Three routes.One honest comparison
SRRV Courtesy, SRRV Classic, and the 13A marriage visa, side by side. A firm that sells only one of them will only tell you about one. Set your profile and read the trade-offs yourself.
The short answer
Which SRRV route is right for me?
For US veterans, SRRV Courtesy is the low-deposit route, turning on a DD-214 and a lifetime pension currently being received; veterans under that line, and civilians, fit SRRV Classic by age and pension income. The 13A is a separate Bureau of Immigration marriage visa, an option only if you are married to a Philippine citizen. The matrix below puts all three side by side, and we screen your documents before you commit.
At a glance
Two agencies, three routes
Two of these routes are PRA retirement visas, and one is not. SRRV Courtesy and SRRV Classic are both run by the Philippine Retirement Authority and built on a refundable bank deposit. The Non-Quota Immigrant Visa by Marriage, the 13A, is the Bureau of Immigration’s residency route for foreigners with a valid marriage to a Philippine citizen, and it has no SRRV deposit at all. A married US veteran often qualifies for more than one, and the right answer turns on money, timeline, and how much administration you want in your life, not on which product a website happens to sell.
SRRV Courtesy
The veteran route
A DD-214 with honorable discharge plus a lifetime pension of at least $1,000 per month, currently being received. The low-deposit special category.
$1,500
Visa deposit, 50 or older
SRRV Classic
The general route
By age and pension income, for anyone who does not fit a special category. Pensioner and non-pensioner rates, age 40 and up.
$15,000 to $50,000
Visa deposit range
13A by marriage
The marriage visa
The Bureau of Immigration’s route for foreigners married to a Philippine citizen. No SRRV deposit, a probationary year, and annual reporting.
No deposit
Bureau of Immigration, not PRA
PRA figures verified June 18, 2026Sources
The decision matrix
Set your profile and the matrix highlights your likely best-fit route. All three stay side by side, so you can read the trade-offs in deposits, fees, obligations, and timeline for yourself. Veterans who want the route walked end to end can read the complete veteran SRRV guide.
Your likely best fit
SRRV Courtesy is the likely best fit
With a DD-214 and a lifetime pension of at least $1,000 per month currently being received, the low-deposit Courtesy route fits, subject to PRA document review. A pension that has not started paying does not count toward the gate yet.
Subject to PRA and Bureau of Immigration review. We screen before you commit.
SRRV Courtesy
The low-deposit veteran route
Your best fit
- Who it is for
- The special-category route. For US veterans the military track works from a DD-214 with honorable discharge plus a lifetime pension of at least $1,000 per month, currently being received. PRA determines qualification case by case.
- Refundable deposit
- $1,500 at 50 or older; $3,000 to $6,000 at 40 to 49. Held at a PRA-accredited bank in your name and returned on visa cancellation per PRA rules.
- Government fees
- $1,500 PRA processing fee, and a $100 PRA annual fee covering the principal plus two dependents.
- Military proof
- DD-214 with honorable discharge, the military service record PRA works from. Retirement orders are not a separate document class; PRA may request more.
- Pension test
- Military track: a lifetime pension of at least $1,000 per month, currently being received, proven by DFAS or VA benefit letters, apostilled. A pension that has not started paying does not count yet.
- Document load
- Heavier on the veteran side: DD-214 and apostilled DFAS or VA pension proof, alongside the standard PRA medical, clearances, and bank steps.
- Status granted
- Permanent residency on approval, indefinite stay, multiple entry, exempt from Bureau of Immigration annual reporting and the ACR I-Card.
- Planning timeline
- 30 to 45 working days in-country from complete documents, our end-to-end estimate.
- Dependents
- The deposit covers the principal plus 2 dependents. Each dependent beyond two adds $15,000 to the deposit and a $300 application fee.
- Tax posture
- SRRV carries the PRA exemption from Philippine tax on pensions and annuities, among other benefits. US tax obligations are unchanged.
SRRV Classic
The general route by age and pension
- Who it is for
- Pensioners and non-pensioners aged 40 and up, by age and pension income. The general route for anyone who does not fit a special category.
- Refundable deposit
- $15,000 to $50,000 depending on age and pensioner status. Held at a PRA-accredited bank in your name and returned on visa cancellation per PRA rules.
- Government fees
- $1,500 PRA processing fee, and a $360 PRA annual fee covering the principal plus two dependents.
- Military proof
- Not required.
- Pension test
- Lifetime pension of at least $800 per month single, or $1,000 with dependents, for the lower pensioner deposits.
- Document load
- Standard PRA package: pension or income proof at the thresholds, medical, clearances, and the bank steps. No service records.
