My fiancee is having problems getting a Philippines passport

[Karen_and_Jay 2]

Hi all,

The DFA denied my fiancee from getting a passport yesterday, because they no longer accept postal IDs as a form of identification. I would be grateful for any advice about what forms the DFA will accept as "Proof of identification" and "Other supporting documents" for a passport. The DFA Web site is as vague as the passport application is, and my fiancee has heard conflicting reports during her visit to the DFA office and later when she called to ask them more questions.

She brought the following with her to the DFA:

1. Duly accomplished application form. = completed
2. Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) = completed
3. Three (3) colored photos of the applicant taken against a royal blue background. = brought with her, but taken again at the DFA to comply with their standards
4. Proof of identity / Supporting documents indicating full name, date and place of birth and citizenship = Postal ID and/or Baptismal certificate
5. Other Supporting documents = Postal ID and/or Baptismal certificate

Before the DFA rejected her, we thought a postal ID would be fine, because the passport application ONLY says that the "Proof of identity" needs to "indicate full name, date and place of birth and citizenship". But apparently postal IDs are easy to fake, so they are no longer accepted. So now we are scrambling to figure out what forms of identification my fiancee already has or can obtain within a reasonable amount of time. As a simple girl from the province of Samar, she does not have most of the forms of ID suggested on the passport application, and so our options are few.

First, does anyone know if there is a difference between which documents can be used as a "Proof of ID" and which can be used as "Other supporting documents"? As far as I can tell, she can use the Baptismal Certificate as either a "Proof of ID" or as one of the "Other supporting documents", but I am not sure if there is a distinction between the two categories. For example, can the Baptismal Certificate NOT be used as "Proof of ID", as my fiancee has been led to believe? Am I right to assume that an applicant can pick any 2 of the documents listed under "Other supporting documents" to fulfill both of those requirements or can "Proof of ID" only be shown with specific documents (which aren't specified anywhere on the DFA site or on the passport application, by the way)?

Here is the list of "Other supporting documents" taken directly from the passport application:

• Marriage Contract
• PRC / IBP ID
• Land Title
• Driver’s License
• Voter’s Registration Record
• Baptismal Certificate
• Seaman’s Book
• Income Tax Return (Old)
• Government Service Record
• Old SSS-E1 form/or digitized SSS-ID
• School Form 137 or Transcript of Records
• Other documents that show full name and birth details of applicant and citizenship --- What? Does anyone know what other documents this could refer to?

Since she is unmarried (of course), has never voted, doesn't drive or own land, and has never held a job for which she has paid taxes or social security, that eliminates nearly all of these potential forms of identification. As far as I can tell, the only documents that she might be able to obtain right away are:

• Baptismal Certificate = already has with her in Manila
• School Form 137 = she hasn't seen this in 3 or 4 years and doesn't know if it is at her parents house in Samar or not

...and maybe she can also get the following fairly quickly:

• Voter’s Registration Record
• Old SSS-E1 form/or digitized SSS-ID
• Other documents that show full name and birth details of applicant and citizenship

However, she was told that she can only use the voter's registration record if she voted THE YEAR BEFORE SHE APPLIES FOR A PASSPORT, and she was told conflicting stories about whether the school form 137 needs to be the original form or if it can be a new copy sent to her recently by her high school.

Can anyone help us please? Can the Baptismal Certificate be used as "Proof of ID"? If not, what form can? And in her case, what would be the easiest document to get?

[Ndrangeta_one 0]

Hi all,

The DFA denied my fiancee from getting a passport yesterday, because they no longer accept postal IDs as a form of identification. I would be grateful for any advice about what forms the DFA will accept as "Proof of identification" and "Other supporting documents" for a passport. The DFA Web site is as vague as the passport application is, and my fiancee has heard conflicting reports during her visit to the DFA office and later when she called to ask them more questions.

She brought the following with her to the DFA:

1. Duly accomplished application form. = completed
2. Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) = completed
3. Three (3) colored photos of the applicant taken against a royal blue background. = brought with her, but taken again at the DFA to comply with their standards
4. Proof of identity / Supporting documents indicating full name, date and place of birth and citizenship = Postal ID and/or Baptismal certificate
5. Other Supporting documents = Postal ID and/or Baptismal certificate

Before the DFA rejected her, we thought a postal ID would be fine, because the passport application ONLY says that the "Proof of identity" needs to "indicate full name, date and place of birth and citizenship". But apparently postal IDs are easy to fake, so they are no longer accepted. So now we are scrambling to figure out what forms of identification my fiancee already has or can obtain within a reasonable amount of time. As a simple girl from the province of Samar, she does not have most of the forms of ID suggested on the passport application, and so our options are few.

