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!
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