BIG MOVE

Complex

Hi everyone! Just wanted to share my experience claiming my Pag-IBIG Provident benefits for reasons of permanent departure from the Philippines.

The process was actually very smooth and easy as long as you have complete requirements. It took around 30 minutes total (or less?), mas matagal pa yung time ko sa pila. Hehe

Here’s what I brought with me, all printed:

Application for Provident Benefits (APB) form, filled out by hand. The customer service rep gave me a blank sheet to list down all my previous and current employers. I just wrote the start month/year of my first job and the end month/year of my last. (e.g. Company 1 July 2011, ..., Company 5 June 2025)
Visa grant letter and VEVO check letter.
Bank statement showing my account name, account number, and address.
Authorization letter for Pag-IBIG to deposit the claim directly to my bank account.
Printed copies of my passport and driver’s license, one copy each with 3 signature specimens.
Letter of declaration stating my intention to permanently depart from the Philippines. No need for notarization, they accepted the plain signed copy.
Original passport and driver’s license for verification purposes.

Estimated release of the claim is around 20 working days.

Tips:

Arrive early para iwas sa long queue
Double check na same name and address ang nasa bank account and valid ID
Bring a pen, just in case may kailangan ka pa i-fill out

That's it! HTH to anyone going through the same process.

mathilde9

@newhorizonseeker said:

@mathilde9 said:

Uyyy! Question naman. Nag explore din kami gamitin si Singpost (Galing kasi kami Singapore din) para padala un belongings namin sa Australia. Meron kaba binayaran pa jan sa AU once na nag arrive yung box mo? Like tax, etc.? Salamat marami ^_^

@newhorizonseeker
Huy wala pa yung boxes ko. In transit pa rin haha. Balitaan kita pag nandito na. Late next week pa ETA eh. Pero ang alam ko wala na babayaran kasi personal (used) stuff ko yun. Inask ko yung nagpick up sa sg, wala daw. Malalaman natin.
Update mo kami dito! ^^ Consider din namin ito si Singpost. Maraming salamat ha!

Hellooo. My boxes just arrived today. I didn't pay anything. Although may kaunting dents mismo sa box at nabakbak yung cling wrap ko, pero okay naman yung mga epektus haha!

schrodingers_cat

@mathilde9 said:
@schrodingers_cat
Hello po, confirm ko lang po yung DL na ginamit for centrelink, overseas DL po ba or AU DL na siya? hehe thank you very much po :smile:

AU DL ginamit ko and my visa grant:

Thanks po ✨

schrodingers_cat

@whimpee said:

@schrodingers_cat said:
Hello po, sa mga nag BM na po ask ko lang:

Pwede kaya gamitin muna na postal address yung sa friend/colleague namin for TFN/bank/medicare application since we will be in a temporary accommodation for the first month. Just wondering if this is an option aside from leasing a PO box

For those na nagBM to Melb recently, gaano po katagal naprocess including delivery ng mga TFN, bank, and medicare

Gaano din po katagal yung Proof of Age ID sa VIC?

for Insurance po, ano po maganda for married, separate na single or couple package?

thank you so much po :smile:

Yes. Samin ang ginamit namin na initial address is yung sa relative kung saan kami unang nag stay. Then update na lang once nakalipat na.

You can try getting quotes online and compare. I think mas tipid pa din yata kung under one card kayo, though best to check.

Thanks po ✨

charls059

Hi everyone, currently here sa Melbourne for a "test" before doing the actual big move in September. Started setting up bank account (NAB) and getting a prepaid sim. I also created my Wise account using my Australian number already.

Question is, how to send my PHP to the Wise app/AUS bank? I have BPI/BDO in PH. When I checked BPI, if you want to do it online, you have to have USD account and use it to transfer to your Aus bank. Otherwise if you dont have USD account, you need to transact with a teller on a bank (which alam nio naman gaano ka-time consuming eto sa atin sa Pinas).

Though I found a workaround. I can link my PH credit card and use it to load/send money to my Wise app. Then I will just use my PH money to pay off the credit card transaction. I tried so far to send 100 AUD and the total deduction in my credit card is 103 AUD. I used BPI credit card. Balitaan ko kayo if good ang conversion (usually it is if via BPI credit card)

charls059

@charls059 said:
Hi everyone, currently here sa Melbourne for a "test" before doing the actual big move in September. Started setting up bank account (NAB) and getting a prepaid sim. I also created my Wise account using my Australian number already.

Question is, how to send my PHP to the Wise app/AUS bank? I have BPI/BDO in PH. When I checked BPI, if you want to do it online, you have to have USD account and use it to transfer to your Aus bank. Otherwise if you dont have USD account, you need to transact with a teller on a bank (which alam nio naman gaano ka-time consuming eto sa atin sa Pinas).
Though I found a workaround. I can link my PH credit card and use it to load/send money to my Wise app. Then I will just use my PH money to pay off the credit card transaction. I tried so far to send 100 AUD and the total deduction in my credit card is 103 AUD. I used BPI credit card. Balitaan ko kayo if good ang conversion (usually it is if via BPI credit card)

PS: I tried to add my BPI debit card pero di sya tinanggap ng Wise App

rurumeme

@Complex said:
Hi everyone! Just wanted to share my experience claiming my Pag-IBIG Provident benefits for reasons of permanent departure from the Philippines.

The process was actually very smooth and easy as long as you have complete requirements. It took around 30 minutes total (or less?), mas matagal pa yung time ko sa pila. Hehe
Here’s what I brought with me, all printed:

Application for Provident Benefits (APB) form, filled out by hand. The customer service rep gave me a blank sheet to list down all my previous and current employers. I just wrote the start month/year of my first job and the end month/year of my last. (e.g. Company 1 July 2011, ..., Company 5 June 2025)

Visa grant letter and VEVO check letter.

Bank statement showing my account name, account number, and address.

Authorization letter for Pag-IBIG to deposit the claim directly to my bank account.

Printed copies of my passport and driver’s license, one copy each with 3 signature specimens.

Letter of declaration stating my intention to permanently depart from the Philippines. No need for notarization, they accepted the plain signed copy.

Original passport and driver’s license for verification purposes.
Estimated release of the claim is around 20 working days.
Tips:

Arrive early para iwas sa long queue

Double check na same name and address ang nasa bank account and valid ID

Bring a pen, just in case may kailangan ka pa i-fill out
That's it! HTH to anyone going through the same process.

Oh thank you for this information. This is a great help. Just wondering, yung SSS contribution po kaya natin pwede rin makuha?

jmcounters

@charls059 said:

@charls059 said:
Hi everyone, currently here sa Melbourne for a "test" before doing the actual big move in September. Started setting up bank account (NAB) and getting a prepaid sim. I also created my Wise account using my Australian number already.

Question is, how to send my PHP to the Wise app/AUS bank? I have BPI/BDO in PH. When I checked BPI, if you want to do it online, you have to have USD account and use it to transfer to your Aus bank. Otherwise if you dont have USD account, you need to transact with a teller on a bank (which alam nio naman gaano ka-time consuming eto sa atin sa Pinas).

Though I found a workaround. I can link my PH credit card and use it to load/send money to my Wise app. Then I will just use my PH money to pay off the credit card transaction. I tried so far to send 100 AUD and the total deduction in my credit card is 103 AUD. I used BPI credit card. Balitaan ko kayo if good ang conversion (usually it is if via BPI credit card)
PS: I tried to add my BPI debit card pero di sya tinanggap ng Wise App

Hi, let me break down what I do to transfer PHP to AUD from my banks

From the Wise app, I scroll down and go to Transfer Calculator section to check what the current rate is
From the Transfer Calculator section, you can check currencies and set what you're converting from and to. In this case, PHP >> AUD. This one flips easily as well if you want to send back sa PH naman.
Once the currency set, I fill in how much I want to send or receive. So it's up to you if you have a particular figure in PHP you want to send or a particular figure you want to receive in AUD. Whichever you choose, the other currency gets automatically calculated kasama the fees. Example, as of writing, I wanna send 100k PHP, the app auto-calculates that I will receive 2698.29 AUD excluding the fees.
Hit the "Send" button.
Wise app will ask you who do you want to send this to. If you haven't already, add your bank either through PayID or direct bank details (BSB and Account number). If added na, you just need to select. Also make sure to tag your own recipient detail as yours and trusted (if it's yours lang)
Wise will then summarize the transfer for you.

