It has been 9 years since I first arrived in Malaysia. Looking back to January 2016, right after I got married to my Malaysian spouse in the Philippines a month earlier, I never imagined how long, emotional, challenging, and meaningful this journey would be. Today, I am finally holding my Red IC — a symbol of my Permanent Resident status in Malaysia.

Right after our marriage in 2015 in the Philippines, we already prepared ourselves for all the requirements needed for the long process. If you have been following my blog for a long time, you would have seen some past entries on how I started this journey — going through spouse visa renewals, documents, and paperwork stages year after year.

I first came to Malaysia in 2013 as part of the ASEAN Youth Programme organised by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), during the time I was still working under the Office of the President in the Philippines (President Aquino’s term). However, my official entry into Malaysia for long-term stay began in 2016 with a multiple-entry visa, which was eventually converted into a Spouse Visa in February that same year.

By the time I became eligible for PR application after 5 years of stay, the exact timing fell during lockdown. I wasn’t able to get the Green Form earlier. Only in 2022 I managed to secure one through the STO Online Appointment System during COVID-19 social distancing SOPs.

During the interview, everything was conducted in Bahasa Melayu. The officers were friendly, casual and respectful — and yes, they noticed my Filipino accent mixed with a bit of Sabah tone (because Filipinos pronounce “A” as “Ah”). They asked about my background, my children, my family, and my spouse’s family. It was a casual conversation based on what was written in my application.

We followed up through reference numbers, online status updates, and occasional checking with officers. By end of 2024, we were informed that our documents had already reached Putrajaya level processing.

In August 2025, when I checked the immigration portal, I saw the word “Lulus” (means approved). That moment, everything stopped and I called my wife to informed her about the status.

I took leave again and proceeded to Putrajaya. I informed my director about it and she is very happy about the status. The officer there was very friendly, witty but authoritative and he even confirmed he was the same frontliner sending letters to applicants (who passed the PR application).

We then went back to JB. I took another leave to proceed my IC application at  JPN Setia Tropika office.  The form are easy to fill up so just be patient. Due to some technical issues we had to return another day. After submitting everything and paying RM200, we waited about 30–90 days.

This is one of the biggest milestones of my life in Malaysia and a great discovery worth sharing for everyone.