The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said that the Philippine government is planning on having a mass registration for the National ID for overseas Filipino workers by mid-2020.
The NEDA said in a statement that OFWs from different parts of the world will be part of the multiphase registration programme for the national ID or the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) which will begin next year.
“We are on track as regards the roll-out of PhilSys. We hope to open up registration to targeted communities and release the first batch of IDs late this year. By 2020, we expect the registration system to be more established allowing for more Filipinos to avail of the service,” Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said.
According to the statement, OFWs can start registering for the National ID during the third phase which is expected to take place by July 2020 to June 2022.
“Phase 3 will undertake mass registration of 110,000,000 Filipinos and resident aliens, including OFWs,” Pernia said.
It can be recalled that President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law regarding the issuance of the National ID back in August last year.
Among the benefits of the national ID include:
– The ID will serve as an official government-issued identification document
– It can be used when applying for a passport and driver’s license
– It will reduce the cost of having to apply for multiple valid IDs
– It can be used for voting registration and identification
– Opening bank accounts and tax-related transactions
Those who will register for the national ID will be given a Common Reference Number (CRN) with their personal information including their full name, sex, blood type, date of birth, place of birth, marital status, address, and a front facing photo.
The ID will consolidate government-issued IDs such as PhilHealth, GSIS, Pag-ibig, SSS, NBI, TIN, postal ID, barangay, and voter’s ID, driving license and passports.
