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Philippine senate begins hearing proposals to extend passport validity to 10 years

In response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s bid to amend a 20-year-old law extending the validity of Philippine passports to 10 years, six senators have  filed several measures to extend passport validity.

Those who filed the bill are Senators Richard Gordon, Cynthia Villar, Loren Legarda, Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara and Minority Floor Leader Ralph Recto. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, chaired by Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, will begin hearing proposals on Tuesday, October 4, 2016.

“This amendment is a measure that will enable us to comply with President Duterte’s directive to avoid long queues for government services,” Villar said in filing Senate Bill No. (SBN) 324.

Here is the link for the senate press release on proposals extending passport validity to 10 years.