The amount you'll send exactly the amount you will receive in your recipient bank

how you're paying(sending) - for those sending from PH, only Bank or E-wallet transfer is accepted aside from Wise Balance (if you have any). This means, you can only send via Instapay (instant but only up to 50k) or PesoNet (subject to daily cutoff times but can send more than 50k at once, not sure of the limits) the time estimates of the arrival (after Wise receives your transfer because how much time each transfer takes depend on whether you used Instapay or PesoNet)

the total fees in the currency you're sending from.
Hit Continue if you're okay with the transaction.
Select transfer reason then hit Continue.
Review the details and select "Continue to instructions"
Wise will then give you the details of where to send the money. This is unique to you. You can opt here to hit "I've made my bank transfer" or "I'll transfer my money later". If you select the first one, Wise will then show you the transaction progress and will indicate that it's waiting for your transfer to come through. Then you just wait. If you selected the latter, you'll have a pending task until you hit the "I've made my bank transfer"

Medyo may katagalan lang yung Wise to your AU bank especially pag first few transfers.

charls059

@jmcounters said:

@charls059 said:

@charls059 said:
Hi everyone, currently here sa Melbourne for a "test" before doing the actual big move in September. Started setting up bank account (NAB) and getting a prepaid sim. I also created my Wise account using my Australian number already.

Question is, how to send my PHP to the Wise app/AUS bank? I have BPI/BDO in PH. When I checked BPI, if you want to do it online, you have to have USD account and use it to transfer to your Aus bank. Otherwise if you dont have USD account, you need to transact with a teller on a bank (which alam nio naman gaano ka-time consuming eto sa atin sa Pinas).

Though I found a workaround. I can link my PH credit card and use it to load/send money to my Wise app. Then I will just use my PH money to pay off the credit card transaction. I tried so far to send 100 AUD and the total deduction in my credit card is 103 AUD. I used BPI credit card. Balitaan ko kayo if good ang conversion (usually it is if via BPI credit card)

PS: I tried to add my BPI debit card pero di sya tinanggap ng Wise App
Hi, let me break down what I do to transfer PHP to AUD from my banks

From the Wise app, I scroll down and go to Transfer Calculator section to check what the current rate is

From the Transfer Calculator section, you can check currencies and set what you're converting from and to. In this case, PHP >> AUD. This one flips easily as well if you want to send back sa PH naman.

Once the currency set, I fill in how much I want to send or receive. So it's up to you if you have a particular figure in PHP you want to send or a particular figure you want to receive in AUD. Whichever you choose, the other currency gets automatically calculated kasama the fees. Example, as of writing, I wanna send 100k PHP, the app auto-calculates that I will receive 2698.29 AUD excluding the fees.

Hit the "Send" button.

Wise app will ask you who do you want to send this to. If you haven't already, add your bank either through PayID or direct bank details (BSB and Account number). If added na, you just need to select. Also make sure to tag your own recipient detail as yours and trusted (if it's yours lang)

Wise will then summarize the transfer for you.

The amount you'll send exactly

the amount you will receive in your recipient bank

how you're paying(sending) - for those sending from PH, only Bank or E-wallet transfer is accepted aside from Wise Balance (if you have any). This means, you can only send via Instapay (instant but only up to 50k) or PesoNet (subject to daily cutoff times but can send more than 50k at once, not sure of the limits)

the time estimates of the arrival (after Wise receives your transfer because how much time each transfer takes depend on whether you used Instapay or PesoNet)

the total fees in the currency you're sending from.

Hit Continue if you're okay with the transaction.

Select transfer reason then hit Continue.

Review the details and select "Continue to instructions"

Wise will then give you the details of where to send the money. This is unique to you. You can opt here to hit "I've made my bank transfer" or "I'll transfer my money later". If you select the first one, Wise will then show you the transaction progress and will indicate that it's waiting for your transfer to come through. Then you just wait. If you selected the latter, you'll have a pending task until you hit the "I've made my bank transfer"
Medyo may katagalan lang yung Wise to your AU bank especially pag first few transfers.

