National ID Cards, Passports, and other forms of Official Identification

[orangejuice]

Skyharbor, balita naman, how did your passport renewal go? Kelangan pa pala magpa appointment shucks, matagal ba bago bigyan ng schedule? I read kelangan online ka mag file ng appointment?

[kiretoce]

Originally Posted by orangejuice

Hello everyone, help please. I will be coming home to Manila this November 9. Gusto ko lang malaman, baka may balita kayo, in effect na ba ang pag issue ng Philippine biometric passport? I need to renew my passport. Pero gusto ko rin malaman, if anybody knows or has the same experience, mag eexpire din ba ang visa sa isang passport kung expired na yung passport? I have an Australian permanent residence visa saying it is valid upto 2013. I just want to be sure.

Saka, mabilis lang kaya ang processing ng biometric passport? I will only be staying upto the 3rd of January, alam naman natin na kapag December na, marami na ang naghoholiday or usually sarado government agencies.

Will appreciate any help and replies!

A visa is a totally separate entity from the passport. A visa is issued by the nation you're entering, while a passport states your nationality (proof that you're a citizen of such country). All you need is a valid passport to use with your permanent resident visa when you enter/re-enter Australia.

Originally Posted by orangejuice

Isa pa palang tanong, since I will be entering Manila on my old passport, hindi ba ako magkakaproblema kapag eexit ako ng Pinas using a new passport...kasi di ba may immigration stamps pa yan.......I hope I won't face the same dilemma if I enter Australia again.....

There shouldn't be a problem with exiting the Philippines with a new passport; the stamps on your old passport will not really affect your status upon exit. But it would be helpful if you hang on to your old passport (or colored copies of it) just in case something comes up. It's always good to have all your bases covered for any eventuality when traveling.

[Sky Harbor]

I'm finally getting my biometric passport on my birthday.

[orangejuice]

Skyharbor, how long did you have to wait for the DFA to reply on your request for an appointment online? I already made an online appointment I hope they reply soon.

[orangejuice]

Thanks kiretoce for the reply!

[Sky Harbor]

Originally Posted by orangejuice

Skyharbor, how long did you have to wait for the DFA to reply on your request for an appointment online? I already made an online appointment I hope they reply soon.

I got mine the next day.

[kiretoce]

RP to benefit from smart card technology

The Philippines stands to gain from the benefits of contactless or “smart” card technology which is now being used by most banks in the world, a local card producer said over the weekend.

In a statement, Allcard Philipines said contactless smart card technology has been in existence for two decades now and has been proven reliable in other countries.

“The danger is the possibility of our (present) system not being recognized by other countries which are using contactless card technology,” said Allcard marketing manager Franz Reyes.

“Asia is modernizing. With Southeast Asia developing into a regional economy, how can we Filipinos transact in, say Taiwan, Japan, Singapore or even Thailand if we don’t have or don’t know how to use contactless smart card technology?” he added.

Allcard, the leading and fastest-growing card producer in the Philippines currently services nine of the top 10 banks in the Philippines. Allcard says the Philippines is now ready for such a system.

According to Reyes, contactless smart card technology enables the user to avail of the tremendous benefits of a fully interactive world. With just a swipe of the smart card, users instantaneously connect themselves to a system which allows them to do transactions. Users can also modify or add information stored in a smart card’s 32 kilobyte memory. Using a reader, the card can then be read by the system.

Credit card companies and banks first began using contactless smart card technology a decade ago. Reyes said the potentials of the technology are enormous that governments are beginning to use it to enhance and improve public services.

According to Reyes, the Kuwaiti government, for example, has issued three million electronic multi-application identification cards to its citizens as part of its efforts to comply with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regulation designed to allow citizens of all Gulf countries to travel between member states.

Reyes said the issued card serves as the official identification card of a Kuwaiti citizen. The smart card is embedded with a 32kb memory chip secured and encrypted with the card users’ information.

China, meanwhile, is on the verge of completing its $ 3.5 billion national identification smart card program. The program aims to provide 900 million smart cards to be used by Chinese citizens in their government transactions. Recently, China Expert Technology has received a $57-million order for e-government systems in Fuzhou City in Fujian province. China wants a contactless card security system.

Meanwhile, 96 percent of Taiwan’s citizens are enjoying the benefits of a healthcare program using smart card technology. With the implementation in 2005 of the technology, Taiwan’s National Health Care Program has saved close to $2.8 billion in health-related expenditures alone. Twenty two million Taiwanese now enjoy free medical services with just a swipe of their contactless smart cards, connecting them to 17,000 medical facilities throughout the island state.

[Sky Harbor]

BUMP!

I finally got my biometric passport last Friday.

[FlashCollider]

Originally Posted by Sky Harbor

BUMP!

I finally got my biometric passport last Friday.

Do they have plans of issuing the new passport outside the Philippines?

[kiretoce]

Uhm....aren't passports utilized outside the Philippines to begin with anyway?

[Sky Harbor]

Originally Posted by FlashCollider

Do they have plans of issuing the new passport outside the Philippines?

Not yet I believe. They may end up doing it like how the U.S. does it now: ship applications to the Philippines, process them and then send back the finished product (biometric passport) back to the concerned diplomatic mission.

[FlashCollider]

Thanks

Originally Posted by kiretoce

Uhm....aren't passports utilized outside the Philippines to begin with anyway?

Hehehe, I wasn't being clear. If you apply for a renewal while outside the Philippines you will be issued the Green Passport instead of the new one with smart chip.

[orangejuice]

I got my e-passport today. Ok naman.

I think late next year pa ( tentative ) magsisimula ang e-passport applications ( and renewals ) in Australia. That's why I took the chance to renew my passport while staying here in Manila.

[sandwindstars]

First, congrats to the government for implementing the machine readable and biometric passports. I think a few countries (US for sure) will be demanding biometric passports after a certain time.

As for the national id system, what happened to it? I think it's excellent to have one for the Philippines. Even if we only have our SIN in Canada, it links our information with a lot of major transactions with all levels of government, passport, taxes, banking, driver's license etc. It is used to cross check information that we are who we really say we are. That's the simplest use of the national id system. It doesn't have to be complicated.

For those naysayers, well, identity theft in the Philippines is already rampant whether in elections or property ownership, etc many things are forged, faked etc. But with a national identity system that can be used to cross check people's information it may lessen the possibilities. For the leftists, their funding comes primarily from EU sympathizers, where everyone is documented. Talk about big brother. If not, they can try living in communist capitalist haven called China. Even expats have to report to the police upon arrival. (My experience.)

[bluers_butuan]

oo nga. ang masama yung mga leftist pa ang agianst ng NAtional ID na ito. kahit saang news ko mababasa, yung mga nangungunang party list pa ang nag bablocked sa implementation nito kesyo may mananakaw daw na identity, gagamitin sa masama, at kung ano ano pang ke-echingang tsismis. hay, dapat i implement na yan.

[coldfire083]

kapag nanalo ang senate line-up ni Villar ay pwede na siguro close ang thread na to dahil siguradong wala ng pag-asa.

[kalbongdad]

dapat meron na talagang national id system para ma id ang mga enemy of the state...

[kiretoce]

Even so-called "enemies of the state" can still avail of the National ID; they are, in fact, still Filipinos no matter what principles they stand and fight for.

[WawaY[625]]

yeah magandang idea ang National ID..dito sa SG malaking tulong yan (meron ID for citizens, permanent residents and even foreigners working in singapore)

take for example nung napapalit ako ng ATM ko kasi nasira..wala na kailangang papers or account number (wala akong dala kasi wala sa plano kong dumaan sa bank that time)..binigay ko lang ang ID ko and good enough na yun para i process ang request ko and after 15 minutes nakuha ko ang new ATM card ko

[bluesgnt30]

I would love to see a uniform passport for ASEAN members..