Filipino travellers rejoice! Say goodbye to long queues in the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) office and save money on passport renewal fees because President Duterte just signed an act extending the validity of the Philippine passport from 5 years to 10 years. Yes, that’s right! This is a wonderful addition to the many great things that happened to the Philippine passport this 2017!
Republic Act No. 10928 is the amended Section 10 of RA 8239 or the Philippine Passport Act of 1996 stating the now abolished validity period of five years. It has been clarified, however, that the act is only applicable to citizens aged 18 years old and above. In the name of national economic interest and political stability, other passport holders may also be limited to less than 10 years of validity by the issuing authority.
Aside from leisure travellers or tourists going outside of the country, RA 10928 is expected to benefit the Overseas Filipino Workers community the most as they would no longer be hassled to come back to the country in the middle of their ongoing contracts abroad. The DFA, on the other hand, will also likely have less passports to issue at a time, further leading to shorter queues and waiting time for us during passport applications.
Also read: A Guide to Renewing Your Philippine Passport
Like other laws, RA 10928 will take effect 15 days after publication in the Official Gazette or in a national newspaper of general circulation.
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