Here is how I did mine just by playing around in the Wise App

PRE-REQUISITE: Ensure you have already added PHP in your Wise App currencies

In the Wise App, select Add Money. Then select the PHP currency. Put in any amount
In the Paying with section, select Bank/ E- wallet transfer. Select Continue. From here, you would see your unique Wise account number under Wise's Bank name (Wise Pilipinas Inc.)
From your local PHP bank, use Instapay to transfer to Wise Pilipinas Inc and input your Wise account number. Transfer fee should just be PHP10. Instapay limits is 50k per day (Haven't tried Pesonet for bigger amounts)
You will receive an email from Wise to confirm that the PHP is received in your account. (Usually this takes about 10-15mins).
Once PHP is shown on your account in Wise, select PHP then select Convert. You can opt to convert instantly or wait for your desired coversion rate. Wise charges minimal fee (about 110-150 PHP for a 50k PHP transaction)
After conversion, your AUD should be updated to show your new balance.
From there, select AUD to transfer to your local Australian bank. This will require your Bank name, account number and BSB. The transfer should be instant with no cost. (I have NAB. Not sure with other bank types.)

newhorizonseeker

@mathilde9 said:

@newhorizonseeker said:

@mathilde9 said:

Uyyy! Question naman. Nag explore din kami gamitin si Singpost (Galing kasi kami Singapore din) para padala un belongings namin sa Australia. Meron kaba binayaran pa jan sa AU once na nag arrive yung box mo? Like tax, etc.? Salamat marami ^_^

@newhorizonseeker
Huy wala pa yung boxes ko. In transit pa rin haha. Balitaan kita pag nandito na. Late next week pa ETA eh. Pero ang alam ko wala na babayaran kasi personal (used) stuff ko yun. Inask ko yung nagpick up sa sg, wala daw. Malalaman natin.

Update mo kami dito! ^^ Consider din namin ito si Singpost. Maraming salamat ha!
Hellooo. My boxes just arrived today. I didn't pay anything. Although may kaunting dents mismo sa box at nabakbak yung cling wrap ko, pero okay naman yung mga epektus haha!

Nice! At least okay prin un lahat belongings. Pasok naman sa committed number of days ng arrival un box mo, wala delay? Thanks marami! ^-^

newhorizonseeker

Hello po! Meron na ba nakapag try dito na bumili ng eSim activate and purchase outside Australia? Di pa kasi kami nakakapag first entry sa AU, and plan namin sana mag hanap ng work online. I am not sure if big help un having Australian number, kaya gusto sana namin bumili eSim pero purchase online lang and activate din online.

charls059

@newhorizonseeker said:
Hello po! Meron na ba nakapag try dito na bumili ng eSim activate and purchase outside Australia? Di pa kasi kami nakakapag first entry sa AU, and plan namin sana mag hanap ng work online. I am not sure if big help un having Australian number, kaya gusto sana namin bumili eSim pero purchase online lang and activate din online.

@newhorizonseeker said:
Hello po! Meron na ba nakapag try dito na bumili ng eSim activate and purchase outside Australia? Di pa kasi kami nakakapag first entry sa AU, and plan namin sana mag hanap ng work online. I am not sure if big help un having Australian number, kaya gusto sana namin bumili eSim pero purchase online lang and activate din online.

Do you mean the esim na nabibili sa Klook? Wala kasi number un e. Last week when we were there and purchased a prepaid sim, ni-register nila ung sim namin upon purchase. If you know someone who is there in Australia, maybe you can ask them a favor to buy and register the sim for you and use it on your end to change either your Whatsapp/Viber number.

charls059

Can't seem to find the latest info. How much would it cost to send a balikbayan box from PH to AUS? Is it charged by box or by weight? Kindly recommend the courier you have used and how long does it take? Thank you!

DBCooper

@charls059 said:
Can't seem to find the latest info. How much would it cost to send a balikbayan box from PH to AUS? Is it charged by box or by weight? Kindly recommend the courier you have used and how long does it take? Thank you!

I've been all around the internet for this brother, so I'll save you the hassle.

