The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reports that more than 20 million Filipinos have completed Step 1 Registration for the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) as of 26 February 2021. Per the latest count, PSA has recorded a total of 20,133,869 registrants who completed Step 1 Registration.

This step, which involves the house-to-house collection of demographic information of low-income household heads and appointment setting for Step 2, recorded a total of 10.6 million registrants by the end of December 2020. Step 1 started on 12 October 2020 in 32 select provinces, which are considered as COVID-19 low-risk areas.

Following the achievement of its initial target, PSA is now looking to set its target registrations to 70 million this year. The target registrants will include vulnerable groups identified by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), such as frontline health workers, senior citizens, indigents, and uniformed personnel.

“Achieving the 70 million target this year would be an exceptional feat for the PSA and other agencies involved in the implementation. The success of the PhilSys necessitates the full support and commitment of government agencies, local government units, civil society organizations, the private sectors, and all Filipinos,” said PSA Undersecretary Dennis S. Mapa, Ph.D., National Statistician and Civil Registrar General. 

In addition, operations for Step 2 Registration continue to roll out on a gradual, small-scale basis in all the 32 provinces. