Do you need to carry legal documents to stay in PI's all the time

[Viking]

20 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

The fact is, this is the Philippines and everybody has a different experience here.  If it happens to you, tell them they are not allowed to take your driver's license.  If that works then great.  If they take it anyway just remember they have guns and they sometimes use them.

So whatever the law is does not matter.  The law is whatever the cop decides to interpret on that day.  IMHO

I am aware that things are different in the Philippines compared to where most of us are coming from, but it would still feel good to know if they have support in the law about what they are doing or not. In the end it will probably not change the situation but some cops get a bit hesitant if they understand that you know the law and your rights.

Micks experience is a good example of that, he stood up and got away with it. He was probably also lucky that the cop was not in urgent need of money or it would have ended differently I suppose, lol.

[Medic Mike]

On ‎9‎/‎30‎/‎2018 at 1:16 PM, Dave Hounddriver said:

That is good advice.  An American friend lost his US passport in Cebu many years ago.  He had to file a police report before he could get a new one issued (what he told me anyway).  He told me the police required a photocopy of his passport before they could file a report so we should all keep a copy somewhere, whether we carry it on us or not.

That is good advice.  I also do that, and I also have a scanned copy that I store online that I can get a hold of in an emergency.