Senate OKs bill extending passport validity to 10 years

The Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a bill extending the validity of Philippine passports from the present five years to 10 years, a proposed measure seen to immensely benefit OFWs.
Senate Bill No. 1365 or the Philippine Passport Act was approved with 18 affirmative votes.
The bill was authored by Senators Richard Gordon, Cynthia Villar, Ralph Recto, JV Ejercito, Loren Legarda, Sonny Angara, Joel Villanueva, Grace Poe, and Alan Peter Cayetano.
Villar, vice-chairperson of the Senate foreign relations committee, said the proposal will make travel abroad easier, especially for OFWs.
“We owe a lot to our OFWs. They keep our economy afloat with their remittances of approximately $50 billion annually. Giving them a 10-year guarantee on their right to travel abroad will certainly be a great help to them,” Villar said.
Ejercito also welcomed the approval of the bill.
“I am glad that the Senate is quick to pass this measure which will surely reduce the wastage of government and citizens’ resources," he said in a statement.
Under the proposal, regular passports shall be valid for a period of 10 years. Those 18 years old and under, however, shall be issued passports with a five-year validity.
The House of Representatives has approved the counterpart measure in February.  —KBK, GMA News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

POPCOM, gagamit ng ‘digital platforms’ para pagtibayin ang mga ugnayang pampamilya

Mas pinalalawig ng Komisyon sa Populasyon at Pagpapaunlad (POPCOM) ang adhikain nitong pagpapalaganap at pagpapabuti ng pakikipag-ugnayan ng mga nakakatandang Pilipino sa kanilang mga anak na nagdadalaga at nagbibinata. Nitong Setyembre 21, ang POPCOM ay nagsagawa ng isang “parent-teen talk webinar” gamit ang Zoom, kung saan ang isang “interactive program” ang nagbigay ng naaayon na kaalaman at kasanayan sa mga magulang, habang tumulong ito sa mga anak na teenager na maabot ang kanilang buong potensyal. Hinikayat din nito ang mga nanay at tatay na sumali sa malayang usapan, lalo na sa mga usapin ukol sa sex at sekswalidad, na nakikitang makakatulong upang bumaba ang mga bilang ng mga pagbubuntis sa hanay ng mga kabataan. Maaaring mapanood ang webinar sa https://youtu.be/lZ9jrJCjYas. Ayon kay Ikalawang Kalihim (Undersecretary) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH, “ang webinar ay naging isang tagapag-simula at ‘padaluyan’ ng pag-uu
Read more

In Cairo, senior Hamas officials discuss hostage deal with Egyptian intelligence chief ---By TOI STAFF, AGENCIES and LAZAR BERMAN

Delegation said led by terror group’s Qatar-based political leader Ismail Haniyeh; Wall Street Journal reports Hamas demanding 150 security prisoners for each female soldier A delegation of senior Hamas officials arrived in Cairo on Thursday for talks with Egyptian officials on a possible deal that would see the release of hostages held by terrorists in Gaza. The delegation was led by Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who lives in Qatar, and included senior members Mousa Abu Marzook and Khalil al-Hayya, the Qatar-based Al-Araby news outlet reported, citing an unnamed Egyptian source. The Hamas officials met with the head of Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel, to discuss the details of a hostage deal proposal that was presented to the Gaza terror group earlier this week by Qatari and Egyptian mediators. The outline of the deal was drawn up during a meeting in Paris last week in the presence of Israeli and US officials, as well as Qatari and Egyptian negotiators, a
Read more

LIST: 21 medicines added to VAT-exempt list Ian Laqui - Philstar.com

Pixabay MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has expanded its list of medicines which are exempt from the value added tax (VAT). Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 17-2024 released by the tax bureau exempted 21 medications following the endorsement of the Food and Drug Administration. The VAT-exempted medications on the list are for conditions such as cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, kidney disease, mental illness and tuberculosis. Below is the full list of additional VAT-exempted medications: For cancer Panitumumab (100mg/5ml) (concentrate solution for infusion) Fulvestrant (50mg/ml) (concentrate solution for infusion) For diabetes Teneligliptin (as hydrobromide hydrate) (20 mg) Sitagliptin (as phospate monohydrate) + Metformin HCI (50mg/500mg) Sitagliptin (50 mg) Sitagliptin (10 mg) Metformin Hydrochloride (500 mg) For high cholesterol Atorvastatin Calcium (20 mg) Atorvastatin + Fenofibrate (40 mg/160 mg) For mental illness Desvenlafaxine
Read more