There's no bulk/container shipping of non-commercial items from PH to AU. Everything has to go through air cargo (baikbayan) box.
LBC quoted me Php 50K for their 25kg box.
DHL quoted me around Php 14K for the first 25kg.

I ended up with DHL of course, they charged by weight after 25kg.

So I paid around Php 19K for 29.5kg of personal items. Not including customs duties which they compute after landing in AU, which fortunately is A$0.00 for my items.

They also explicitly reminded that no fake clothes/shoes/bags allowed, and to remove batteries from electronics.

DBCooper

@charls059 said:
Can't seem to find the latest info. How much would it cost to send a balikbayan box from PH to AUS? Is it charged by box or by weight? Kindly recommend the courier you have used and how long does it take? Thank you!

Forgot to mention, it took 5 days for the box to arrive in AU.

charls059

@DBCooper said:

@charls059 said:
Can't seem to find the latest info. How much would it cost to send a balikbayan box from PH to AUS? Is it charged by box or by weight? Kindly recommend the courier you have used and how long does it take? Thank you!
I've been all around the internet for this brother, so I'll save you the hassle.

There's no bulk/container shipping of non-commercial items from PH to AU. Everything has to go through air cargo (baikbayan) box.

LBC quoted me Php 50K for their 25kg box.

DHL quoted me around Php 14K for the first 25kg.
I ended up with DHL of course, they charged by weight after 25kg.
So I paid around Php 19K for 29.5kg of personal items. Not including customs duties which they compute after landing in AU, which fortunately is A$0.00 for my items.
They also explicitly reminded that no fake clothes/shoes/bags allowed, and to remove batteries from electronics.

Wow ang mahal pala! parang mas sulit pang mag biyahe ng CebPac and bring it on myself

mathilde9

@newhorizonseeker said:
Nice! At least okay prin un lahat belongings. Pasok naman sa committed number of days ng arrival un box mo, wala delay? Thanks marami! ^-^

2days syang delayed yata kasi nag uulan din nung time na yun.

DBCooper

Hey everyone, for those who made the big move recently (like in the last 2-3 months), how is your job hunting so far?

I'm in data analytics, and I've been all around Seek, LinkedIn, Indeed, Employment Hero, company, city council and school careers pages, volunteer pages and sent out close to 100 CVs with cover letter, all tailor-fitted and ATS formatted (with some help from AI) and all I got are:

• 2 HR interviews

• Another 1 that got to technical interview stage

• 2 initial assessment tests that didn't proceed to anything

• 2 group interviews for volunteering, and

• 1 scam job post.

Only 1 volunteer role has came back (and the scam job post that I already blocked). A lot are saying that data jobs are easy to get, but i'm finding it hard to break into, even the entry levels.

I've now stopped mass applying and really select which jobs to apply to, and started skilling up on software that I keep seeing in the job ads. Some also say that it's going to pick up at the start of fiscal year and after term break. I'm only getting the rejection emails now for jobs that I applied last month.

How are you holding up? How did you overcome this challenge? (Naghahanap lang ako ng karamay, hehe 😃)

mathilde9

@DBCooper said:
Hey everyone, for those who made the big move recently (like in the last 2-3 months), how is your job hunting so far?

I'm in data analytics, and I've been all around Seek, LinkedIn, Indeed, Employment Hero, company, city council and school careers pages, volunteer pages and sent out close to 100 CVs with cover letter, all tailor-fitted and ATS formatted (with some help from AI) and all I got are:
• 2 HR interviews
• Another 1 that got to technical interview stage
• 2 initial assessment tests that didn't proceed to anything
• 2 group interviews for volunteering, and
• 1 scam job post.
Only 1 volunteer role has came back (and the scam job post that I already blocked). A lot are saying that data jobs are easy to get, but i'm finding it hard to break into, even the entry levels.
I've now stopped mass applying and really select which jobs to apply to, and started skilling up on software that I keep seeing in the job ads. Some also say that it's going to pick up at the start of fiscal year and after term break. I'm only getting the rejection emails now for jobs that I applied last month.
How are you holding up? How did you overcome this challenge? (Naghahanap lang ako ng karamay, hehe 😃)
Hii! Are you already onshore?
Sa case ko, I tried to apply for 2 to 3 jobs per week na fit talaga sa IT experience ko and desirable yung work terms (hybrid and benefits). So far 2 pa lang yung tumawag for HR interview and 1 technical. Both did not proceed because there were better candidates daw (i supposed local). Eh wala ganon talaga haha nugagawen di ba.

