Required Documents in getting your family to Qatar

Qatar is one of the richest countries in the middle east, thus a lot of people are trying to get here. Expats who belong to a good salary bracket even brings their family here. In my opinion, bringing the family here won't be that hard if you have complete documents ready for checking. 

Photo taken at Corniche, Doha Qatar
2014 © nix|glg

I believe there are different kinds of requirements depending on what kind of visa you're going to apply for your family. Some applies business visa for their family just to get here quickly. However that will be too risky; yes you may easily get the business visa but the problem will be on the side of your relative coming here.

This applies especially to filipino expats that are planning to take their family or those who wants to come here. Always take into consideration the situation we have in the philippine immigration. It's not easy to get pass through the philippine immigration, especially when you're not a registered overseas filipino worker. 

My mother and I are working here, but sometimes work can be too hard when you don't see yourself growing or improving in your company. Somehow, transferring to other company crossed my mind. The problem is, if I resigned, the company is going to cancel me. I can come back under my mother's visa and as advised by a friend, the following are the required documents that I should prepare:

1. Attested copy of NSO birth certificate proving our relationship

2. Attested copy of Marriage certificate of my mother and father

3. Valid passport

Documents that she needs to prepare:

1. Valid Qatar ID/ Iqama copy

2. Valid passport copy

3. NOC from the company stating that they don't have any objection on my mother sponsoring me to come to Qatar

4. Certificate of employment

5. Salary certificate stating her monthly salary

6. Contract documents from the house she's renting

7. And most especially the complete filled up form

You can download the form HERE and visit the government office that works on visa processing to get more details regarding this. I haven't tried applying visa for any relative so I cannot really give a concrete advise on the process, but I hope the above mentioned can help. 

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Get pass through Philippine Immigration

The last time I posted an article, it was about getting your documents attested in the Qatar embassy, and now I am writing another article while sitting in my bed on a Friday night here in Qatar.

My mom has been working here for almost 20 years now, just like any other filipino bread winner, I went here for the purpose of earning a living. I was lucky enough to receive a call from an Interior design company here in Qatar while in the Philippines; eager to help, I grabbed the opportunity. I fixed all my papers as fast as I could, I travelled Baguio-Tarlac-Manila just to make sure that my documents will be prepared as soon as possible.

The company wants me to start the soonest possible time, so I didn't waste time. I processed my own paper and didn't go to any agency as per HR's instructions. According to her, it will take me too much time registering as OFW as well as them spending a lot of money.

Before they process my working visa, they required supporting documents like OTR, Diploma, and other supporting documents that will be needed to prove that I am entitled the draftsman working visa.  I submitted all the documents they required and searched for some tips on how long a visa can take to be released. Based on my research, it may take 2 weeks to more than one month depending on the requirements you gave them or how your HR processed your papers; well i'm lucky enough to get my visa after 3 days of submitting my documents.

As soon as my working visa was released, I booked a flight to singapore, why?

We all know that we cannot get out of the Philippine immigration if we're carrying a working visa without registering in POEA. So the fastest way is to go out as a tourist. I booked a tour package to singapore to get pass through our immigration.

Is it easy to get pass through immigration?

Listed below are the few possible questions an Immigration officer might ask you:

1. Where's your destination?
2. What's the purpose of your travel?
3. Do you have any friends with you?
4. Have you experienced traveling locally? (just incase it's your first time for an out of the country)
5. What's your work?

Since it's my first time to travel out of the country, the IO immediately gave me a form to fill up and have an interview with other IO's. They are going to ask you a lot of things to confirm if you're lying regarding your travel purposes. The main reason they off-load a passenger is they don't want us to end up miserable in other country especially when we're going out without being registered as an ofw because if something happen to us outside the country we will not get anything from the government as they said.

Anyhow, determined as I am, I just told them i'm going to singapore for tourism purposes since I just graduated 3 months from that time. You really cannot hide the feeling of nervousness once you're already speaking face to face with an immigration officer, my hands are as cold as ice but I tried my best to hide it.

TIPS:

1. They will surely ask you if you're employed, so bring a company ID as proof that you have a work and that you're surely coming back.

2. Ask for a leave form from the company or a proof that you didn't resign from work.

3. If you're planning to go out of the country to look for work and you didn't get to process your papers in the POEA, do not file a resignation letter yet.


I arrived 4 a.m. on the 19th of august 2014 in Hamad International Airport. :) Started working the following day and now have a legal Qatar residence ID and a registered OFW. (after registering in OWWA here in Qatar)

Get your documents attested in the Qatar Embassy HERE.

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Getting your documents attested in the Qatar Embassy

Where is the Philippine Qatar Embassy located? 

