VISA EXTENSION - MALAYSIA EXIT (Singapore)

My online extension was about to expire on October 14, 2011. So, I needed to risk everything since I was already waiting for my interview result. I had my online extension and I had one (1) option left - to exit or what they say, the U-turn technique. The choice where to exit is still a question. I had been reading forums and it scared me on where to go but of course not to go back to Philippines. Finally, I decided to go to Malaysia.

"U-Turn - this is the common term for the technique to extend a social visit pass. It is by going to a nearby country to exit for a few hours or days and going back to the country of origin hereafter."

Some said that I have to stay there for a maximum of five (5) days and some said, hours stay was already enough. But then, If you think about it, everything was so uncertain. Everything was by luck because  the outcome will depend on the Immigration officers.

I only had limited bucks in my pocket, so I decided to exit to Malaysia.

What did I bring during my exit?

1) Passport 

2) Return Ticket - My exit date to Malaysia was October 10, 2010 and my return ticket was dated October 13, 2010. You should get a real one (though it cost a lot) because some officers might verify your tickets online.

3) Friend - My PR friend accompanied me during my exit to Malaysia. She's a permanent resident already who just came from a training in the United States. She celebrated her birthday the day after my exit so we got a lot of reasons to tell the immigration officers. 

4) Full-packed reason why you want to go Malaysia. We went there to celebrate my friend's birthday, to do shopping for stuffs and presents to my family in the Philippines.

It was 10-10-10 and was my lucky day. I survived all the questions of the immigration officers. It was a nerve wrecking experience but thank God, I passed it.

continuation: 

VISA EXTENSION - MALAYSIA EXIT (Singapore) - Whats and Hows Answered

HAIR REBONDING (Singapore)

For us women, to look great is always a dilemma especially if we are abroad and everything seems to be expensive as compared to the prices in the Philippines. Where to have my hair rebonded  became my concern here in Singapore because my hair was unmanageable. Thanks to our Singaporean colleague who referred us to this very nice lady named, Shirley, who will do the rebonding for us.

To entertain us - Magazines!

This is Shirley and  my friend Yen.

Look at how Shirley cuts Yen's hair! 

Closer look! 

A pose with Shirley's assistant, Pretty Fay. 

Promise, you will not get bored with it. Pretty Fay, can tell you stories and will even give you a complimentary bubble tea. 

The result is fantastic! The secret, Shirley is using the Japanese cream plus her expertise in doing this job for almost twenty (20) years. How much did she charge us for the hair rebonding? Would you believe? It's only SG $150 for my hair up to the level of my hips plus the haircut. We'll I thought everything is expensive here in Singapore but as long as you have your friends, you can get it at the best price.

I will be posting my pictures  soon..

For those who are interested, here are the details: 

HAIR by SHIRLEY

Mobile No. +65 8225 4123
Block 84 Bedok North, Street 4. #01-61
Singapore (460084)
**Take MRT to Bedok Station / bus interchange and take Bus 14.

This is it! Shirley's shop

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HOW TO FIND A JOB IN SINGAPORE?

Finding a job in Singapore is not an easy thing to do.  Gear up yourself with hardwork and perseverance plus  the divine intervention and you will be fine.

I started applying online for the jobs that fit my qualifications when I was still in the Philippines and that was two (2) months ago before my departure. I did it religiously. Until my most awaited day came, August 14, 2010, my departure date to Singapore but sad to say, nobody contacted me for an interview.   

Looking  for a job in Singapore is more of online application, and it is seldom to do walk in application since they will require you also to apply online. What I did, I continued applying online; I also asked my friends about job openings; I even tried to go to employment agencies and paid some registration fees for them to look for a job for me; I went to some companies and directly submitted my resume; and I also looked for some job openings from the newspaper called The Straits Times. 

One of my friends suggested me, when applying online it should be in the morning and you should watch out also for the new job postings so that your resume will be the first one in the list of employers. You can try the following websites in applying for a job in Singapore, I believe there are more but you can try these first:

www.monster.com

www.st701.com

www.jobsdb.com.sg

www.jobstreet.com.sg
www.jobcentral.com.sg

www.sgrecruiters.com

The Straits Times is also one of the best sources.  You can buy the Wednesday and Saturday issue because there are a lot of jobs postings in the Classified ads. You can try cold calling to companies in the newspaper and ask them first if they are hiring foreigners so that you can filter which company to apply.  

Applying for a job in Singapore through an employment agency is also possible. They will look for job for you based in their listings; and they will help you in processing of your working permit. The only thing is you have to pay them, some also offered installment payment.  There are a lot of things you need to discover. Just BE CAREFUL. 

You may visit this link to check the legitimacy of the company:

https://www.psi.gov.sg/NASApp/tmf/TMFServlet?app=RCB-BIZFILE-LOGIN-1B

GOOD LUCK!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY SINGAPORE (August 15, 2011)

I keep on SURVIVING SINGAPORE especially my job. whueew! 

I never celebrated my Anniversary on the that day but SOON. :) and then I have here my last year's looks.. I'm still figuring it out on what are the changes..

Oh lala..

VISA EXTENSION ONLINE (Singapore)

It was August 15, 2010 when I arrived in Singapore.  My day 1 of my 30 days visa had just started. As the days passed by, I was already stressed to think that my social visit pass will be expiring soon on September 14, 2010. This was just one of the challenges I encountered here in Singapore. Since, I did not have the Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate (EPEC) because I was rejected, so I needed to extend my visa.

As to what I understand it, EPEC will allow foreigners to stay in Singapore for 1 year to look for a job. It is a 1-year Social Visit Pass that they will give you.  This will be issued only once and cannot be renewed. For more details about the EPEC and application, you may visit Ministry of  Manpower’s website, https://epec.mom.gov.sg/epec/index.do . 

How did I extend my Social Visit Pass?

There were two options for me to extend my stay: to exit to Malaysia or Indonesia or to apply for online extension (e-extend). I chose the latter because for me this was the safest and fastest but of course I could not tell if it was approve or rejected until such time that I receive my result. It was successful.

Based on my experience, here are the things that you need to know for your Social Visit Pass extension:

1. Keep your passport as you will need it at all times. Your passport details are necessary in the application.
2. When I applied my extension, I followed the sequence on how my name was written in my passport.
3. When I arrived in Singapore, I filled in the Disembarkation Card and the IO attached it to my passport. Never lose this one as this is needed for the extension. 
4. I omitted the dash when I wrote the disembarkation card number  in the online application:  1234567890 instead of 123-456-789-0.
5. My Social Visit Pass or Short Term Visit Pass expiry was on September 14, 2010 so, I applied on September 5, 2010 for me to have extra time if my application will be rejected.
6. When I applied I also followed the peak-hour and off-peak-hour. You can find it in the website.
7. After it was approved, I paid $30 using my credit card. 

For further details, you may visit http://www.ica.gov.sg/ .

Good luck!

**Please note that this post is based on my past experience in applying for the extension of my Social Visit Pass. Please take this as a guide only. This does not guarantee that all applications will be successful because all will depend on the Immigration’s decision.  Thank you.