I’ve been putting off getting my NBI Clearance for the past month, in the hopes that the Security department of our company would just give me the necessary clearance for my new role without it but to no avail.  They’re a tough cookie to crack and one of the managers went up to me last week to give me a gentle reminder to submit the only requirement I’m missing.

Thank goodness that the company I work for celebrates Easter Monday, so I had an extra time off during the workweek.  I wasn’t relishing the concept of reliving my 2013 experience at the NBI Alabang satellite office, where I stood in line from six-thirty in the morning to one o’clock in the afternoon.  And I came straight from the night shift then too.

A friend of mine recommended getting the NBI Clearance at the Robinson’s Otis satellite office because she got hers in less than two hours (although she did use the online application thingie).  I had never even heard of Robinson’s Otis before then but a quick Google search will confirm my friend’s story.  Bloggers have been singing praises for Rob Otis because the place is so near the NBI Main branch in UN Avenue, there’re fewer people who lines up here.

How to Get There:

1. Do whatever you need to do get onto the LRT1 line.  In my case I hitched a ride from my parents to Ayala, Makati where I caught a bus to Gil Puyat station.
2. Take the train or a jeepney that runs underneath the train to U.N. Avenue station.  It’s definitely easier to take the train since it drops you off at exactly where you need to go but you can tell the jeepney driver to stop at the Luneta Park.
3. Make your way to the northbound side of the LRT1 (the one heading to Monumento) and look for the yellow tricycles parked near the small plaza.  Just tell the driver to take you to Robinson’s Otis and they’ll know the way.  I read that it’s 10php if you don’t hire the tricycle on your own but in my case the driver charged me 60php.
4. If you’re planning to bring a car, there’s limited parking space so there might be a wait before you can get a slot.

Things to remember:

1. From what I understand, Robinson’s Otis only caters to renewals and new applications.  Anything complicated like name change or alien applicants have to head over to the Main Branch in U.N. Avenue.
2. Dress appropriately.  Although it didn’t seem to be a big issue in Robinson’s Otis, it’s still a government agency and they may decide not to entertain you for the way you’re dressed.
3. The NBI office opens at 10:00 am, the same time the mall opens.  I wish I knew this beforehand because I got there at around half past eight and had to kill the time.  Thank goodness there’re chairs outside for the waiters, but they’re limited so if you’re really unlucky, you might end up standing during your wait.
4. Bring a book, a fan and a fully charged smartphone.   Or anything that keeps you from being bored.
5.   Bring a black pen, a valid ID and cash (115php for local employment + the mandatory 5php for the small brown envelope) – preferably in exact change so you won’t have any problems at the cashier.

The Online Process:

According to this article in Rappler, the NBI won’t accept “walk in” applicants anymore in order to drive people to use their online application service (http://clearance.nbi.gov.ph/).  I probably was one of the last few to use their paper forms because it seemed to me that they literally just handed out the last of their forms.  I heard the guard turning away people later in the morning and advising them to set up appointments online.

Here’re my thoughts:

1. Why didn’t the NBI exert more effort in making this knowledge known?  According to the Rappler article they started implementing the process of turning away walk in applicants last April 1st but there were hardly any news about it.  I didn’t even know about the Rappler article until another friend sent me the link the hours before my appointment, thus sending me to a near panic attack.
2. Their online payment options suck.  I tried to set an appointment online but the online payment options are extremely limited: the only online payment transaction they accept is only from RCBC and Uniony Bank, they only take GCash payments (I’m a Smart subscriber) and they rest have to be done through over the counter bank transactions.  If they’re going to implement this they should have at least gotten the biggest banks (BDO, BPI, etc) in on the online payment action or at least a paypal account to accept credit card payments.

All in all my experience in Robinson’s Otis was miles and leaps and bounds better than my experience in NBI Alabang.  I’ll definitely do any future renewals in this branch because even though I didn’t avail of the online option, I still got my clearance in less than two hours.

Has anybody tried using the NBI application system?  What’re your experiences?