If you're planning to go to Qatar, it is a requirement that you have your documents authenticated or attested in their embassy here in the Philippines. Just recently, the embassy has changed location; they can now be found at #4 Santiago street lot 6, Paseo De Magallanes, Magallanes village Makati city.  A lot of applicants are still going to the old building which is located in Mckinley hill, Fort Bonifacio, only to find out that the embassy has transferred location. 

In front of the Qatar Embassy 

( Note: The embassy entertains your visa stamping and document attestation concerns at the back of their building.)

So, how do we get there from the province like Tarlac, Baguio, Nueva Ecija and the like?

People from the province are sometimes having a hard time locating the embassy. It is not easy to travel 3 to 8 hours just to get there in time. As for me whose from Tarlac, I rode a bus bound for Pasay at 4:00 in the morning just to arrive in Cubao at around 6:00. You wouldn't want to get in a heavy traffic so it's better to wait for 3 more hours for the embassy to open. You can tell the conductor to drop you off in evangelista st., from there you will notice an overpass that will lead you to the Paseo De Magallanes village. 

What's the best time to go?

If you're asking what will be the best time to go there, it will be around 7:00 am. It's okay to arrive around 8:00 am but you'll surely be listed on the 35th onward and that would be a little risky since there is a cut off on the 50th person (this may depend on their mood).

What are the requirements that you should bring to avoid going back?

Processing your documents in the Qatari embassy isn't that hard; unless you don't follow instructions which they are very strict of. It is better to come prepared than to go home again and fix your requirements. Below are some of the requirements that may help you save time:

(Just read and check carefully the requirements shown on the pictures. I didn't get the chance to capture them properly because when we went there it's raining.)

Attestation requirements for Diploma and OTR:

1. Original copy of your CHED and DFA Authenticated (red ribbon) diploma/otr.
2. Prepare two copies each in an a4 size coupon bond. 
3. No need to photocopy the front page (blue cover) because they will only get the photocopied otr and diploma.
4. Bring your credit or debit card with MASTER & VISA LOGO. I repeat, bring only credit or debit card with MASTER & VISA LOGO. The embassy is not accepting cash payments nor card payments that doesn't have master/visa logo. They are very strict about this. In the past few years I think they allow riding in with other applicants to pay your attestation fee; but now, only first degree relative can let the applicant to use their card (Father/Mother, Daughter/Son).
5. If you're using your father's card, he should also be present and have with him at least 2 valid ID's. 
6. Don't forget to bring also your valid ID's just in case they look for it.
7. If you're not the applicant, you should bring an authorization letter bearing his/her signature. Bring with you at least 2 valid ID's of the applicant and of course your own ID's.

After you paid for the attestation fee, they will advise you to come back after 3 days from the day of filing. Again, don't forget to bring valid ID's and authorization letter (if you're not the applicant). Bring with you the receipt they gave you in the cashier. Filing of documents are only entertained in the morning, getting of attested documents are scheduled in the afternoon. 

A sample of visa and mastercard logo that should be found in your card for the embassy to accept it
(photo credit: http://www.picturesnew.com/media/images/0e3db50375.jpg)

There is also a nearby East West bank where you can apply for a card but take note, it takes 24hours to activate that card.

You should see this at the back of your document; this means that your papers are already attested/authenticated by the Qatar embassy.

Check out: Getting an NBI clearance

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How to get an NBI clearance

Applying for a job can be tough at times. Aside from the pressure of getting hired, securing the company’s requirements is stressful. Most of the time, NBI or Police clearances are the most sought after. This is for the company to check if your background is clean, especially when you’re applying abroad.

What are the requirements in getting an NBI clearance?

You should not go there until you have a complete list of requirements on hand. First of all, it is stressful to fall in line and be ignored because you are not bringing the right sets of requirements. I am telling you, a lot of people are eager to find work and all of the company they are applying for requires an NBI clearance whether it is local hiring or abroad, so be ready to face a very long line of people waiting for their turn. If you are in manila, it is much better if you go to the National Bureau of Investigation as early as 5:00 AM (that’s not exaggerating). You can check on the branches nearest you online; as for my case, I got my NBI clearance here in Baguio City. I am fortunate to have it in a smooth processing.  Below are the things that you may bring to get an NBI clearance:

I.D’s

Postal I.D,

School I.D.,

Driver’s License,

Voter’s I.D.,

Voter’s Certificate,

Passport,

Birth certificate (NSO copy)

PRC license

SSS I.D.,

Senior citizen I.D.

or any kind of I.D. issued by the government. Bring at least two.

Pen- You wouldn't want other people get annoyed of you borrowing pens from them because they also have forms to fill up.

Envelope- No one knows if it is to rain, so be ready to have something to put your documents with. It is also better if your documents are arrange in such a way that it will not be crumpled or folded.