While waiting, I got a casual job at a cafe (as in lumapit ako sa staff after ko kumain mismo dun and nagtanong if they were still hiring haha). Been honest na wala akong alam about F&B at wala nga akong resume na dala haha. But teachable naman kako ako. I got a few hrs training next day then started work the following week. This is something new for me (surprisingly fun) and at the same time better than maubos yung savings ko. The rate for me is okay, between 30-34aud/hr. 4-day work week. This pays my car insurances and little bit of my existing financial obligations. Natry mo na ba mag apply sa mga ganito?

Mahigpit ang competition sa IT job market as expected pero di ko inexpect na ganito kahigpit haha. I was prepared to survive 6months without work, but I felt it's kulang. So sa mga nagbabalak ng big move esp those bringing their fam with them, ipon malala. Maswerte talaga yung mga nakakuha ng job sa fields nila while offshore. Ayun lang.

newhorizonseeker

@mathilde9 said:

@DBCooper said:
Hey everyone, for those who made the big move recently (like in the last 2-3 months), how is your job hunting so far?

I'm in data analytics, and I've been all around Seek, LinkedIn, Indeed, Employment Hero, company, city council and school careers pages, volunteer pages and sent out close to 100 CVs with cover letter, all tailor-fitted and ATS formatted (with some help from AI) and all I got are:

• 2 HR interviews
• Another 1 that got to technical interview stage
• 2 initial assessment tests that didn't proceed to anything
• 2 group interviews for volunteering, and
• 1 scam job post.

Only 1 volunteer role has came back (and the scam job post that I already blocked). A lot are saying that data jobs are easy to get, but i'm finding it hard to break into, even the entry levels.

I've now stopped mass applying and really select which jobs to apply to, and started skilling up on software that I keep seeing in the job ads. Some also say that it's going to pick up at the start of fiscal year and after term break. I'm only getting the rejection emails now for jobs that I applied last month.

How are you holding up? How did you overcome this challenge? (Naghahanap lang ako ng karamay, hehe 😃)

Hii! Are you already onshore?
Sa case ko, I tried to apply for 2 to 3 jobs per week na fit talaga sa IT experience ko and desirable yung work terms (hybrid and benefits). So far 2 pa lang yung tumawag for HR interview and 1 technical. Both did not proceed because there were better candidates daw (i supposed local). Eh wala ganon talaga haha nugagawen di ba.
While waiting, I got a casual job at a cafe (as in lumapit ako sa staff after ko kumain mismo dun and nagtanong if they were still hiring haha). Been honest na wala akong alam about F&B at wala nga akong resume na dala haha. But teachable naman kako ako. I got a few hrs training next day then started work the following week. This is something new for me (surprisingly fun) and at the same time better than maubos yung savings ko. The rate for me is okay, between 30-34aud/hr. 4-day work week. This pays my car insurances and little bit of my existing financial obligations. Natry mo na ba mag apply sa mga ganito?
Mahigpit ang competition sa IT job market as expected pero di ko inexpect na ganito kahigpit haha. I was prepared to survive 6months without work, but I felt it's kulang. So sa mga nagbabalak ng big move esp those bringing their fam with them, ipon malala. Maswerte talaga yung mga nakakuha ng job sa fields nila while offshore. Ayun lang.

Hope its ok to ask, nag try kaba mag apply before ka mag big move? Or mas effective din talaga maka arrive muna jan then hanap work? Agree, hirap din talaga hanap nowadays. Kami offshore parin, nag try din luck. Naisip nga namin minsan baka di natawag kasi di pa kami naka Australia number 😀 Although we indicated naman sa cover letter na may visa kami and eligible to work. Naiinip narin kami pero hirap mag move as a fam din ng wala job isa samin 🙏 Hope will fall into places satin lahat dito! 🙏🙏🙏🙏

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