- Status granted
- Permanent residency on approval, indefinite stay, multiple entry, exempt from Bureau of Immigration annual reporting and the ACR I-Card.
- Planning timeline
- 30 to 45 working days in-country from complete documents, our end-to-end estimate.
- Dependents
- The deposit covers the principal plus 2 dependents. Each dependent beyond two adds $15,000 to the deposit and a $300 application fee.
- Tax posture
- SRRV carries the PRA exemption from Philippine tax on pensions and annuities, among other benefits. US tax obligations are unchanged.
13A by Marriage
The marriage visa, Bureau of Immigration
- Who it is for
- Foreigners married to a Philippine citizen. A valid marriage to a Philippine citizen is the basis, and the Filipino spouse is the petitioner.
- Refundable deposit
- No SRRV deposit. The 13A is built on the marriage, not a bank deposit, so the deposit rider does not apply.
- Government fees
- Roughly ₱8,620 in Bureau of Immigration filing fees per applicant, plus about $50 per year for the ACR I-Card. BI dates its posted fee schedule to March 2014 and notes fees may change without prior notice.
- Military proof
- Not required. The 13A turns on the marriage, not on military service.
- Pension test
- No pension test. The marriage is the basis.
- Document load
- Marriage certificate, the Filipino spouse as petitioner, clearances, and the Bureau of Immigration filing package.
- Status granted
- A probationary year first, then conversion to permanent residency. Bureau of Immigration annual report each year, plus a valid ACR I-Card.
- Planning timeline
- Commonly quoted in months, with a probationary year built in. Bureau of Immigration workloads vary by office.
- Dependents
- Handled per Bureau of Immigration rules for the spouse and minor children, filed separately from any SRRV deposit structure.
- Tax posture
- The 13A does not carry the SRRV tax-exemption package; it is a residency status, not a PRA retirement program. US tax obligations are unchanged.
SRRV figures are PRA’s, from our verified facts library. The 13A is a Bureau of Immigration visa, not a PRA product; its fee figures are the Bureau’s posted schedule. BI dates its posted fee schedule to March 2014 and notes fees may change without prior notice. See the Official Source Library.
The marriage is the visa
The 13A stands on the marriage. Annulment or a spouse’s death can put the status itself in question, and that is a conversation to have before filing, not after. The two SRRV routes do not have this failure mode; each stands on your own qualification, and the deposit is held at a PRA-accredited bank in your name and returned on visa cancellation per PRA rules.
Where each route wins
Courtesy wins on independence
For a veteran clearing the $1,000 pension gate, the $1,500 deposit makes permanent residency cheap and standing on your own qualification, not a spouse’s petition, exempt from Bureau of Immigration annual reporting.
Classic wins on reach
No special category needed. Anyone 40 and up with qualifying age and pension income can take the SRRV, with pensioner rates from $15,000 and the same permanent, annual-reporting-exempt status as Courtesy.
The 13A wins on cash
No deposit, and Bureau of Immigration filing fees measured in hundreds of dollars. If the budget is tight, the marriage is solid, and you do not mind the probationary year, the annual report, and keeping the ACR I-Card current, the 13A is the economical route, and we will say so to your face. BI dates its posted fee schedule to March 2014 and notes fees may change without prior notice.
We sell SRRV screening and execution, not 13A petitions. If the screening says the 13A is your honest fit, we tell you that plainly and point you to the official Bureau of Immigration source rather than selling you the wrong visa. Government fees go to the government; our service fees are listed separately.
PRA figures verified June 18, 2026Sources
One session, the full answer
Screened before you choose
The matrix routes; we screen. A structured session compares all three paths against your numbers and puts the answer in writing: your route, your document gaps, and your timeline. The fee is $99, credited toward any package.
We screen both routes before you commit, and we will tell you plainly if Classic, or the 13A, is your honest fit rather than Courtesy. SRRV Courtesy qualification is determined by the Philippine Retirement Authority on the documents.
Estimated planning timeline is 30 to 45 working days in-country from complete documents for the SRRV routes, our end-to-end estimate, which excludes time the Bureau of Immigration controls. The $1,500 PRA processing fee is non-refundable if an application is discontinued.
Three routes, one answer:Compare, then commit
One structured session compares Courtesy, Classic, and the 13A against your numbers and puts the answer in writing.
SRRV Courtesy qualification is determined by the Philippine Retirement Authority on the documents. Many US military retirees may qualify; others fit SRRV Classic. We screen both routes before you commit, and we will tell you plainly if the SRRV is not your best option.