Bureau of Immigration Philippines: What the BI Does, Main Office Address, Field Offices, eServices and How to Spot Fake Sites

What the Bureau of Immigration Philippines Does, and What It Does Not

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) handles foreigners' entry, stay and departure, plus registration, certifications, derogatory lists and deportation. Work permits, birth and marriage records, passports and police clearances belong to other agencies.

The BI's duties and responsibilities page describes it as the primary enforcement arm of the Department of Justice and the President, and as the chief repository of immigration records. The specific functions it lists include:

• regulating the entry, stay and exit of foreign nationals, and monitoring Filipino travelers' compliance;
• issuing immigration documents and identification certificates to non-immigrant foreigners, and special permits connected with immigration enforcement;
• extending visitors' stays, implementing changes of status and making administrative citizenship determinations;
• investigating, hearing, deciding and executing exclusion and deportation cases; implementing hold departure orders, blacklists and watchlists; cancelling documents for immigration violations; and arresting and detaining violators;
• accrediting schools that admit foreign students, and accrediting law firms, travel agencies and liaison officers.

The basic law the BI enforces is the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940 (Commonwealth Act No. 613).

For most foreign residents, BI business falls into 5 groups: visas (9A tourist visa extensions and conversions to 9G work or 13A and TRV marriage-based visas; see Philippine visa types); registration (the ACR I-Card and the annual report; see the ACR I-Card guide and the annual report guide); certifications (the BI clearance and travel records; see the BI clearance certificate); departure (exit clearance; see the ECC); and enforcement (derogatory lists and deportation; see ALO vs BLO and Philippine deportation explained).

What people mix up. The alien employment permit is issued by the Department of Labor and Employment; see the AEP guide. Birth and marriage certificates come from the Philippine Statistics Authority; see our companion overviews the Philippine birth certificate and the Philippine marriage certificate. Police clearance comes from the National Bureau of Investigation; see the NBI's official website and offices. Knowing which agency you need saves more time than finding the right queue. A quick test: if the document you need is about your immigration status in the Philippines, it is probably the BI; if it is about your identity, your family events or your job, it most likely comes from another agency.

Where the BI Main Office Is, and What Usually Has to Be Done There

The BI main office is on Magallanes Drive in Intramuros, Manila. Certifications, derogatory record checks and lifting, legal proceedings, record corrections and the approval stage of some conversions are usually concentrated there.

Address and contact details. The BI contacts page gives the main office address as Magallanes Drive, Intramuros, Manila, Philippines 1002, lists the trunkline (+632) 8-465-2400, and also lists official email addresses and the addresses and numbers of field offices and ports. Contact details change, so check the page before you go and ignore numbers found on unofficial pages or social media.

What tends to require the main office. Based on the BI's published charter and our detailed guides, these are usually handled centrally:

• Certifications. The BI clearance, travel records certification and the certificate of not the same person are handled by the Certification and Clearance Section. The BI FAQ page, asked how to check for a blacklist record, says you may file a request for verification at that section by presenting your passport and paying the fees. For travel records, see how to get a BI travel records certificate.
• Lists and legal matters. Checking and lifting alert list and blacklist orders, show-cause letters, hearings and motions for reconsideration generally follow the legal division. To find out whether anything is on your record, start with how to check a Philippine blacklist.
• Record problems. Name encoding errors, namesake hits, unresolved old files and long overstays rarely get fixed outside the main office.
• Approval of some conversions. Many field offices accept the filing while the approval happens centrally.

The main office is one building with several divisions. Work out which line your matter belongs to, then ask where that line is that day; floors and windows move, so follow the information desk on the day. How a day at the main office runs and the four most common sticking points are covered in handling immigration matters at the Manila main office.

BI Field Offices: Routine Matters Nearby, Conversions and Certificates Often Centrally

The BI has offices around the country, and routine matters such as tourist visa extensions and the annual report can usually be handled nearby. Conversion approvals, certifications and record problems often go back to the main office. Before you travel, ask whether the local office only receives your application or can complete it.

How many offices. A BI press release says legitimate immigration services can be availed through the online e-services portal or at any of the more than 60 BI offices nationwide. Addresses and numbers for field offices, district offices and ports are on the contacts page, which is the version to trust.

A 3-way rule of thumb. What each office may process is authorized item by item and changes with BI issuances; it does not simply track the size of the office. Roughly:

• Routine maintenance: tourist visa extensions, the annual report, special study permits and special work permits can be completed at most offices, and some can be done online (section 4).
• Conversions and registration: work and marriage-based visa conversions and ACR I-Card issuance are often received locally, approved centrally and implemented locally.
• Certifications and special cases: certificates, list matters and record corrections are often receiving-only or not handled at all outside the main office.

How far Cebu, Davao, Baguio, Clark, Boracay and other offices can go is compared in can you file Philippine visa transactions outside Manila. Filers flying into Cebu should budget for the collection trip; see immigration matters in Cebu. In Davao, jurisdiction is the first thing to settle; see immigration matters in Davao.

3 questions to ask by phone. Not "can you do visas", but: do you accept this transaction; do you only receive it or can you complete it; and does my situation (visa type, company location, extension period, any overstay) meet your conditions. If you have already gone to the wrong place, identify what kind of mistake it was first; see what to do after going to the wrong BI office.

BI Online Services: the 11 eServices, eTravel and Visa Approval Checks

The BI's online transaction portal is e-services.immigration.gov.ph and currently lists 11 services. eTravel registration is at etravel.gov.ph and is free. To check whether a visa was approved, use the agenda lists or the approval verification page with your application number.