Money- Nothing in this world is free. You will be paying 115 Php for the printing and other services.

Patience- Bring a lot of patience!

When the office finally opens, people who already have their forms filled up are already allowed to enter the premises. If you still don’t have a form, ask the attendant for one and state your purpose. NBI clearance for abroad is different from the NBI clearance used for getting hired locally. Fill up all the information needed in the form.

Tips:

Heights should be in centimeters, so if you don’t want to panic computing on the spot prepare your height in cm ahead.

1 foot = 30.48 cm

Weights should be in Kg,

1 pound = 0.45 kg

After filling up the information needed in the form, you will be guided to the encoding area where the information listed on your form will be encoded in their computers. Double check all the information you wrote in the form, you wouldn't want to have a problem on misspelled names and other data. After this, the attendant will ask you to proceed in the bio-metrics area. Again, you will be ask to check on the information you gave; your finger prints will be later on scanned. Right after scanning, the computer will tell if you are cleared or not.

Most of the times, getting NBI clearance are stressful because of the common names. If your name is identical with other people who have bad records, you will have to wait for days to get your clearance. However, if you’re fortunate enough to have a unique identification, you can get your printed NBI clearance within that day.



NOTE: If you're planning to go to Qatar Embassy, this might be helpful.

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Online Job Application

The year 2000 marks a different kind of setup in the human world. Technologies arise leading to a more virtual activity. It did not even cross our minds that there can be virtual hugs and kisses but yeah, there are already a lot of virtual activities that can happen over the virtual world of internet; including job applications.

It is already known to us that most of the companies in different parts of the world are now hiring online. They just get to post job vacancies in some websites that cater this kind of need and the job hunters patiently searching for jobs that they may qualify. 

Is online job application proven and tested?

When it comes to the feasibility of applying for a job vacancy online, yes it is indeed possible. First of all, there are already a lot of job application sites over the internet where everyone can search and apply; below are some websites that you can visit for job hunting:

1. Bayt.com
2. Indeed.com
3. Jobrapido.com
4. Gulftalent.com
5. Workabroad.ph

These websites features job listing posted by companies that are in need of staff in different kind of fields whether it be medical, engineering, architectural, management, etc. All you need to do is visit them and check if you're qualified of the job. Some requirements by the company are already posted, so you can send them your resumes directly or through the sites they used.

Bayt.com for instance is a site where companies can post job vacancies. When you register, the site will provide you a space for displaying your skills, talents, and attainments that can serve as a prepared resume whenever companies visit your profile. Aside from the online resume, the site provides you the freedom to attach your own resume in pdf format. In this way you can give the hiring managers an overview of your detailed capabilities and certificates. If you are a designer or is working in the field of art, you will need to provide a portfolio of your previous works; this is a plus when applying for a job. Portfolios can be made online too if the job site does not provide the job hunters to attach their portfolio file. You can try different sites that offers a space for you to showcase your skills. I am a designer so I tried using different sites to serve as my portfolio; but I later settled with Behance. It is actually another job hunting site where the companies are mostly based in the US. I use this kind of sites to show the hiring managers what they can expect from me and the kind of work I can provide them.

Just a reminder, you are not the sole job applicant in their job vacancy, so just like any other regular application you should be patient in waiting for your application result; but nonetheless, it is possible. You just have to try to send resumes to companies that you think qualifies you. Based on my experience, it is better to check possible vacancies regularly and send resumes patiently; it’s just plain competency and luck. If the company likes your work and skills, they will surely call you.

In my case, I waited for months trying to apply online. Just when I thought that what I am doing is helpless, I received a call from a company that I can’t even remember I applied for (apparently because I send resumes to almost all of the job vacancies that I think fits me). One thing leads to another, the HR informed me that I will be having an online interview with the manager. After the interview, they sent me a written and a drawing test to see my capabilities. Later that week, I received a congratulatory email informing that I passed the tests. So to all job hunters out there, there’s nothing wrong trying your luck applying online!

Tips:

1. Update your resumes regularly- You would want your résumé to contain all the works and achievements you've done from the previous months; this can be added to your job experience.
2. Don’t forget to write a cover letter- It will be a polite move to start your application with a cover letter stating your objectives and skills. This serves as a brief summary about yourself. 
3. List down all your skills and talents- You may want to elevate yourself over the other candidates. You can do this by giving the hiring manager an overview of the skills you have; if possible, back this up with a certificate.
4. Let them know what you can do for the company- These companies are looking for competent people where they can have a beneficial relationship with. Clearly, they prefer someone who can do anything for the company, someone they can call as jack of all trades. 
5. If possible, include certificates and other achievements significant to the job posting

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