An experience to remember: Philippine Consulate, Houston, Texas

August 1, 2023 at 8:52 am, No comments

By Dermiel R. Robles

Phoenix, Arizona - After 3 years of living in a foreign land, we felt proud and honored to be at the doorstep of the Philippine General Consulate in Houston, Texas. In our excitement, we took our souvenir photos in front of the Consulate before we do our business --renewing my wife's passport. We migrated to the US in February 2019 and stayed in Phoenix, Arizona.

We flew from Phoenix to Houston after we finalized the appointment at the Philippine Consulate General. We have mixed emotions while entering the premises of the Consulate General. We cannot explain how we felt at that time while waiting for our turn. We went to the Embassy to renew my wife's passport because we plan to spend the new year in our hometown together with our two Kids.

But all our excitement gradually disappeared because after following the procedures online on what to bring for our passport renewal, we never expect that we still lack something else. According to the DFA staff, we need to photocopy her passport and also a government ID that was issued to us. Aside from that, if we need our passport to be delivered to our home in Phoenix, we need to buy an envelope with a stamp on it. And the catch, this is not part of the DFA consular services. As per their instructions, you need to step out of the office and proceed to the other room, where someone will accommodate you on what you wanted, for this instance, to photocopy your documents (sounds familiar when doing business in the government offices in Manila).

For the photocopy, it will be $1 per copy (2 copies = $2), and the envelope with a stamp for the delivery will cost around $15 dollars. When completed, you will go back to the DFA office and submit the duplicate copy together with the envelope you bought. After this, you will proceed to the cashier to pay for the renewal processing which is pegged at $60 dollars. So the total expenses incur are around $78 these does not include the transportation, food, and accommodation plus the extra effort you exerted to make this thing possible.

And the funny and very unusual thing is that the DFA does not accept any debit and credit cards for payment, as per their posting on the window of the cashier, and even when you enter the DFA office, it is clearly stated no debit and credit card payment will be accepted, they will only accept cash for all transactions. It seems nothing wrong with this procedure at a glance, especially if you're in the Philippines. But this transaction is outside of the country wherein the majority of the business ventures are done digitally or computerized especially the manner of payment in settling your bill. And almost any business establishment in the US seldom asks for cash payment. Except for some small-scale establishments but they have a limit that will not go above $20.

Well, maybe I just expected too much, and maybe the Philippine Consular Office in Houston, Texas have their reason for this kind of service being provided to their countrymen. At any rate, it is still nice to see how our country improve a lot. PMAA.

An experience to remember: Philippine Consulate, Houston, Texas

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