The eServices portal. The BI eServices portal lists 11 services: (1) Annual Report; (2) Cruise Visa Waiver; (3) ECC-B/RP/SRC with Annual Report compliance; (4) Emigration Clearance Certificate-B; (5) Existing School Registration; (6) Retain/Re-acquire Philippine Citizenship (RA 9225); (7) Special Study Permit; (8) Student Visa Conversion (9F); (9) Tourist Visa Extension (9A); (10) Visa Waiver; and (11) Waiver of Exclusion Ground. The portal says it is available 24/7, requires an individual or school administrator account, and notes that online payment methods may carry additional transaction fees. Anything not on this list has no online entry point.

Which tourist visa extensions can be done online and which need a counter visit is covered in can you extend a Philippine tourist visa online. The eServices portal and the appointment system are different things; see how to book a BI appointment online.

eTravel. The BI homepage lists etravel.gov.ph as the Philippines' one-stop electronic travel declaration system. A BI advisory stresses that eTravel registration is absolutely free, that travelers should register only on the official website, and that scam sites charge fees for supposed registration; such sites can be reported to the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center. How to fill in the form and use the QR code is in the eTravel registration guide.

Was the visa approved? The BI's visa application status page posts agenda PDFs by date and, in the interest of data privacy, asks applicants to verify approval by comparing the application number in the agenda list against the number on their official receipt. The eServices portal also has a visa approval verification page. Neither tells you where a file is stuck; the four usual reasons for silence and how to follow up are in how to check a Philippine visa application status.

Tourist visa about to expire and not sure this extension can be done online? Let Yixing check your stay record and extension period first →

What to Bring to the BI and What to Confirm Before You Go

Bring your passport with copies, any existing BI documents and past official receipts. Before leaving home, confirm whether the matter can be done online, whether you need an appointment, whether you must appear in person, and which office to use.

What to bring, as a rule.

• Your passport, plus copies of the data page, the current visa page and the latest arrival stamp; bring the old passport too if you have renewed.
• Your ACR I-Card, past BI orders and official receipts. The application number on a receipt is the only key for checking results later.
• The current version of the application form from the BI forms page, not an old copy circulating online.
• If someone files for you, the authorization and the representative's ID; the BI sets rules on who may represent applicants, so follow the counter's current requirements.
• The documents specific to your transaction. BI checklists commonly say additional documents may be required; how to handle a returned file without starting the queue again is in what to do when the BI returns your documents.

4 things to confirm first.

1. Can it be done online? If it is on the list in section 4, start there.
2. Is an appointment needed? Practice differs by office and transaction; follow current advisories.
3. Must you appear in person? Biometrics, identity checks, interviews and hearings cannot be delegated; see when you must go to the BI in person.
4. Which office? See section 3.

Names and deadlines are the two hard lines. Copy your name on every form exactly as it appears in your passport, in passport order. Deadlines for your authorized stay and the annual report do not pause because you went to the wrong office or are waiting for a decision. A pending application does not extend your status automatically, so keep extending as required; for what happens after an overstay, see overstay fines and penalties in the Philippines.

Government fees are paid at BI counters or through official online channels, and receipts carry the applicant's own name. Amounts are whatever the BI currently publishes; this article does not list them.

How to Spot Fake BI Websites and Fixers

The BI's websites are on government domains: immigration.gov.ph, e-services.immigration.gov.ph and etravel.gov.ph. Treat any promise of a sure approval, inside contacts or special handling that skips the queue as a red flag, and do not pay or hand over documents.

What the BI itself says. A BI press release reports the arrest of 2 people who posed as BI employees and took money from a foreign national for a visa renewal. It says legitimate services are available through the eServices portal or at more than 60 BI offices, and urges the public to report anyone posing as a BI employee or acting illegally in the agency's name. The BI has also issued an advisory on fake eTravel sites that charge fees.

5 warning signs.

• the website is not on a government domain, or you reached it through a search ad or a forwarded link;
• someone approaches you near a BI office offering to skip the line, waive the appointment or "fix" the case;
• you are asked to send government fees to a personal account and never receive an official receipt or application number;
• a timeline and result are promised before anyone has looked at your papers;
• someone asks for your account password or email verification code, or wants your passport handed to a stranger.

How to choose legitimate help. The BI's duties page says it accredits law firms, travel agencies and liaison officers. Ask any helper whether they hold BI accreditation, whether they quote government fees separately from their service fee, and whether every government fee comes with an official receipt. Selection criteria are in how to choose a visa agency in the Philippines; if you have already been cheated, see what to do after a visa agent scam.

What Yixing can and cannot do. Yixing is a private consultancy registered in the Philippines, accredited by the Bureau of Immigration and also accredited by DOLE and the PRA, and it is not affiliated with the BI. We can work out which agency and which office your matter belongs to and whether it can be done online, prepare and check documents, accompany you or file and follow up on your behalf, and set a direction and bring in a licensed lawyer when lists, overstays or show-cause letters are involved. Decisions belong to the BI, and we do not promise outcomes. Reach us through our visa and HR services. For deportation, detention or criminal matters, consult a licensed lawyer; this article is not legal advice.

This guide is based on BI pages available in September 2026. Addresses, numbers, service lists and fees are whatever the BI currently publishes.

Not sure which office handles your case or whether it can be done online? Let Yixing sort it out before you go →