Passports

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
MACHINE-READABLE PASSPORT

The Philippine Consulate General will implement the Machine-Readable Passport (MRP) program on August 1, 2008. The MRP will replace the manually-scripted green passport.
After August 1, 2008, the Consulate will cease to issue the green passport.
The processing time for an MRP is at least six weeks. All Philippine MRPs are processed at one central facility in Manila.
The Consulate will process the passport applications only of persons residing in New South Wales.

FIRST TIME APPLICANTS
First-time applicants are Filipino citizens who have not yet been issued a Philippine passport.

1. Applicants must make a personal appearance at the Philippine Consulate. Applicants less than eight years old (who can then be represented by either parent) and more than 65 years old are exempt from this requirement.
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form.
3. Report of Birth of the applicant issued by either the Philippine Embassy or Philippine Consulate, If the applicant was born outside of the Philippines
4. Three (3) identical passport photographs (size: 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm), taken within the last six months. The photographs must be taken against a royal blue background. The subject must wear a collared shirt with sleeves. Refer to the section on the Guidelines for the Passport Photograph.
5. A non-refundable passport processing fee of AUD 65.00. The fee is paid either in cash, or as a commercial bank cheque or postal money order payable to the “Philippine Consulate General in Sydney”.
6. The Consulate reserves the right to require the submission of further documents if deemed necessary.

Passport Renewals
Passport renewal refers to the replacement of a passport that will expire in six (6) months or that has expired. It is a widely recommended practice to renew the passport six months before expiry, because airlines usually do not issue plane tickets to a passport with less than six months’ validity. Many embassies and consulates also refuse to issue a visa to passports with less than six months validity.

1. Applicants must make a personal appearance at the Philippine Consulate. Applicants less than eight years old (who can then be represented by either parent) and more than 65 years old are exempt from this requirement.
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form.
3. Original Philippine passport
4. Photocopy of the passport’s first page, last page, and Australian visa page.
5. Three (3) identical passport photographs (size: 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm), taken within the last six months. The photographs must be taken against a royal blue background. The subject must wear a collared shirt with sleeves. Refer to the section on the Guidelines for the Passport Photograph.
6. A non-refundable passport processing fee of AUD 65.00. The fee is paid either in cash, or as a commercial bank cheque or postal money order payable to the “Philippine Consulate General in Sydney”.
7. The Consulate reserves the right to require the submission of further documents if deemed necessary.

In addition:

1. Applicants who have been granted permanent residency status in Australia for two (2) or more years must submit a Certificate of Evidence of Resident Status (Form 283) issued by DIAC within three (3) months at the date of application.

Replacement of a Lost Passport
The Consulate replaces lost Philippine passports, but it will require certain documents for the administrative procedures. The Consulate must also verify the details of the lost passport, which will take at least 15 days. Only after the said verification will the Consulate begin the process of the replacement passport.

1. Personal appearance of applicant for an interview. The Consulate must ascertain the circumstances of the loss of the passport and some details of the lost passport.
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form.
3. Three (3) identical passport photographs (size: 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm), taken within the last six months. The photographs must be taken against a royal blue background. The subject must wear a collared shirt with sleeves. Refer to the section on the Guidelines for the Passport Photograph.
4. A non-refundable passport processing fee of AUD 65.00. The fee is paid either in cash, or as a commercial bank cheque or postal money order payable to the “Philippine Consulate General in Sydney”.

Additional requirements:

1. If the lost passport has expired, an Affidavit of Loss explaining the details of the circumstances surrounding the loss of the passport. The Consulate will charge a notarial fee of AUD 32.50 for the notarisation of the Affidavit of Loss.
2. If lost passport is still valid, both a written Police Report and Affidavit of Loss.
3. If lost passport was issued in the Philippines or by another Philippine Embassy or Consulate, the Consulate must verify the details of the lost passport with the issuing station. The applicant must pay a verification fee of AUD 13.00.  The verification will take at least 15 days.
4. If verification result is negative (no previous record of the lost passport was found), the applicant has to submit an authenticated Birth Certificate from the Philippine National Statistics Office (NSO) and other Philippine document to establish his/her identity.
5. Applicants who have been granted permanent residency status in Australia for two (2) or more years must submit a Certificate of Evidence of Resident Status (Form 283) issued by DIAC within three (3) months at the date of application.
6. Applicants who are not permanent residents may be required additional documents and interview, as may be deemed by the consular officer.

Amendment of Name In Passport (for women who marry and adopt the husband’s surname)
The previous passport regime allowed women who married and adopted the husband’s surname by amendment. The MRP system requires a married woman adopting her husband’s name to acquire a new passport. Therefore, amendment of the passport is no longer possible under the new MRP system.
If the female applicant married in Australia or in any country outside the Philippines

1. Applicants must make a personal appearance at the Philippine Consulate. The only exemption to this are applicants age more than 65 years old.
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form.
3. Original Philippine passport
4. Photocopy of the passport’s first page, last page, and Australian visa page.
5. Three (3) identical passport photographs (size: 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm), taken within the last six months. The photographs must be taken against a royal blue background. The subject must wear a collared shirt with sleeves. Refer to the section on the Guidelines for the Passport Photograph.
6. Original Report of Marriage issued by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate General where marriage was reported. The Report of Marriage is required even if the woman did not adopt her husband’s name.
7. Photocopy of Item (6).
8. Applicants who have been granted permanent residency status in Australia for two (2) or more years must submit a Certificate of Evidence of Resident Status (Form 283) issued by DIAC within three (3) months at the date of application.
9. A non-refundable passport processing fee of AUD 65.00. The fee is paid either in cash, or as a commercial bank cheque or postal money order payable to the “Philippine Consulate General in Sydney”.
10. The Consulate reserves the right to require the submission of further documents if deemed necessary.

If the female applicant married in the Philippines

1. Applicants must make a personal appearance at the Philippine Consulate. The only exemption to this are applicants age more than 65 years old.
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form.
3. Original Philippine passport.
4. Photocopy of the passport’s first page, last page, and Australian visa page.
5. Three (3) identical passport photographs (size: 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm), taken within the last six months. The photographs must be taken against a royal blue background. Refer to the section on the Guidelines for the Passport Photograph.
6. Certified True Copy of the Contract of Marriage issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO).
7. Photocopy of item (6)
8. Applicants who have been granted permanent residency status in Australia for two (2) or more years must submit a Certificate of Evidence of Resident Status (Form 283) issued by DIAC within three (3) months at the date of application.
9. A non-refundable passport processing fee of AUD 65.00. The fee is paid either in cash, or as a commercial bank cheque or postal money order payable to the “Philippine Consulate General in Sydney”.
10. The Consulate reserves the right to require the submission of further documents if deemed necessary.