9F Student Visa Philippines: Processing Time and Cost, With the PHP 11,250 Conversion and PHP 10,520-10,560 Extension Fees Itemised (2026 Charter)

How Long Does a 9F Student Visa Take and How Much Does It Cost? The Bill First

Under the 2026 charter, for a student aged 18 or above on a 9(a) tourist visa who has been accepted by an accredited school, the official picture from filing to a passport with the 9F implemented and an ACR I-Card is:

• Conversion fee: PHP 11,250 plus an ACR I-Card at USD 50 at the Main Office Foreign Student Desk (FSD) (CC2026 p.276-278); the Subport version is likewise PHP 11,250 but prints the I-Card at USD 100 (CC2026 p.272-273).
• Conversion time: the Main Office FSD commits to 7 working days 9 hours 45 minutes (CC2026 p.278); the version filed through a district office commits to 21 working days 3 hours 25 minutes (CC2026 p.273), adding 5 working days of transmittal and 15 working days of Deputy Commissioner approval.
• Extension fee: PHP 10,560 plus USD 50 at the Main Office (CC2026 p.285-286); PHP 10,520 plus USD 100 via Subport (CC2026 p.289-291).
• Extension time: 22 working days 2 hours 30 minutes at the Main Office (CC2026 p.286), 22 working days 3 hours 20 minutes via Subport (CC2026 p.291); to be filed at least 1 month before expiry (CC2026 p.282).
• Motion for reconsideration after denial: PHP 1,510 (MR 500 + LRF 10 + express lane 1,000, CC2026 p.344), 37 working days 45 minutes (CC2026 p.344), and it must be filed within 3 working days of receiving the denial (CC2026 p.343).

The charter adds under the extension block that "processing timelines are indicative only and may not be strictly followed due to national security requirements and mandatory verification procedures" (CC2026 p.286). These are BI's service commitments, not binding deadlines. In practice, plan 4 to 8 weeks for a conversion and 6 to 8 weeks for an extension, counted from the moment the school starts, for the reason in the next section.

The School's Lead Time: Notice of Acceptance, Registrar's Endorsement, Liaison Officer

The most distinctive line in the 9F block sits under "General Remarks": "This application is applied for on behalf of the applicant by the Bureau-accredited Liaison Officer of their School. Applicants may not personally apply for conversion from Temporary Visitor Visa to 9(f) Foreign Student Visa" (CC2026 p.278; Subport version p.273). BI's clock starts when the liaison files. Everything the school must produce before that is the real lead time:

• Notice of Acceptance: must state the semester applied for and the months it covers, be signed by the school registrar, bear the school's dry seal and be addressed to the student; "applications with an attached notice of acceptance which do not follow this instruction will be disapproved" (CC2026 p.270, p.274).
• Registrar's endorsement to the Commissioner requesting conversion of the applicant's status, again a disapprove-if-wrong item (CC2026 p.271, p.275).
• Joint letter request signed by the liaison and the applicant on school letterhead with dry seal (CC2026 p.270).
• A copy of the liaison's BI accreditation ID (CC2026 p.271); the school itself must hold BI's accreditation to accept foreign students, or there is no liaison at all.
• CHED documents: a Certificate of Eligibility for Admission for medicine or dentistry, and a CHED endorsement for transfers or course shifts (CC2026 p.271).

On the applicant's side: passport bio-page and latest arrival stamp, a "fit to study" medical certificate from a DOH Level III hospital with a drug test result (CC2026 p.270), an NBI clearance if filing 6 months or more after the last arrival (CC2026 p.271), and, in the Main Office version, a BI Clearance Certificate and the original passport (CC2026 p.275). Late filers add a notarized explanation and a certificate of non-enrollment (CC2026 p.271).

How long this takes depends entirely on the school: some registrars produce all three documents within a week, others take a month. Whether the school is actually accredited is worth checking yourself before paying tuition; see the "school side" section of what to do when a 9F is refused.

Tuition paid, 3 weeks to the first day of class, and the registrar says the liaison can file next week. BI's 7 working days have not even started. Let us check the format of the school's three documents first →

9F Fees Itemised: How PHP 11,250 Adds Up (With CC2026 Page Numbers)

Listing the Main Office FSD conversion breakdown line by line shows what is inside PHP 11,250, and why there is no "regular lane" for a 9F: all three express lane fees are standard items.

