THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) yesterday launched an online student visa and permit application in a step as part of its modernization program.
“This is a priority project of the BI to make things easier and more secure for foreign students to apply for their visas and permits,” BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said, adding the system will allow schools to apply directly with the BI and remove unnecessary paperwork.
The service may be accessed via the immigration bureau’s e-services website at eservices.immigration.gov.ph.
The system, according to Viado, is the BI’s contribution to the country’s efforts to make the Philippines a leading education hub in Asia.
He added that the BI is working with law enforcement agencies and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency to prevent a repeat of last year’s influx of Chinese students in several schools in Cagayan Valley.
The presence of the Chinese raised concerns about possible spying considering the province is home to a military base that can also be used by US military forces under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.
The BI said then that 1,516 Chinese nationals were issued student visas in Cagayan in 2023 but only 400 of them are onsite since the schools they are enrolled in are implementing distance learning mode.
Student visas are renewed yearly, but the government has the power not to renew it if the students have failing grades or have committed other violations during their stay in the country.
BI spokesperson Dana Krizia Sandoval said the system, which was launched Wednesday, is a more secure platform because schools can now directly interact with the immigration bureau.
