21 June 2010 - The Office of Consular Affairs (OCA) of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) continues to process and release passports on time contrary to reports that the DFA is experiencing backlog that is affecting Filipino job applicants and workers overseas.
The processing and releasing time is in fact faster compared to other countries. In the United States, for instance, passports are released four to six weeks from the date of application.
OCA clarified that it is the waiting time to get an appointment that is longer due to a number of reasons including non-appearance.
Forty percent of individuals who have set appointments do not show up on the designated dates. OCA still accommodates these slots since these were not cancelled by the applicants.
OCA urged the public to appear on the dates set for their appointments. They may also cancel their appointments if they will not be able to show up so that these could be allocated for other applicants.
To address the specific concerns of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are in Manila to renew their passports immediately to comply with their work contracts, the DFA will re-open the Passport Extension Office (PEO) at the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA).
The PEO will initially accept 200 applicants daily. In excess of 200 applicants, applicants will be provided on-the-spot appointment for the succeeding days.
No prior appointments are required for OFWs applying for passports at the PEO.
Those who may apply at the PEO include seafarers and sea-based workers and their family members, land-based Balik-Manggagawa (visiting or returning OFWs and their families, and DFA-accredited manning and recruitment agencies.
As a stop-gap measure, OCA is also extending the validity of expiring passports for a maximum period of up to two years.
OCA also attributed the two-month waiting time for appointments to the peak summer season and the huge demand for the Philippine ePassport. It disclosed that it has been accepting 3,500 applicants on a daily basis. The number, however, is expected to go down by July.
To further improve the situation, OCA is in the process of instituting a number of measures to address issues such as multiple registration by passport applicants and technical issues in the appointment system.
The DFA is also focusing its sights on increasing the absorptive capacity of the new consular building at the ASEANA Business Park in Paranaque City.
It is also planning to open its offices every Saturday starting next month. Training of OCA personnel is currently ongoing for the Saturday processing.
With these measures, OCA is expecting to bring down the waiting time for appointments to three weeks to one month.
OCA is also planning to open more Regional Consular Offices (RCOs) nationwide. The epassport is already available in 19 RCOs.