it will be interesting as well to learn. With my work and responsibilities around home and life I am thinking I can do about a week, probably 10 days total if I span it over 2 weekends so hopefully that will be enough time. I have discussed meeting me, and asked if she could meet me at the airport as I will be in a country I have never been to so I will feel a bit nervous for sure, I have not traveled much, and never overseas, mainly been around the US to a few places and vacationed alot in my own state to like a cabin or camping as I am an outdoor type of person.

 

She certainly wants me to meet her family, which I think is really great,  some of her family are in Manila and others are south so we would have to go from Manila airport to Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport or Tacloban City Airport than taxi I think from there 2 hours I think. Maybe some other arrangement can be made, we have not discussed yet, maybe her family can meet us at that airport or something, that is something to discuss in the future when we are able to plan meeting.

 

Yes I am sure the time will fly by which I am sure will be difficult to leave, if only one did not have responsibilities in life huh and could stay longer. That is what I like about the Philippines that they are family oriented. My relationships I have had in the US have not been very family oriented, come to think of it I do not recall 1 that has a good relationship with there family or at least someone major in there family. So I embrace that the Philippines is family oriented.

 

After having talked for 1 1/2 and counting I hope that all works out great, so far we seem compatible, but as I have mentioned I am a realistic person and know that we have to meet in person before knowing for sure and being able to move forward from there.
 

Again I really appreciate all the feedback, advice.

[smore 19]

5 hours ago, RO_AH said:

If she is an OFW she has her passport. But since she already is in another country you should go meet her there if they are allowing travel.

 

If at this point she has never asked you for anything she is not a scammer.

 

May I ask what area of the Philippines she is from?

So her being an OFW she already has a passport? but is that passport only good for that country? or is it like the USA passport? She is in Hong Kong and I am not sure what restrictions are there? But also she works pretty much 7 days a week, suppose to be 6 days but works alot on her days off as well for the family she is working for so traveling to see her now she would not have any time for us to spend together, but your suggestion is great and I wish it would work both in being able to travel to see her sooner and her having time. She is planning on going home in about 6 months at the end of the contract she currently has and had to extend last year for another year due to covid. As much as it would be nice to meet sooner, waiting another 6 months is something we just need to have patience for, that way the meeting of the family can also happen.

She has never asked for anything, and never asked any questions either about financial stuff and that either.

She is from Libagon

[RO_AH 1,659]

55 minutes ago, smore said:

So her being an OFW she already has a passport? but is that passport only good for that country? or is it like the USA passport?

You need a passport to travel to any foreign country. Visa's are issued by specific countries for travel into their country. Some countries do not need visa's depending on what country you are from.

 

57 minutes ago, smore said:

She is in Hong Kong and I am not sure what restrictions are there? But also she works pretty much 7 days a week, suppose to be 6 days but works alot on her days off as well for the family she is working for so traveling to see her now she would not have any time for us to spend together,

waiting another 6 months is something we just need to have patience for

Make time. Have her make time. I am sure you should be able to find some time to be together. If this is someone you think you may want to build a future with, you should meet sooner than later. The K-1 process alone could take years even after they start processing. You should seriously check into requirements to travel there rather than wait for her to go back to Philippines. There is no way of knowing when you will even be allowed to travel to the Philippines. Patience is one thing but I really do not think you have a grasp of how long of a wait you are in for. The longer you wait will exponentially add more time to when you are together.

[Adventine 3,201]

Meet first, get to know each other really well, spend as much time as you can in person. Whether in Hong Kong, the Philippines, or somewhere else in the world.

 

The right person will make the time and put in the effort to spend as much time with you as she can.

 

Meantime, keep browsing the VJ forums and read about the common issues that couples have going through the immigration process. There's a wealth of experience shared here, both good and bad.

 

Good luck!

[smore 19]

20 hours ago, Adventine said:

Meet first, get to know each other really well, spend as much time as you can in person. Whether in Hong Kong, the Philippines, or somewhere else in the world.

 

The right person will make the time and put in the effort to spend as much time with you as she can.

 

Meantime, keep browsing the VJ forums and read about the common issues that couples have going through the immigration process. There's a wealth of experience shared here, both good and bad.

 

Good luck!

Thanks for replying. Due to covid and not being able to meet sooner we have certainly been able to get to know one another more during these covid times. Certainly am hoping for a trip there in maybe 6 months and being able to meet in person and hoping the connection, chemistry, etc continues and than we can file the K-1 and proceed. We both have really taken time to get to know one another so far, its nice when you have someone who takes that time, who reached out to you, getting to know one another is both people making the effort.

