27 June 2014 – In preparation for the 2016 presidential election, the first Overseas Voter Registration Center (OVRC) in the Philippines was opened today, June 27, at the Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of Consular Affairs (DFA-OCA), ASEANA Business Park, Macapagal Boulevard, Parañaque City.

Filipino immigrants and overseas Filipino workers, including seafarers, who are about to travel abroad and are not yet registered overseas voters, may now register at the OVRC. Their overseas voter registration stub will also allow them access to the Passport Division’s Courtesy Lane, removing the need for appointment in applying for passport renewal.

DFA Undersecretary for Civil Security and Consular Concerns Rafael E. Seguis, who is concurrently the Chairman of the DFA-Overseas Voting Secretariat (DFA-OVS), Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Commissioner Lucenito Tagle, Chairman of the Office for Overseas Voting, DFA-OCA Assistant Secretary Wilfredo C. Santos, and DFA-OCA Executive Director Sulpicio M. Confiado led today’s opening ceremonies.

Overseas voters registration for this election cycle started last May 06 and will end on 31 October 2015. For the first month (May) of registration, Philippine Foreign Service Posts (FSPs) achieved record breaking figures. They processed a total of 18,631 new overseas voter registrant applications, a figure that is 111% higher than (8,819) the first month  of overseas voter registration for the 2013 senatorial elections; 64% more than (11,397) for the 2010 presidential election; and more than 630% over (2,543) the 2007 senatorial elections.

There are also plans to open OVRCs in the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA), Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). Plans to open OVRCs in Passport Satellite Offices in the National Capital Region (NCR) and at Regional Consular Offices in Cebu and Davao are under discussion.

All Filipino citizens who are at least 18 years old on 09 May 2016 and who expect to be abroad during the thirty-day overseas voting period in 2016 (09 April – 09 May 2016) may register as an overseas voter provided that they are not disqualified by law. They may register at all Philippine Foreign Service Posts (FSPs), the three Manila Economic and Cultural Offices (MECO) in Taiwan, DFA-OCA, and at other COMELEC-approved registration centers outside of the FSPs or in the Philippines.

The updated list of registration centers is available for viewing at www.dfa-oavs.gov.phor www.comelec.gov.ph. END