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December and January being the peak season for travel for many
Filipinos, may I share with you the following email sent by
classmates of mine living in the United States.
The first incident involves a Filipino-American
going to the Philippines as a balikbayan with plenty of padala
money. The second involves a Filipino tourist entering the US with
plenty of pirated DVDs. Both were checked by US Customs and were
found to have violated certain US laws.
A Filipino-American citizen flying to the
Philippines for vacation was randomly checked by an Airport
Immigration agent while she was checking in her baggage and going
through the X-ray machine.
She was told to open all the envelops inside her
carry-on Coach bag. Customs found 10 envelops addressed to different
people in the Philippines.When all the envelops were opened, a total
of $11,000 in cash was discovered. Customs asked the traveler if she
knew the contents of the envelop. She said no, because all the
envelops were just “padala” and the senders didn’t tell her
whether or not there was money inside.
Immigration agents showed her the policy and
guidance stating that it is illegal to import and export over
$10,000 in any Asian country to prevent the possibility of
supporting terrorism. She was fined $500, her name was “red
labeled” by Immigration (means every time she enters and exits the
airport, she will be subject to 100 percent search). She was held
for almost five hours and nearly missed her flight to the
Philippines.
The lesson learned is before you accept any “padala,”
make sure the envelops are open and you physically see their
contents. Better else, don’t accept any padala.
In the second case, Filipino tourists were
entering the US onboard Northwest 72 to Detroit. They were searched.
The search yielded some 80 compact discs, 40 empty DVD jackets, and
20 DVDs.
Since the travelers were not American citizens,
their visas were canceled and they returned to the Philippines. If
they had been Americans, they could have been subject to arrest and
criminal prosecution in addition to civil fines and penalties.
“Please remember even ONE pirated item can
jeopardize your trip,” warned my classmate in his e-mail to me.
Also, he says, the fingerprinting system has
successfully been instituted in all port of entries. He suggests you
bring extra identification cards in addition to your passport to
facilitate your entry through US Immigration.
Not only pirated VCDs/DVDs are on the hot or
watch list. Customs officials are also looking into fake bags like
Louis Vuitton and Coach as well as pirated books.
The American Association of Publishers (AAP) has
alerted US Customs on pirated books. This information was given to
my informant by Patricia Judd of the AAP.
Please warn all nursing graduates who plan to
take the NCLEX and CGF exams in the States not to bring in these
pirated books because there will be a penalty of automatic
deportation as violation of intellectual property rights.
Trivia: When sending Christmas and New Year’s
greetings by text, please don’t forget to state your name at the
end of the greeting. Don’t presume the recipient knows who your
are or remembers your number.
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Puregold has opened a branch at the Agora, in
front of the San Juan city hall. There are many checkout counters
but processing is slow and laborious. Baggage boys are taken in as
trainees working without pay for six days before being hired (if at
all). One good thing, the boys are not allowed to accept tips when
they carry your grocery bags to your car.
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If you are planning to get a credit card, avoid
the Metrobank Visa or Mastercard. They are so strict to the point
your card becomes a tool of harassment. Even if you have a liberal
credit limit, chances are you will be declined when making a
purchase if traveling abroad or even buying items locally. Three
times while buying magazines worth less than P1,000 at the EDSA
Shang book shop, my Metrobank card failed me. Also, why does
Metrobank employ a foreigner as its credit card company president?
Cannot a Filipino do that kind of job?
biznewsasia@gmail.com
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