By Vir B. Lumicao
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| Passport issuance in HK was delayed by up to more than a month |
The release of new passports to Filipinos in Hong Kong has returned
to normal following the arrival of 2,000 pieces of the travel document from
Manila on Monday, Jan 16, according to a Consulate official.
The delivery has eased concerns over passport delays which
Consulate officials said were due to the backlog in Manila over the long
Christmas and New Year holidays.
Vice Consul Fatima Quintin, head of the passport section,
told The SUN in an interview on Jan 19 that the owners of the passports that
had been delayed for at least a week had already been notified.
“As we had promised the applicants, if their passports don’t
arrive on the scheduled date, we’ll text them; when the passports arrive, we
also text them,” said Quintin.
This was confirmed by a Filipina worker who rushed to the
Consulate at 4:45pm on Jan 19 to pick up her passport, as she was going home on
Jan 22 due to a family emergency.
“Tinawagan ako dahil dumating na raw ang passport ko,
hihintayin daw nila ako hanggang 5:30pm,” the helper told The SUN inside the
lift.
The counters at the public hall were already closed when she
got there, but, true enough a staff waited for her in the passport section and
reopened the releasing window when she knocked on the door.
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| Delay in the processing of applications happened in Manila |
Shipments of new passports from Manila arrive every Monday,
so the Consulate is expecting the delivery of just about the same number, or
2,000, on Jan 23, Quintin said. On rare occasions a small number arrive in
special pouches which cost more.
Quintin said processing time was back to normal this past
week. She said when the shipment arrived on Monday night, her staff worked
double time sorting them and contacting the owners.
Processing varies from three weeks to three months,
depending on the correctness of the entries.
The official urged OFWs to apply for renewal of their
passports at least eight months before the travel documents expire so there
would be an allowance for delays. Or as early as possible if they want their
new visas stamped on their new passports.
Meanwhile, Quintin warned OFWs against using their passports
as collateral for loans, as they would definitely have a hard time getting a
replacement.
“We are very strict on that,” she said, adding that many
have been doing that and the Consulate is keeping an eye on the malpractice.
She said the Consulate’s policy today is to require each applicant
to declare if he has used his passport as collateral. If he said no but was
found to have done so, he would be subject to clearance from DFA and would have
a bad record.
“Please warn them that it is against the law,” Quintin said.
