Pilot run for national ID registration to start in December

Authorities will start a pilot run to register residents under the Philippine ID System (PhilSys) in December.
National Statistician Lisa Grace Bersales said they will start a pilot run in the coming months. The PhilSys Policy and Coordination Council has also started work to craft policies and guidelines earlier this month.
Republic Act No. 11055 signed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte takes effect this Saturday, Aug. 25. The law creates a central identification platform for all citizens and resident foreigners in the Philippines, which will effectively do away with the need to claim and present various government-issued IDs for personal and financial transactions.
Ms. Bersales added that the initial PhilSys registration will be conducted for specific residents of Metro Manila, the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon), and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). The state will prioritize households receiving conditional cash transfers under the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
These regions are also where the offices of the Philippine Postal Corp. are “most accessible,” as these will be used as registration sites.
Others to be prioritized are senior citizens and persons with disabilities.
The government is targeting to get 25 million Filipinos on board every year until 2021. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez