Foreigners reminded to report to BI

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Wednesday reminded registered foreigners of the March 1 deadline for appearing in person before the bureau for their 2021 annual report.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente warned that failure to comply could result in fines, visa cancellation, deportation or imprisonment, adding that the March 1 deadline would not be extended.

The Alien Registration Act of 1950 requires all foreign nationals with immigrant and nonimmigrant visas to personally report to the bureau within the first 60 days of every calendar year.

Morente advised those who have not done so to immediately register with the BI online appointment system at e-services.immigration.gov.ph for their schedule.

According to him, 800 slots for the annual report are reserved every day while Saturdays are exclusively for accredited entities and remote reporting for bulk applicants.

BI records showed that as of Jan. 31, a total of 77,303 aliens have already filed their report, down by 10 percent from last year’s 86,683.