Penalty In Renewing Philippine Passport With Less Than 6-Month Validity?

This is the question that crossed my mind the same as one of the readers.

I didn’t give it much thought before but on this blog post I’ll answer “If there is a penalty in renewing a Philippine Passport with less than 6-month validity?”

Here’s the short answer.

NO. There’s no penalty if you want to renew the Philippine passport even if it is going to expire in less than six months.

You can even travel back to the Philippines but be aware of the consequences on your way back. More onto that later.

In (almost) every post I wrote about the Philippine passport, I keep on reminding Filipinos to immediately renew the passport before it reaches the 6-month validity.

Although I sound annoying which is a fact; here is another fact to enlighten us with the magic number six. Why only six months? How about twelve months.

Counting Passport Validity

As you can see on the list, Philippines and other countries have adapted the 6-month passport validity on arrival. Some even require less.

Countries requiring passport validity of at least 6 months on arrival:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Cambodia, Comoros, Côte d’Ivoire, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, Guyana, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq (except when arriving at Basra – 3 months and Erbil or Sulaimaniyah – on arrival), Israel, Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Namibia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Venezuela, and Vietnam.

Countries requiring passport validity of at least 4 months on arrival: Micronesia and Zambia.

Countries requiring passport validity of at least 3 months on arrival:

Georgia, Honduras, Iceland, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Moldova, Nauru, Panama, United Arab Emirates, and Schengen Area.

Countries requiring passport validity of at least 1 months on arrival:

Eritrea, Hong Kong, Macao, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Can’t find a country? Other countries require the passport holder to present valid passport or valid throughout the period of intended stay.

Consequences of Using a Philippine Passport with  Less Than 6-Month Validity

I decided to explore the effects of using a passport beyond the required validity period on arrival to the destination.

Scenario #1: Going back to the Philippines.

I’ve stumbled upon the blog, Best Life Qatar by Zeke on which he wrote about his experience of travelling in the Philippines beyond the 6-month passport validity.

Through the post, I’ve learned the travel requirements for Philippine citizens with tourist-purpose visa:

1. Unexpired DFA-issued passport (at least six-months valid)
2. Unexpired visa (if visa-required at final destination)
3. Return ticket

It’s a fortunate story for one of our kababayan. Let me know in the comment if you have the same fate.

While we may all wish to travel in the Philippines without getting into trouble, this may not happen for some.

If you happen to run out of time and somehow manage to come out of the airport with reminders (that sound more like sermon) from the airport officer, make sure to get new passport in the Philippines:

• Regular processing (20 working days) for Php 950.00
• Express processing (10 working days) for Php 1,200.00

So you do have different options to avoid traveller’s nightmare here in Canada and in the Philippines.

For the unfortunate who is caught up with the nightmare of having an expired Philippine passport, a Travel Document is the last resort, but ONLY in case of emergency.

While reading stories about the scenario of going back to the Philippines and daring the policy and authority, I wondered how things will turn out in a different country.

Scenario #2: Arriving in countries other than the Philippines.

I have to include this part because this just might be the motivation needed for our kababayan to always have a valid passport and renew at least a year prior to expiration.

(That’s a lot of leeway for a segurista and planner.)

Here comes the series of unfortunate events not only for Philippine passport holder but to anyone who do NOT comply with the policy of passport validity:

• A US citizen was denied entry to the Philippines.
• An Australian citizen was denied to board the flight to Bali, Indonesia.
• Some agencies wouldn’t confirm the passport validity requirement of the destination. It is your duty to know the facts.

Again, do not take the risk of ruining your trip. Plan everything ahead of time.

The stories I’ve discovered were just few of the stories available on the Internet. What about the untold stories not found in forums and blogs.

Although I love hearing inspiring stories for this post, I’ll appreciate stories with travel lessons from unpleasant experience. If you have a story to tell, can you leave a comment.

Resources for Travellers

Everything should be clear by now: follow the rules.

To help you conform with the foreign policies regarding passport validity, I added a few more resources:

• Government of Canada: Travel Advice and Advisories – learn the latest travel update before leaving from Canada. Find out the entry/exit requirements and more.

Where to Renew the Philippine Passport

• Philippine Consulate General in Calgary
• Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver
• Philippine Embassy and Consulates in Canada

Tip: You have many choices in getting a new Philippine passport. You can book an online appointment, walk in, and visit a consular outreach program all while you are in Canada.

I run out of reminders and tips to write about but maybe you have some. Leave a comment.

Resources: Wikipedia: Passport validity and ripadvisor.

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