 

Covid certainly has interrupted us being able to make plans to meet, where she is at how working sounds like it would not be a great option with her work and all, plus I have no idea if Hong Kong is even open to travelers (I can check on that however).  Hoping that another 6 months of covid getting better, vaccinated people more around the world that countries will open back up, they certainly cannot remain shut down forever.

 

Thanks for the advice, I certainly will keep browsing the site, and when necessary reaching out for advice, guidance and help.

[smore 19]

22 hours ago, RO_AH said:

You need a passport to travel to any foreign country. Visa's are issued by specific countries for travel into their country. Some countries do not need visa's depending on what country you are from.

 

Make time. Have her make time. I am sure you should be able to find some time to be together. If this is someone you think you may want to build a future with, you should meet sooner than later. The K-1 process alone could take years even after they start processing. You should seriously check into requirements to travel there rather than wait for her to go back to Philippines. There is no way of knowing when you will even be allowed to travel to the Philippines. Patience is one thing but I really do not think you have a grasp of how long of a wait you are in for. The longer you wait will exponentially add more time to when you are together.

So do I need both a passport and visa to travel to the Philippines? I have read both ways, "U.S. Citizens planning to enter and visit the Philippines for 30 days or less do not need a visa prior to travel to the Philippines, provided their U.S. passport is valid and they have a valid return ticket". Than I have read "U.S. citizens must have a visa to enter the Philippines for all travel purposes, including tourism. Travelers must receive a visa from a Philippine embassy or consulate prior to traveling to the Philippines."

 

She is certainly someone I want to build a future with and she feels the same way about me. Guess I never understood the OFW before and the harsh conditions they face when in other countries, maybe some countries are better than others, but Hong Kong seems to be pretty harsh, very long days, no days off or only 1 day off a week. Here in the USA for most people its completely different way in which work is. So I cannot expect her to make time, take off time, or have her make time (if that is even possible for her as on OFW as she lives with the family she helps). I am very respectful and could not expect that of her as I am sure being an OFW and living with the family you are dependent on them for not only the job but the place to live, it must be a scary situation. She certainly does want to get home, but due to covid has not been able to, she had to extend her contract already and will not be extending it again, she is determined to go home in 5-6 months, and part of going home also is so we can meet.

 

I certainly would like to meet sooner than later, good old covid got in the way of us being able to meet whenever we felt comfortable to move onto that process. We have just had to wait, keep getting to know one another and waiting and watching as to when restrictions are lifted. With covid numbers around the world dropping, more and more people vaccinated world wide and more and more restrictions being lifted all countries have to start to make plans to open back up, they certainly cannot remain closed forever, many rely on tourism and I am sure the Philippines is one of those countries.

 

I have not heard of the K-1 process taking years once its started, I certainly hope that is not the case. Life is short and we both certainly want to be able to be together and start to enjoy that life together. I have heard 6-12 months for the K-1 process, not years, so I certainly hope that is not the case. Again I would certainly like to have already met, we have felt comfortable enough for awhile now to process to meeting but again covid got in the way and still is getting in the way. I have no idea when the Philippines will lift restrictions but at some point they have to in order to thrive. As explained about the Hong Kong and her work situation that just does not sound like it would allow much time to spend together and I am not even sure about Hong Kong and its travel restrictions now. Believe me its frustrating this covid and how its effected life here in the USA, the many things that were stopped, put on hold, effected, not seeing family, friends, living in fear, its been awful, it would of been wonderful to have had someone to go through that with, be there for one another, but we were there for one another from a distance, but how amazing it would of been to have been together thru it for one another. I got the idea a bit to late to expand my dating search outside of trying to date local and than who knew after we were starting to get to know one another this covid thing comes along. I think about how things would be so much different in our journey (and I am sure all of the journeys on this site), if covid had not come along.

 

Yes patience is one thing and I certainly have had that and am really hoping the world is turning the corner and things are going to be getting back to normal, I mean what person, what country can keep this up, keep shut down, keep such restrictions, in my mind they simply cannot. I am hopefully that in 5-6 months things will be different, alot has already changed since the start of the year. Believe me I think about it all the time that the more time we wait the more time until we are together, but again what could a person do with this Covid, I am hoping we have a plan that will work in 5-6 months when she is back in the Philippines, otherwise YES we will have to certainly talk about another plan.

 

Thanks again for all your responses, it helps to talk this thru with others, it really does.

[B_J 2,752]

From what I understand about OFW, particularly domestic helpers, it may not be possible for her to take time off; not if she wants to stay employed.  The conditions and expectations are nothing we would accept here in the states but its what the job is.  It's really commendable that you're trying to be understanding of her situation. 

 

The issue with the K1 timeline is that there is going to be a huge backlog of cases that have to be taken care of.  Its really a mess right now.  I haven't kept up with the numbers for K1 and CR1 cases but if your relationship reaches that point,  you may want to look into the CR1 visa.