Three notes. First, the USD amount for the ACR I-Card is paid in pesos at the Bangko Sentral rate on the day of payment (CC2026 p.271, p.276). Second, the Main Office and Subport blocks print USD 50 and USD 100 for the same card; the charter does not explain the difference, so pay what the receiving window assesses. Third, district offices' own 9F blocks do not agree either: Baguio PHP 11,250 (CC2026 p.581), Cebu PHP 14,068 (p.1007), Iloilo PHP 9,720 (p.1100), Cagayan de Oro PHP 11,220 (p.774), which shows district figures have not been aligned with the Main Office. BI's 9F web page still shows "conversion PHP 9,720, extension PHP 4,020 plus USD 50" with a footnote dating the fees to 6 March 2014; do not budget from it.

BI's Timeline: Where the 7 and 22 Working Days Actually Go

The Main Office conversion (CC2026 p.276-278) reaches 7 working days 9 hours 45 minutes like this: on filing day the desk checks travel history, evaluates the documents, issues the order of payment, takes payment and schedules biometrics; on the capture date the applicant appears for photo and fingerprints (the charter states the applicant is "to appear for capturing of biometric information on the scheduled date appearing in the Official Receipt", CC2026 p.276-277); then FSD encodes the file, sends the name list to NICA for derogatory checking, prints the draft visa order, the Chief signs within 1 hour, the order goes to the Office of the Deputy Commissioner III in 1 working day, approval takes 5 working days, implementation back at FSD takes 1 working day, and the school is notified. In other words, 6 of the 7 days are spent between the Deputy Commissioner's office and the system; FSD's own actions take hours.

The Main Office extension (CC2026 p.284-286) reaches 22 working days 2 hours 30 minutes because more legs are added: database encoding 2 working days, printing the extension order 1, derogatory check 2, Chief's signature 1, forwarding 1, Deputy Commissioner's decision 10, return 1, stamping 3, release 1. The extension also carries the concurrent renewal of the 9F ACR I-Card, handled separately by the Alien Registration Division (CC2026 p.282, p.286).

A conversion filed through a district office (CC2026 p.271-273) adds 5 working days of transmittal and 15 working days of Deputy Commissioner approval, for 21 working days; an extension via district takes 22 working days 3 hours 20 minutes (CC2026 p.291), about the same as Main Office. The districts' own self-reported figures vary enormously: Baguio conversion 6 working days (CC2026 p.581), Angeles 6 (p.1618), Cebu 6 (p.1007), Iloilo 4 (p.1100), Bacolod 30 (p.1740), San Fernando 40 (p.1319), Cagayan de Oro 51 (p.774).

Turned into calendar time, with complete documents, a cooperative school and no derogatory record: a Main Office conversion returns the passport in 2 to 3 weeks, an extension in 5 to 6 weeks. Any returned document resets the clock.

Can a 9F Be Filed Outside Manila? Which Offices Process and Which Only Receive

The 9F sits in the "second tier" of BI's Directory of Transactions: the district receives, Manila approves, the district implements. Whether you can finish locally depends on the column the directory ticks. Per the current online Directory:

• Marked "receiving and processing": Angeles, Bacolod (remark: "Approval - BI, Manila"), Baguio (remark: received, assessed and heard locally, transmitted to the Student Visa Section for approval, then implemented by BI Baguio), Cebu (SVS window), Dagupan, Davao, Iloilo, Nueva Ecija, San Fernando, Zamboanga, and the Student Visa Office at Main Office.
• Marked "receiving only": Batangas, Butuan (conversion), Cagayan de Oro, Tacloban, Tuguegarao (remark: "Approval in Quezon City"); Legazpi's and Naga's 9F extensions are also receiving only, with payment and implementation done locally.
• Unmarked in the original: Dumaguete and Vigan (conversion); do not treat these as available.

Note what "receiving and processing" really means for a 9F: even offices marked as processing, such as Baguio and Bacolod, carry a remark that approval rests with the Student Visa Section in Manila, consistent with the charter's Subport flow (district evaluation, transmittal to FSD, Deputy Commissioner approval, district implementation, CC2026 p.271-273). Filing locally saves the trip and the queue, not the 15 working days of approval. Which office serves which city is in which BI office can process what.

One more constraint: biometrics must be captured in person, and children aged 10 and below are re-captured at every extension, the practice printed across the district blocks. A school in Manila and a student in Cebu cannot avoid this step.

