Machine Readable Passport - 27 May 2010

The Embassy is pleased to inform the public of the following options now open to all passport applicants to save them the time and expense of travelling to Wellington to fulfill the requirement for personal appearance.  Passport applicants are advised to read the following instructions carefully and make sure that the details of the requirements are strictly followed to avoid unnecessary delays in the processing of their passports:

OPTION 1 : Holders of the green Machine-Readable Ready Passports (MRRP) or maroon Machine Readable Passports (MRP) who need to extend the validity of their passports for urgent travel purposes (i.e. expired passport; work visa/work permit that are soon to expire; and other meritorious reasons) may now apply for extension of their passports at this Embassy by courier post. The said passports will be extended for a maximum of two (2) years. They are advised to apply for an e-Passport in Manila before returning to their country of work or residence (New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji, Samoa or Cook Islands). Processing time for passport extension with this Embassy is one (1) week. The requirements are as follows:

1. Duly accomplished Application Form for Passport Extension (click here to download) with two (2) passport sized photos with white background;
2. Philippine passport;
3. Bank check or money order of NZ$28.00 payable to the Philippine Embassy;
4. Prepaid self-addressed courier bag.

In case of a mutilated or lost green Machine-Readable Ready Passport or maroon Machine Readable Passport, the Embassy shall issue a travel document upon submission of the following requirements:

1. Personal Appearance of Applicant;
2. Duly accomplished Passport Application Form (click here to download);
3. Three (3) passport photos with white or royal blue background;
4. Photocopy of the first and last page of the mutilated / lost passport, if available;
5. Original Birth Certificate from the National Statistics Office and Marriage Contract for married women;
6. Police Report and Affidavit of Loss (click here to download) duly notarized and signed before a consular officer/notary public or a solicitor stating the circumstances under which the loss of passport occurred. Indicate the passport number, date and place of issue.
7. Other supporting documents which will establish applicant’s identity as Filipino citizen, i.e. marriage certificate, school records, voter’s affidavit and baptismal certificate showing date and place of birth.
8. NZ$42.00 processing fee in bank cheque , money order or cash.

Travel documents are valid only for one (1) month from date of issuance. A travel document may be claimed on the same day of application.

OPTION 2: Those who would like to replace their expiring green passports (MRRP) with the Machine-Readable Passports (MRP) that are valid for five (5) years may file their applications by courier post with the Embassy and make their personal appearance before the Philippine Honorary Consulate General/Consulate closest to their respective areas of residence. Processing time is six (6) to seven (7) weeks. Following are the steps to follow in applying under this option:

1. The passport applicant mails his passport application to the Embassy for processing with the following requirements:

1. duly accomplished Passport Application Form;
2. photocopy of the old passport’s first and last page;
3. four (4) photos with royal blue background;
4. the old Philippine passport;
5. bank check or money order of NZ$70.00 payable to the Philippine Embassy, Wellington for the processing fee;
6. one (1) long brown folder for paper size 8.5” x 14” to protect the sensitive features of the MRP-CGF that may be destroyed if the form getsfolded.
7. three (3) pre-paid courier bags size 270mm x 370mm (1 addressed to the Honorary Consulate General/Consulate closest to the applicant’s area of residence ; 1 addressed to the Philippine Embassy, Wellington ; 1 addressed to the applicant) . Please note that these three (3) pre-paid courier bags must be placed inside the courier bag that you will be using when submitting these requirements to the Embassy. The size should be as specified or big enough to fit in the long brown (8.5” x 14”) folder without getting folded.

2. The Embassy processes the application and issues the Machine-Readable Passport Computer-Generated Form (MRP-CGF) which is then forwarded by Courier Post to the Philippine Honorary Consulate General/Consulate closest to the applicant’s area of residence.
3. The Philippine Honorary Consulate General/Consulate contacts the applicant for personal appearance and requests him/her to confirm the encoded data in the Machine-Readable Passport-Computer Generated Form (MRP-CGF). The applicant will be asked to affix his signature and thumb marks on the MRP-CGF in the presence of the Philippine Honorary Consular official. The Honorary Consulate General/Consulate will immediately inform the Embassy if any error is found in the data printed in the MRP-CGF and the latter will issue a corrected MRP-CGF for the applicant.
4. As soon as the applicant’s personal appearance, biometrics and data have been verified by the Honorary Consulate General/Consulate, the duly signed and thumb-marked MRP-CGF will be mailed back to the Embassy together with the Honorary Consul General/Consul’s certification. The applicant has to pay the Honorary Consulate General/Consulate a verification fee of NZ$35.00 for this particular service.
5. The Philippine Honorary Consulate General/Consulate will mail back the verified MRP-CGF to the Embassy for onward transmittal to DFA Manila.
6. The Embassy will send to the applicant via courier post the new passport together with the cancelled old passport.

The Embassy wishes to remind all passport applicants to comply with the requirements as specified above (i.e. number and size of courier bags and folder). Failure to comply with the aforementioned requirements will only cause delays in the processing of your passports as well as unnecessary additional expenses on your part.

Following are the Philippine Honorary Consulate General/Consulates under this Embassy’s jurisdiction:

Philippine Honorary Consulate General in Auckland Consul General, ad honorem:

Mrs. Emilie P. Shi
Address: Level 4, 15 Huron St. , Takapuna, Auckland
Telephone No.: +64 9 909 6184
Fax No.: +64 9 489 8735
Website: www.philconsul.org.nz
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Philippine Honorary Consulate in Christchurch Consul, ad honorem :

Mr. Edric Peter Wait
Address: 230A Clyde Road, Fendalton, Christchurch
Telefax No. (643) 351-8602 / fax no. (643) 351-8605
E-mail address: epwait[@]globe.net.nz

Philippine Honorary Consulate in Suva, Fiji Consul, ad honorem:

Dr. Virgilio de Asa
Address: 62 Ratu Sukuna Road, Nasese, Suva, Fiji
Telephone No.: (679)331-4450
Fax No. : (679) 330-3655
Mobile No.: (679) 9979-924
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

(Sgd.)
MARCOS A.S. PUNSALANG Charge d’ Affaires, a.i.

27 May 2010