Intelligence
The Feed
A new piece every Thursday on Philippine residency, tax, visas, banking, and what daily life in Davao City is actually like. Written on the ground, not from a desk in Europe.
Your First 30 Days in Davao: What Actually Happens After You Land
SIM registration, fibre internet, the lease, the barangay, the bank: a week-by-week field guide to your first month as a new resident in Davao City.
What Happens to Your Condo When You Die
Philippine estate planning for foreign residents: the flat six per cent estate tax, the deduction gap between residents and non-residents, and whose law decides your heirs.
Schools in Davao: What It Actually Costs to Raise a Child Here
Education in Davao City for foreign families: how the Philippine K to 12 system works, private and international options, realistic tuition ranges, homeschooling, and what actually changes for a child moving from Europe.
Shipping Your Life to the Philippines, and What to Leave Behind
Should you ship a container to the Philippines? What the balikbayan box privilege really covers, what customs will ask, which appliances survive 220 volts at 60 hertz, and the short list actually worth shipping.
How Foreigners Actually Get Fleeced in the Philippines
How foreigners really lose money here: tax declarations sold as land titles, double sales, unregistered vehicle transfers, fixers, and the business that never had books.
Working Remotely From Davao: Internet, Power, and the Timezone Maths
What remote work from Davao City is really like: fibre providers and costs, backup power, coworking, the eight-hour offset to Europe, and the line between foreign-source income and needing a Philippine work permit.
Typhoons, Rain, and Why Davao Sits Below the Belt
The Philippines sees around twenty tropical cyclones a year. Why Davao City sits outside the usual track, what the rainfall pattern actually looks like, and the storms and earthquakes that prove the city is not immune.
Five Flags, One Paradise: What Really Happens to Your State, Workplace and Private Pensions in the Philippines
State pension, workplace pension, private pension: three different treaty outcomes per passport. How the Philippines DTAs treat US, UK, Canadian, Australian and NZ retirees.
Mid-2026 Update: What Changed for Philippine Residency This Year
The SRRV age drop to 40, doubled deposit insurance, the CRS timeline, and the Digital Nomad Visa that still has not arrived. A roundup of what actually changed for Philippine residency in 2026.
