MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) pledged to expedite acquiring a passport by forming new measures to enhance the existing appointment system on Thursday.
The existing process forbids on-site form modifications, forcing applicants to reapply online and pay once again for the appointment.
According to the new Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, Henry Bensurto Jr., this has immediately caught his attention. He said that he already made changes to address this issue quickly.
” I have already made instructions to start the process of simplifying this, allowing the system to make that correction on the spot based on the documents that are presented.”
Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, Henry Bensurto Jr.
He projected that the problem would be resolved no later than October 2022.
Bensurto also cited that the department is considering options such as increasing the number of available appointment slots and opening up temporary passport service centers and consular offices in other locations.
He further revealed that they will open a new consular office in Kidapawan, bringing the total number of consular offices in the country up to 36.
“Obviously, when we look at the system, there are short-term things that you can do, medium-term, and there’s also the long-term. And so we continue to assess the long-term strategy on how to simplify this and we continue to do that, with the end in view that we can make that process more efficient,” he said.