9F vs SSP: Fees, Time and Where You Can File, in One Table

Many families should really be asking not "how much is a 9F" but "9F or SSP". Side by side, the official numbers settle it:

When to choose the SSP over the 9F: the course is a language, short or non-degree program; the applicant is under 18; or the student is already in the country on a valid 9A and only needs to study lawfully now. When the 9F is unavoidable: a formal degree the student intends to finish, because an SSP cannot be "extended into" a student visa; once the course changes nature the status must change too. The route of enrolling a child on a tourist visa first is in can you go to school on a tourist visa in the Philippines.

Hidden Costs While Waiting for the 9F: 9A Extensions, the ACR I-Card and Three Expiry Lines

Between arrival and the 9F being implemented, you remain a 9(a) temporary visitor with three clocks running at once:

• 9A expiry: extend before the initial stay ends. The counter fee for the visa waiver extension is PHP 2,130 regular / 3,130 express (CC2026 p.353-354); after 59 days a 1-month extension for those aged 16 and above is PHP 3,400 / 4,400, and a 2-month extension for visa-required nationals aged 16 and above is PHP 4,200 / 5,700 (CC2026 p.353-355). Overstaying costs PHP 500 per month (CC2026 p.579).
• The 59-day line: staying beyond 59 days triggers the ACR I-Card at USD 50 (CC2026 p.336, p.737). A 9F conversion already carries a concurrent 9F I-Card application (CC2026 p.278), so if the conversion is approved inside 59 days you avoid a separate tourist-version card.
• The NBI line: filing the 9F 6 months or more after the last arrival adds an NBI clearance to the list (CC2026 p.271, p.275); waiting past 6 months does not just mean waiting longer, it means one more document.

The line most often missed: a 9F that is not extended is downgraded to a 9A with only 59 days to leave (CC2026 p.279); overstaying beyond those 59 days attracts, on top of overstay charges, penalties assessed at PHP 15,000 to 25,000 depending on the period (CC2026 p.281). Graduation, dropping out and transferring all trigger a status change; when the enrolment moves, the visa has to move with it.

11 days left on the 9A, the 59-day line next week, and the school's liaison cannot file until next month. Three lines expiring together, and missing one means a fine plus an overstay record. Let us put the three lines and the first day of class on one sheet →

Accompanying Family and Agency Fees: Structure Only

The 9F carries no dependent visa: a spouse or parent cannot stay as a "9F dependent", and the charter's 9F blocks contain no inclusion-of-dependent service. Accompanying parents usually hold a 9A and extend it on schedule, and a minor child's own status runs through an SSP or a parent's long-term visa; the family's ID cards are covered in ACR I-Cards for children and dependents.

On agency fees, the 9F is unusual in that BI accepts filings only from the school liaison, so an agency cannot replace the liaison at the counter. A reasonable quote therefore covers: verifying the school's and the program's accreditation, matching the Notice of Acceptance and endorsement letters to the charter's format, choosing a hospital for the medical and drug test, obtaining the NBI and BI clearances, managing the 9A extension and I-Card timeline, and preparing a motion for reconsideration within 3 working days if needed. Any promise to "get you a 9F without going through the school" contradicts the charter's rule that applicants may not file personally. Check the official-fee portion against the page numbers here, and ask that the agency portion name the work behind each block.

Counting Backwards From the First Day of Class

All of the above, counted back from the first day of class, becomes a workable schedule:

• 12-16 weeks before: confirm the school holds BI accreditation to accept foreign students and the program is CHED-recognised; start notarization and apostille of transcripts and diplomas.
• 8 weeks before: obtain the Notice of Acceptance (semester and months stated, registrar's signature, dry seal); check passport validity.
• 6 weeks before: medical and drug test at a DOH Level III hospital; NBI clearance if you have been in the country 6 months; BI Clearance Certificate.
• 4 weeks before: the liaison files; you appear for biometrics on the date on the receipt; cross-check the 9A expiry and the 59-day line.
• 1 week before: the Main Office's 7 working days run out, follow up on the order; for a district filing count back 21 working days, which moves the filing to 6-7 weeks before class.
• During studies: every extension filed by the liaison at least 1 month before expiry (CC2026 p.282), with 22 working days set aside and the transcript for the 2 previous semesters plus the current certificate of enrollment ready (CC2026 p.282-283).

All amounts and durations are subject to BI's and CHED's current issuances and the Citizen's Charter, which itself notes that timelines are indicative (CC2026 p.286). Every figure on this page carries its page number so you can check at the window whether it has moved; the document list is in the SSP and 9F student visa guide.