27 October 2026 · Bureau of Immigration

Five reasons a 9G file is refused at the counter

The 9(g) visa fails on documents, not on the visa itself. The Bureau of Immigration publishes the checklist it screens against, and almost every refusal at the counter traces to one of its numbered items.

The Bureau of Immigration publishes a documentary checklist for the 9(g) visa issued under IATF Resolution No. 131-A. It runs to a single page. Most files that fail at the counter fail against one of its numbered items, and every one of those failures is visible before the folder is submitted.

1. A General Information Sheet from last year

Item 6 asks for the General Information Sheet for the current year, stamped received by the SEC, together with the SEC certificate of registration and the articles of incorporation. A stamped copy from the previous year is a different document and does not satisfy the item. For a single proprietorship the checklist asks instead for the DTI certificate of registration of the business name and the Mayor's Permit, and a permit that has lapsed fails in the same way.

2. An income tax return without proof of payment

Item 5 requires the petitioner's latest Income Tax Return "with the corresponding proof of payment", and then lists what counts as that proof: the official receipt, the bank teller's validation slip, the eFPS payment details print-out, or other similar evidence. The return on its own is half the requirement. The usual error is attaching the filing confirmation instead of the payment record.

3. An AEP with no publication behind it

Item 7 requires the Alien Employment Permit issued by DOLE and the actual publication of the approved permit, or a Certificate of Publication issued by the publisher. Holding the AEP is not proof that the labour market test was run. The publication must appear at least 15 days before filing, and the file must be lodged within 45 days of it, so a folder assembled late can carry a publication that has already expired. The permit itself is ₱6,000 for one year at DOLE.

4. A headcount certification that is not notarised

Item 8 asks for a notarised certification of the number of foreign and Filipino employees of the petitioning company. General instruction 4 states the rule without qualification: all sworn statements or affidavits must be original and duly notarized. A signed internal memorandum, or a certification notarised after the filing date, does not substitute for it.

5. Too little authorised stay left at assessment

The visa is converted from the status the applicant already holds, so the passport must carry enough remaining stay for the Bureau to assess fees and issue the order. A passport with under 30 days of authorised stay left at the time fees are assessed is refused, and the stay has to be extended first. This is the failure that is cheapest to see in advance and the most expensive to find at the window.

Two errors of assembly

General instruction 3 requires the documents to be arranged in the order of the checklist and compiled in a legal size folder, 8.5 by 14 inches. Instruction 2 requires the Consolidated General Application Form in two original copies, one for the visa file and one for the ACR I-Card folder submitted separately. A file that is complete but out of order is returned for recompilation, and the queue position is lost.

What a refused or lapsed file costs

• Conversion fee, one year, employer outside the top 1,000 corporations: ₱10,130.
• Two years: ₱17,170. Three years: ₱24,210.
• ACR I-Card, charged in dollars: US$50 for one year.
• Alien Employment Permit at DOLE: ₱6,000, paid before any Bureau filing.
• A publication that expires is bought a second time, at the publisher's rate.

The visa is co-terminus with the AEP, so the permit date governs the file. Where the permit lapses, the Bureau issues a new conversion rather than a renewal, and the ₱10,130 is paid again instead of an extension fee. The refused folder is the cheaper outcome by a wide margin.

The checklist carries one note that explains the pattern: submission of additional supporting documents may be required by the Bureau for further verification and evaluation. That is not a reason to file thin. It is a reason to file in the order the Bureau reads.