2020 Philippine Passport Renewal

I’ve finally tried the real Philippine passport renewal process that is without the benefit of being with my senior mom in renewing my passport. It’s been not more than 5 years (my passport is still valid and has a lot of empty pages) but since the passport that I renewed previously have been eaten by the rats, and when I sent the official Twitter of DFA they said it’s considered mutilated.

MUTILATED PASSPORT?

What do I mean by mutilated? May it be a bit of torn of any pages, or it got wet, it is considered mutilated. The staff at the DFA office asked me why I have to renew my passport when it’s still valid, and I showed my passport to her and she said “ah… right! Your passport must be presentable when showing to the immigration officer, especially when showed to other country.”

The bites on my passport were only for 11 pages and you won’t even notice it unless you really focus on it and take a look. The Bio page didn’t also get a bite, so I thought it will be just fine not until I made sure through contacting DFA and showing them the bites. Therefore, do take good care of your Philippine passport.

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WHEN TO RENEW YOUR PHILIPPINE PASSPORT?

In my previous posts on How to Renew Your Philippine Passport I was getting a lot of questions on when they can renew their passport.

Expired or Expiring
If it’s expiring in 6 months, it’s best to renew it right away since our immigration or the country you’ll be entering might not allow you to travel or enter their country.
If you’re like me that your last passport have expired 10 years ago (I was 10 years old on my first passport), you can totally still renew it and should bring it with you.

No More Empty Pages or Few are Left
This is because when you enter a country, the country’s immigration officer and even ours will stamp your passport, and if there’s no page for them to stamp on, they’ll most likely will not allow you to travel or enter their country. Why? Since it will state the date of your entry, and some countries will only allow a few days of stay especially for tourists.

Mutilated
Again, if you’re the same as I am. Your passport might got wet, eaten by your dogs, or those rats! You should also bring it with you, on whatever have remained pieces of your passport.

PHILIPPINE PASSPORT RENEWAL REQUIREMENTS

Nothing much changed in their requirements when renewing your Philippine passport. Here are the official lists of Philippine passport renewal requirements.

Confirmed Appointment
You may go to the OFFICIAL WEBSITE for getting the appointment at passport.gov.ph and if you’re not sure how to do it, you might want to check out my post on How to get a DFA Passport Appointment Schedule?, but here's a video on how to get a DFA passport appointment.


Application Form
No need to fill out an application form, it will be sent along the confirmed appointment email which is a file along with 2 copies of receipts.

Current Passport
Although your passport might be mutilated, or expired like 10 years ago you must and should bring it with you when you renew your passport.

PSA Authenticated Documents
It is previously called NSO, but now it’s PSA. We’re talking about birth certificate and marriage contract.

Photocopy of Valid ID
I brought my Postal ID with me and have it photocopied. But here are the lists of accepted valid IDs when it comes to getting your Philippine passport.
  • SSS ID
  • LTO (Driver’s License)
  • PRC ID
  • OWWA ID
  • iDOLE card
  • Comelec ID (Voter’s ID) / Voter’s certification
  • PNP Firearms ID
  • Senior Citizen ID
  • Airman License
  • Philippine Postal ID
  • School ID

For an updated list of IDs they accept you may check out the official website for Philippine passport, just click here.

Others
If you’re like me who got a mutilated Philippine passport, then you totally need to go to a lawyer and have them make you an Affidavit of Explanation. My lawyer friend says it will cost around P250-P500, but as for mine it was P350 and I was given 2 copies. You will also need this if you lost your passport.

Also if you lost your passport or mutilated such as mine, there is a penalty fee of P350 which will be paid at the DFA.

Don’t forget this also requires a personal appearance, so if someone offered you to process your passport and you are not needed to go to the DFA office, it’s most likely a scam or you’ll be provided with a fake passport.

HOW TO RENEW PHILIPPINE PASSPORT?

Way back in 2016 I’ve written the post on HOW TO RENEW YOUR PHILIPPINE PASSPORT with specific steps when you arrive at the DFA. Nothing have changed there, so best to check out the post or watch this video.


DO’S AND DON’TS AT DFA OFFICE

Here are a couple of do’s and don’ts at the DFA.
  • Do arrive 30 minutes before your scheduled time.
  • Don’t use your phone
  • Don’t wear slippers
  • Don’t wear sleeveless
  • Don’t wear shorts
  • Don’t wear a lot of make up
If you think I missed anything or want to share your experience with us, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below! Feel free to ask any questions!


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