Got my first 60-day extension today. The 2-month extension was 3130 including fees, and the ACR card was 3200, for a total of 6330. On top of that, they charged 1000 three times for the express lane fee, so the 2-month extension and ACR card came to 9330 in total. They said I have to come back in 30 days to pick up the card. It's all a bit of a hassle. And they charged me 18 pesos to copy 3 documents I had already submitted last month 😂 This was at the Davao JP Laurel Ave office.
I paid 6343 two months ago. I didn't do express. Interesting that they asked for copies of documents. I've never brought anything besides my passport.
When you get the ACR card, doing the visa extension as express is a must... 9k is about right... The next few 2-month extensions should be around 2300 or so I think there's an extra one-time fee of about 300-500 after 6 months... You still have to go extend every 2 months... If your visa has more than 14 days left... you don't need express
Where an ACR card is needed after two months, adding the express fee makes immigration costs look clearly high. If you keep renewing, the average monthly cost levels out over time, especially if you can avoid the 2k express fee added to each renewal. As for the hassle, I try to remind myself that most countries in the world limit tourist stays to 60-90 days, so you have to leave and come back once.
If I planned to keep extending every 2 months, I'd look into a local visa/travel agency that handles it for you. In some cases it can actually be cheaper than doing it yourself.
Do I really have to get an ACR card after the first month of visa-free entry? I was planning to stay another 29 days visa-free after first entering, then extend again for 2 months.
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