Filipinos love to travel. Under the Statista Research Department, “the number of outbound travelers from the Philippines was projected to reach approximately 4.3 million trips in 2021.” Some countries require visas for Filipinos to enter their country, and this is shown through a visa stamp.
As for the Philippines, a Philippine visa is an endorsement made on a travel document by a consular officer at a Philippine Embassy or Consulate abroad denoting that the visa application has been properly examined and that the bearer is permitted to proceed to the Philippines and request permission from the Philippine Immigration authorities at the ports of entries to enter the country.
As per the Bureau of Immigration, the validity of your visa is not affected by the expiration or renewal of your passport. You just need to bring your old passport with valid visas, together with your new passport, when you travel. When in doubt, consult the Foreign Embassy that issued your visa.
Prior to booking of flights, a Philippine passport should be valid for at least 6 months. If it is not, you should already apply for renewal of passport via online appointment here. At the end of the online application form, applicants are required to pay the fees at once through credit card or over-the-counter payments. Print the official receipt and application forms sent through your email, and bring them, together with your old passport at the time of appointment.
Applicants who are Senior Citizens, Persons with Disability, Pregnant, Minors (7 and below), Solo parents, Overseas Filipino Workers, and other exceptional and emergency cases are eligible for courtesy lane, and may apply for a walk-in. For further details of eligibility, see here.
Once renewed, your passport will be valid for 10 years from the date of issue, for 18 years old and above. For minors, their passports remain valid for 5 years (Department Order 010-2017).
For foreign nationals with visas which are not fully implemented or for reasons of lost or damaged passports, you can have your visas re-stamped. Follow the procedure here.
Need further information and assistance on VISA matters? Talk to our Visa team at Duran & Duran-Schulze Law to know more about the requirements and process. Call us today at (+632) 8478 5826 or send an email to info@duranschulze.com for more information.