Assistant Secretary Frank Cimafranca of the DFA Office of Consular Affairs MATIKAS SANTOS / 蜜桃工作室 FILE PHOTO
Thousands of appointment slots for passport renewal and application are now open, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced聽on Thursday.
Assistant Secretary Frank Cimafranca of the Office of Consular Affairs said an additional 94,350 slots were opened from July to August, while thousands more will be opened聽tomorrow,聽Aug. 25, for September appointments.
鈥淭he goal is to serve as many people as we can efficiently and effectively, so those slots had to be cleaned up. And that鈥檚 what we did,鈥澛燙imafranca聽said in a statement.
Of the slots opened last month,聽Cimafranca said they added聽62,450 more after the DFA increased its quotas. The remaining 31,900 came from the cleaning up of bogus appointments created by unscrupulous individuals, he added.
Cimafranca said they also increased the number of personnel processing documents and applications.
鈥淔or example, in the Aseana office, the DFA鈥檚 main processing center for passports, the increase in personnel has resulted in a 73.6 percent increase in the capacity to accept and process daily appointments鈥攆rom 1,900 to 3,300,鈥� the DFA official said.
The increase in personnel also led to the moving up to earlier dates of about 900 appointments, and reduced the suspended applications under investigation from 33,000 on Aug. 2 to zero as of Aug. 18, Cimafranca said.
鈥淟et鈥檚 take one step at a time. But so far, so good,鈥� he added.
To prevent the unnecessary use of slots, Cimafranca also reminded that senior citizens, persons with disabilities, solo parents, pregnant women and minors (seven years old and below) may just walk in without prior appointment with the DFA when renewing or applying for passports.
鈥淭hey may use the courtesy lane upon arrival, and make a presentation of their respective IDs,鈥� said Cimafranca.
He also advised the public that appointment slots are free and聽fixers should not be entertained. JPV