Overseas Filipino Workers in Oman and around the world are in great delight as we entered the New Year because, the validity of our passport is already extended to 10 years – finally. This is a great relief and can save us time and money especially to those kababayan who doesn’t have much time to renew their passport in the Consular offices or worst is that some of us are located in far from the nearest Embassy.
As the topic about passport is growing every day, many of our kababayans have a lot of questions about it. So we have come up with a detailed information about Philippine passport especially when you are currently based in Oman this will be very helpful when you need answers.
For those who are not in Oman, the only difference in this information is the cost and contact details.
Requirements for Renewal of Passport
- Personal appearance is required (for picture, signature and thumbmarks capturing).
- Duly accomplished application form.
- Original latest passport.
- In case of minor children (17 years old and below), submit a copy of parents’ passports.
- Passport renewal fee of R.O. 24.000.
- In case of late renewal (expired for more than two (2) months), submit an affidavit of explanation which will be charged the usual fee of R.O.10.000.
Additional Requirements:
For married women, who want to use surname of their spouse
- Marriage Certificate (MC) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) duly authenticated by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) if married in the Philippines or Report of Marriage issued by a Philippine Embassy or Consulate where the marriage was registered.
For married women who would like to revert back to their maiden name
- If already widowed: Death Certificate of the deceased husband, authenticated by DFA.
- If marriage is annulled: NSO Marriage Certificate / ROM with annotation on the dissolution of marriage, duly authenticated by DFA.
- If divorced: Certified true copy and photocopy of the first page and the dispositive portion of the judgment on divorce secured by foreign spouse authenticated by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate where the divorce is obtained.
Requirements for Lost Passport
- Personal appearance is required (for picture, signature and thumbmarks capturing).
- Duly accomplished application form.
- Affidavit of loss explaining the circumstances surrounding the loss of the passport (3 copies).
- Newspaper publication of the lost passport (3 copies).
- Police Report with English translation (3 copies).
- Photocopy of the lost passport and labor card.
- Letter request from the sponsor/employer for replacement of lost passport.
- Fee of R.O. 70.000.
Requirements for Newly-Born Child
- Personal appearance is required (for picture capturing).
- Duly accomplished application form, personally signed by either father or mother.
- Duly accomplished Report of Birth form (must be made in 4 copies).
- Photocopy of parents’ passport and labor card (4 copies).
- Authenticated Marriage Contract of parents-National Statistics Office (NSO), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) – (4 copies).
- Birth Certificate of child in English translation duly attested by the Oman Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Original and 3 photocopies).
- Fee of R.O. 34.000.
- In case of late registration of birth (more than 30 days from the date of issuance of birth certificate), additional fee of R.O. 10.000 will be charged.
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
- The release date of passports is usually due eight (8) weeks after the date of application.
- Passports shall only be released to the applicant or his/her representative (with proper identification and written authorization signed by applicant). Exemptions are applicants below 18 years old whose passport can be claimed by the parent/guardian who submitted and signed the application. To claim the passport, bring the previous passport and official receipt, and authorization (for representative claimants). No passport shall be released without the said documents.
PASSPORT FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)
Q: When should I renew my passport?
A: A passport with at least six (6) months’ validity is a standard requirement for international travel. In view of the long turnaround for the processing of a Philippine passport (around two months), Filipinos living overseas are therefore advised to renew their passports several months before expiry. We recommend eight months, or preferably, 9 months before its expiration to account for any possible delays in the transmission of the passport to the Embassy.
While the passport is being processed, you will continue to hold on to your present passport. This will ensure that you will be able to leave Oman for any emergency. Your present passport will be cancelled only when the new passport has arrived. When claiming the new passport, please bring the old passport as it will be cancelled in front of you. Filipino professionals who go on frequent travels are advised to submit their applications even earlier, and have their passport renewed long before all the pages have been used up.
There is no option for an applicant to apply for a passport with more than the standard number of pages under the current Philippine passport system; the number of pages is fixed.
Please be informed also that due to technical problems at the processing end in Manila, delays in the transmittal of printed passports to the Embassy occur occasionally. The Embassy is not informed by Manila as to the exact date that a (particular) passport will be sent to the Embassy, due to the way the system operates. Rest assured, however, that efforts are underway in Manila to resolve this situation of delay in the processing of certain passports.
Q: I am in urgent need of a passport and cannot wait for eight weeks. Please “expedite” my passport.
A: The Embassy regrets to inform you that there is no “expedite” process for Philippine Foreign Service Posts. Since all Philippine passports are printed in Manila, the Embassy is unable to accommodate “expedite” requests. In other words, the processing time cannot be shortened on a personal request. However, while the new passport is being made in Manila, you will continue to hold your present passport, which means you can still use it for employment purposes or for travel, if it is still valid.
Q: How would I know if my passport has arrived already from Manila?
A: You will receive an SMS notification from the Embassy once your passport is ready for release. Please refrain from following up if only six (6) weeks has passed. As mentioned at the very beginning of the application process, the normal processing time for a passport to arrive from Manila is eight (8) weeks. After seven (7) weeks, however, you may wish to follow up with the Consular Section. Please send a message entitled “Update on Passport Release” to muscatpe@omantel.net.om, copy furnished to muscatpeconsular@yahoo.com. Please include in the message your full name, contact numbers and the date of your application in the Embassy.
Q: I cannot personally collect my passport. Can someone collect it for me?
A: Yes, you may authorize someone else to collect it for you, as long as you issue an authorization letter, with a photocopy of your ID or old passport, plus your present passport (which will be cancelled). For office workers, please note that you can claim your passport during lunch break, as the claiming counters are open from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm.
