70% of Filipinos who apply for visas get it, says US embassy

MANILA, Philippines—Seven of 10 Filipinos applying for a US visa invariably obtain approval, the United States Embassy said on Wednesday, refuting the common perception that most candidates inevitably meet with rejection.

The Philippines has a 70-percent visa approval rate, falling under the “medium” category of countries given visas to the US, said Consul General Michael Schimmel at the opening of the embassy’s new annex building in Manila.

And contrary to another popular misconception, Schimmel said getting a US visa isn’t difficult. That is, if the applicant can sufficiently prove that he or she will return to the Philippines by establishing their professional and economic background.

Filipino visa applicants can now make their case in the embassy’s new $50-million state-of-the-art consular facility, the second largest US consular building in the world.

US Ambassador Harry K. Thomas Jr. formally opened the annex, which he described as “a work of art on a grand scale.”

“Finally, the quality of the facility matches the quality of the people who work here,” Thomas said of the new building located in the embassy’s 1201 Roxas Boulevard compound in Ermita, Manila.

Among those who attended the event were Foreign Secretary Alberto del Rosario, Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno and singer Lea Salonga.

Ayala Corp. chair and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel represented the Makati Development Corp., which built the facility.

The new building houses consular services and other offices. It has 99 windows for passport, visa and other consular service applications as well as comfortable and more spacious indoor and outdoor waiting areas. The new indoor waiting area alone can seat more than 550 applicants at any one time.

“We know that the process of obtaining a US visa is sometimes an intimidating one. We want the circumstances surrounding the experience to be as agreeable and less inconvenient as possible,” Schimmel said.

“Functionally, this facility works very smoothly and I hope that in the course of the next 10 years when all of you come here to renew your visas you would agree with me on that count,” he said.

Next to Mexico, the new office is the second biggest US consular building in the world, Schimmel said, adding that the ground floor alone can accommodate 850 people, and the second floor 200 people.

“The new embassy annex is a powerful symbol of the United States commitment to maintaining a permanent and productive diplomatic presence in Manila,” said Rodney Evans, managing director of the US Department of State’s Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations.