House Approves: Philippine passports Valid for 10 years
House Bill 4767, which seeks the legality of extending Philippine passports from 5 years to 10 years, has been proven by the House of Representatives on Monday, February 13.
The contributors of the HB 4767 includes:
- Deputy Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (Lakas-CMD, Pampanga
- Reps. Michael Romero (1Pacman Partylist)
- Winston Castelo (LP, Quezon City)
- John Bertiz (ACT OFW Partylist)
- Romeo Acop (LP, Antipolo City)
- Benhur Salimbangon (NUP, Cebu)
- Sol Aragones (NPC, Laguna)
- Eileen Ermita-Buhain (PDP-Laban, Batangas)
- Gus Tambunting (PDP-Laban, Paranaque City)
- Henry Oaminal (PDP-Laban, Misamis Occidental)
For the third and final reading, with an unanimous vote of 216, the house approved HB 4767, which will also be transmitted to the Senate for another three readings.
The goal of the Bill is to amend the RA 8239 or the Philippine Passport Act of 1996 which only administer five year of validity to Filipino passports.
According to the Foreign Affairs Committee the bill will “ease the burden of the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), seafarers, business persons, and the traveling public from having to renew their passports every five years.”
Partylist John Berit said, “This situation is untenable for OFWs and for other applicants. If left unresolved, the queues and the waiting time will get longer and the costs shouldered by the applicants will only get higher.”
However, depending on national economic interest and public safety, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is certified to limit the passport’s’ validity to less than 10 years.
