Philippine Passports must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of departure. DFA suggests that you renew your passport 6 to 10 months before the date of expiration.
Flight bookings should only be made if passports are still valid for at least six (6) months.
DFA requires the 6-month passport validity rule because the Philippine Bureau of Immigration lists the 6-month rule as a requirement for Philippine citizens who like to travel abroad.
The Bureau of Immigration requires every citizen who travels abroad to have an unexpired DFA-issued passport that is valid for at least 6 months. For Philippine citizens who will travel abroad as tourists, a return ticket is also required.
What are the OFW travel requirements? OFW travel requirements are the following:
- Unexpired passport;
- Unexpired and POEA-conforming visa;
- Validly-issued travel tickets; and
- POEA/PESO-database issued E-receipt or OEC.
There is no way to circumvent this passport 6-month rule. Even travel agencies say passports have to be more than 6 months valid because the Philippine immigrations require it and they can hold your departure if not more than 6 months valid.
Remember that the 6-month passport validity rule is strictly applied to Filipino citizens going abroad.
You might ask, what if I am working abroad or a tourist residing abroad and my passport is less than six months before expiration, Am I required to renew my passport?
The embassy said that if the passport is nearing expiration (less than six months validity) and the passport holder will soon return to the Philippines for good, there is no need to apply for a new passport or to extend the validity of the passport.
Filipinos making one-way travel to the Philippines and whose passport is nearing expiry are allowed to purchase a direct airline trip to the Philippines and enter the Philippines.
The passport 6-month validity rule is not an exclusive Philippine rule. International travel and immigration authorities of all countries require at least 6 months of validity on a passport to be allowed entry into a country. In Singapore for instance, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) requires at least 2 years of validity for Pass renewal.
The Embassy of the Philippines in Singapore recommends that you apply for a new passport about 9 months before your passport’s expiration date. However, for considerations such as Pass renewal, the depletion of visa pages in the passport, applying for a travel or immigration visa in a foreign embassy, or other meritorious needs, the Embassy will allow application for a new passport a year or more before the current passport’s expiration.