First, does anyone know if there is a difference between which documents can be used as a "Proof of ID" and which can be used as "Other supporting documents"? As far as I can tell, she can use the Baptismal Certificate as either a "Proof of ID" or as one of the "Other supporting documents", but I am not sure if there is a distinction between the two categories. For example, can the Baptismal Certificate NOT be used as "Proof of ID", as my fiancee has been led to believe? Am I right to assume that an applicant can pick any 2 of the documents listed under "Other supporting documents" to fulfill both of those requirements or can "Proof of ID" only be shown with specific documents (which aren't specified anywhere on the DFA site or on the passport application, by the way)?

Here is the list of "Other supporting documents" taken directly from the passport application:

• Marriage Contract
• PRC / IBP ID
• Land Title
• Driver’s License
• Voter’s Registration Record
• Baptismal Certificate
• Seaman’s Book
• Income Tax Return (Old)
• Government Service Record
• Old SSS-E1 form/or digitized SSS-ID
• School Form 137 or Transcript of Records
• Other documents that show full name and birth details of applicant and citizenship --- What? Does anyone know what other documents this could refer to?

Since she is unmarried (of course), has never voted, doesn't drive or own land, and has never held a job for which she has paid taxes or social security, that eliminates nearly all of these potential forms of identification. As far as I can tell, the only documents that she might be able to obtain right away are:

• Baptismal Certificate = already has with her in Manila
• School Form 137 = she hasn't seen this in 3 or 4 years and doesn't know if it is at her parents house in Samar or not

...and maybe she can also get the following fairly quickly:

• Voter’s Registration Record
• Old SSS-E1 form/or digitized SSS-ID
• Other documents that show full name and birth details of applicant and citizenship

However, she was told that she can only use the voter's registration record if she voted THE YEAR BEFORE SHE APPLIES FOR A PASSPORT, and she was told conflicting stories about whether the school form 137 needs to be the original form or if it can be a new copy sent to her recently by her high school.

Can anyone help us please? Can the Baptismal Certificate be used as "Proof of ID"? If not, what form can? And in her case, what would be the easiest document to get?

About a Birth Certificate....

Cenomar

( Do not make the assumption of "NOT married" unless you seen the original certificate yourself!!!, since there is no divorce there)......

and all the other documents eventually needed for the embassy.... such as NBI clearance...they can also be used for identification

[Lady AA 0]

NBI and Police Clearance is acceptable at DFA. When I get a new passport that is the proof of identification i bring to the DFA.

[bowgirl 8]

Does she have any government I.D.'s like SSS, BIR or NBI? She can go to her school and ask for Form 137 or Transcript of Records. That's what I did when it was my first time to apply for passport. I also showed Baptismal Certificate and they accepted it..well, it was in 2002, I don't know the procedure now for first-time applicants.

Edited October 6, 2009 by chris@beth

[Lingladyinred19 13]

Ohh.. when I get my passport to a married name, I just present 1 postal i.d only and original MC from NSO

I have only 1 valid i.d for married name now. its just POSTAL i.d.. NO problem they accept that.

But i don't know now, why that happen to ur fiancee..

hope she will get her passport soon..

good luck

[loveaboo 0]

When I applied for my 1st passport, I brought with me all the IDs I can get, valid and the expired ones. They compared the pictures in the IDs if it's really me. Not so difficult to tell on my case since my face didn't change so much growing up, just got bigger and mature. I suggest, if your fiancee still has her old school IDs, etc. bring those with her when she goes to DFA to apply for a passport.

Edited October 6, 2009 by loveaboo

[Deputy Purple 1,294]

They actually made my wife return to DFA with an old school yearbook! How insane are some of the things they come up with over there to prove ID?

[NinJones 18]

They actually made my wife return to DFA with an old school yearbook! How insane are some of the things they come up with over there to prove ID?

My Yearbook saved my life

... to the OP, yes, a yearbook, old school id's, any id's new and expired will suffice. The SSS ID-Card will take 3 months.

[abbielovesjeremy 5]

They actually made my wife return to DFA with an old school yearbook! How insane are some of the things they come up with over there to prove ID?

really? a yearbook?

to the OP: like what the others said, NBI and police clearances will help. because these clearances have your picture and your data. SSS ID can help too. it is considered a valid ID.

police clearances are fairly easy to get. i just got mine this morning the only thing they asked from me are my cedula and baranggay clearance. cedula is VERY easy to get. you just fill a form and then they give it to you right away. then for the baranggay clearance, all you need is your cedula. both cedula and bgy clearance you get in just a few minutes. then bring those to city hall and get a police clearance. you get your police clearance the same day too assuming you didn't get a "hit" (namesake with a record)

hope that helps. good luck!

