How to get a Philippine Passport for a Minor
Kudos to the government for making it easier for people to secure a Philippine passport. No need to go through agencies or fixers. We were able to apply for a passport in under 3 hours. And that was for the three of us already. 
That was the last step, and then the waiting begins. I’m so excited!
I was pretty excited to get a passport for my daughter; this will be her first ever valid ID. First things first, I had to prepare the requirements. (I just called the NSO hotline: (( 02) 737-1111)
PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS FOR FIRST-TIME APPLICANTS:
- Personal Appearance is required.
- Duly accomplished application form.
- Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) or Certified True Copy (CTC) of BC issued by the Local Civil Registrar duly authenticated by NSO.
- Three (3) colored photos of the applicant taken against a royal blue background. Applicant should be in decent attire with collar. Photo must be of good quality, and must have been taken within the last six (6) months. Photo size: 4.5 cm x 3.5 cm. Facial image size: Not less than 3 cm. DFA has the right to reject photos that do not comply with specifications and international standards. **
** My advice, go ahead and invest in a good photo studio. We had our passport pics taken at Great Image. Sure, it is a bit pricey, but very reasonable. They know the DFA’s requirements and they are a stickler for details. Plus they even offered us a guarantee that they will retake our daughter’s picture if it does not pass the DFA’s standards, as long as we return all the prints. I remember a friend’s horror story of having her daughter’s picture taken a number of times because they did not pass the standards. (The background was not blue enough, she had earrings, and her face was too small in the pic.)Imagine the inconvenience caused, and in the end, she wasted a lot more money than she would’ve paid in a reputable photo studio.
Additional Requirements:
For Minors (below 18 years old)
Personal appearance of either parent (if minor is of legitimate status).
Personal appearance of mother (if minor is of illegitimate status)
** There is no need for a personal appearance of the minor
If minor is NOT traveling with either parent:
Original and photocopy of DSWD Clearance
Affidavit of Support and Consent
If both parents are abroad:
Affidavit of support and consent (must be authenticated by the nearest Philippine Embassy or Consulate General if not executed before a Consul).
Special Power of Attorney (must be authenticated by the nearest Philippine Embassy or Consulate General if not executed before a Consul designating the representative by name and authorizing him to apply for a passport on behalf of the minor).
Passport and photocopy of the passport of the traveling companion of the minor.
Identification Card and photocopy thereof of the duly authorized person.
When we had all the requirements, the next step was to go to the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Site to get an appointment (click here to be directed to appointment page). This step is key, believe me! When hubby and I got to the DFA, we were shocked at the mass of people lined up at the basketball court. At first I thought we had to go and line up too, but then we were informed that if you didn’t get an appointment online, you’d HAVE to fall in line FOR AN APPOINTMENT, and then go back the next day to have your application processed. Since we already have an appointment, we skipped that loooong line. (whew!) I scheduled an appointment for the three of us on Saturday afternoon and was scheduled the following Tuesday afternoon. Just remember to print the DFA’s confirmation letter along with the application form (downloadable from their site) that way you’ll save time by accomplishing these forms beforehand.
My daughter being a minor, I had to sign my daughter’s application form on her behalf, I was also the one who placed my thumb marks.
Then we went directly to gate 2. From there we were directed to a room filled with people sitting on long benches. We also fell in line. The wait was not that long, plus we were comfortable since we were sitting down. When it was our turn, the girl behind window # 3 checked our documents and asked me to have my application form photocopied because it a duplicate was attached to Bea’s application. 
After this, we were directed to the auditorium where payments are made.
PASSPORT FEES:
Regular Processing
(14 working days)
44-Page = P 500.00
Expedited Processing
(7 working days)
Additional P 250.00
Replacement of Lost valid Passport
44-Page = P 700.00
Then we had to fall in line again for the encoding. Again we were made comfortable because we were provided with seats. The line moved fast since there were more than fifteen encoders arranged in a semi circle in the auditorium.