[Zen Den 18]

They actually made my wife return to DFA with an old school yearbook! How insane are some of the things they come up with over there to prove ID?

really? a yearbook?

to the OP: like what the others said, NBI and police clearances will help. because these clearances have your picture and your data. SSS ID can help too. it is considered a valid ID.

police clearances are fairly easy to get. i just got mine this morning the only thing they asked from me are my cedula and baranggay clearance. cedula is VERY easy to get. you just fill a form and then they give it to you right away. then for the baranggay clearance, all you need is your cedula. both cedula and bgy clearance you get in just a few minutes. then bring those to city hall and get a police clearance. you get your police clearance the same day too assuming you didn't get a "hit" (namesake with a record)

hope that helps. good luck!

acceptable IDs include those that show info AND photo as well, and issued by a gov. (SScard, NBI, police clearance)

insane as it may seem, a school yearbook is really a valid proof since it's difficult to copy (will take time and talent to come up w/a fake one), it comes from a legit org (the school) and shows many signatures of legit school officials.

[Karen_and_Jay 2]

NBI and Police Clearance is acceptable at DFA. When I get a new passport that is the proof of identification i bring to the DFA.

My fiance showed the DFA her NBI clearance, Baptismal Certificate, and 2 different Postal IDs, but they only accepted her Baptismal Certificate. She keeps saying that she needs an "ID", not a "document", although I really don't know what that means.

Why would the DFA allow some people to use an NBI clearance but not my fiance?

[Loolie 56]

NBI and Police Clearance is acceptable at DFA. When I get a new passport that is the proof of identification i bring to the DFA.

My fiance showed the DFA her NBI clearance, Baptismal Certificate, and 2 different Postal IDs, but they only accepted her Baptismal Certificate. She keeps saying that she needs an "ID", not a "document", although I really don't know what that means.

Why would the DFA allow some people to use an NBI clearance but not my fiance?

i guess thats why they didnt accept her postal id because she has two different postal id. document is a document and id is an id...when i applied for passport i only used my postal id for identification. i brought my heavy yearbook too but and photocopied it.

she doesnt have voters id? or tell her to get a voters affidavit... how about philippine health insurance id?

[Karen_and_Jay 2]

to the OP: like what the others said, NBI and police clearances will help. because these clearances have your picture and your data. SSS ID can help too. it is considered a valid ID.

Since the NBI clearance isn't listed on the passport application, I didn't think they would accept it, but I told my fiance to bring all her documents & IDs with her just in case. However, the DFA didn't accept her NBI clearance as a valid ID. She keeps saying she needs an "ID" (because they rejected her postal ID) and not a "Document" (because they already accepted her Baptismal Certificate). Does anyone know if the DFA makes a distinction between which forms serve as a "Proof of ID" and which are only counted as "Supporting Documents"?

By the way, what is the difference between the NBI clearance and a police clearance? Are you sure the DFA accepts police clearances, or are you just guessing?

the only thing they asked from me are my cedula and baranggay clearance.

Do you mean the cedula and barangay clearance are all that is required to get a police clearance or that you can use a cedula and barangay clearance as proof of ID for the passport? I think you meant that the cedula and barangay clearance only help you get a police clearance, but I want to be sure.

My fiance already has a cedula, a barangay clearance, and an NBI clearance. The DFA rejected her NBI clearance, and I don't think the DFA will accept a cedula or a barangay clearance.

[sweet angel 5]

Could be ur fiancee is late registered??? Like me ( late registered ) when i was applying for my passport they gave me hard time obtaining so many supporting documents just to get my passport. Since i have my BC from NSO, i still need my BC records in my home town local registry. I submitted also babtismal cert, school records,voter's affidavit,2 valid ID's like voter's and SSS.

[Karen_and_Jay 2]

i guess thats why they didnt accept her postal id because she has two different postal id.

She has 1 postal ID from her previous address, and 1 ID from her new address. To be honest, I don't know if she showed the DFA both postal IDs, but why should it matter? They are only evidence that she moved from one place to another!

document is a document and id is an id...

This doesn't help me at all! I am not from the Philippines, and I have no idea what these documents look like, and I don't know which are commonly used as IDs!

Plus, since the Baptismal Certificate, SSS-ID, School Form 137, Voter's Registration Record, etc. ALL show "full name, date and place of birth, and citizenship" as specified by the passport application for "Proof of ID", then why can only SOME of them be used as an ID?

I was hoping she could use the Baptismal Certificate and School Form 137, but she says these are both "documents" and she needs to get an "ID". Right now, she is going to get her SSS-ID.

she doesnt have voters id? or tell her to get a voters affidavit... how about philippine health insurance id?

She doesn't have either of these. Thanks for your help!