After this, we headed back to the basketball court where there were companies offering door to door deliveries. If you wanted to save a hundred pesos, you can opt to return to the DFA and claim your passport yourself, or you can choose to avail of their services and have your passport delivered to your door step. You can choose from LBC, 2Go, Air 21 and DHL. We chose 2Go not only because they were a peso cheaper (P99), they also exerted more effort in trying to lure us in. hahaha. I got the feeling of being in the MOA seaside area were guys/girls/gays beckoned at everyone passing by to come and try their food. =)
That was the last step, and then the waiting begins. I’m so excited!LO Share : Just The Two of Us
I still haven't discovered scrapbooking when Bea was this small... i'm making up for lost time...=)
photo hunt :: four
i chanced upon these super cute wooden paper clips at our local bookstore. and guess what? they were sold per set of four! who ever said that the office should always be drab and boring? i always make it a point to try to add some life and color in my office workspace... makes corporate life less torturous. =)
Going Gaga Over Pet Society
Lately, my darling sister and I have been addicted to Facebook’s Pet Society. I have a dog named Spunkette while she has a dog (?) named Flipflap. Our cousin, Ella invited us to join. At first, I ignored the invitation, I mean I have so many pending invitations and this particular invitation didn’t arouse my interest. But then she kept on talking about her pet and how often she played Pet society, so I got curious, finally accepted the invite and created my own pet. Initially, spunkette was a boy dog named spunky. But when I started dressing him up, I realized that clothing options for male pets were quite limited. My inadequate number of coins earned didn’t help either. Plus, as we all know, it is always for fun to play dress up with little girls. So I went ahead and changed his gender. He became a she and spunky became spunkette.
My sister’s pet went through the same dilemma, and in the end she also chose for be a girl. Although the name flipflap remained the same.
We’ve been playing for some time now and we have been so addicted, that whenever our respective computers are on, we are logged on to Pet Society for sure, joining races, buying mystery boxes, feeding and bathing our pets and well as other’s. In other words, we are simply hooked! We even exchange emails just to talk about our pets and their latest adventures in their virtual world. Bea already recognizes our pets. She just loves to watch us play with our pets. She especially loves it when we feed them. (She makes the munching sound along with our pets.)
Bea knows them by name. She even invented her own pet. We didn’t teach her or anything. She just came up with it on her own.
“Who is mommy’s pet?” “Anket (Spunkette)”.
“Who is ninang’s pet?” “Plipplap (Flipflap)”.
“Who is Bea’s pet?” “Em-em” (!)
It doesn’t matter how many times we ask her, her answer is consistent. It’s always Em-em!
Yep, even Bea is going gaga over Facebook’s Pet Society!
photo hunt :: space
one morning, hubby and i were driving to work when i chanced upon this weird looking pattern in the sky. It was a cloudy day, the clouds were light and feathery, and they almost covered the whole sky, except for this one spot that had a big spacious hole in the middle. i took a picture because this sight made me think of UFO's and mother ships. =)
Checking Out Schools
Last Monday, hubby and little Bea went to the nearby school to inquire about their nursery class. Bea will be 3.5 years old by June so we are planning to enroll her. We are lucky enough to have two schools very near our house. Bea and I already went to one a couple of weeks ago. Last Monday it was hubby’s turn to check out the second school.
I never thought choosing a preschool for the little one can be so stressful. I just feel that it is our responsibility to choose the right school for her. I remember my own preschool. It was perfect. I can still remember my first teacher, Mrs. Aragon. I just loved her and because of her I enjoyed going to school and I enjoyed studying. I really want the same experience for Bea. Just imagine, her nursery class, teacher and classmates have the power to shape her impression of the whole school experience. What if she doesn’t like her teacher? What if she is bullied? In her young innocent mind, they all represent the whole educational system for her. What if because of a bad experience in nursery school, she refuses to go to school? She starts hating books and studying? What then?
Waaah! So much pressure. Do all parents go through this kind of paranoia? Or is it just me? hehehe…
I really hope we make the right choice…
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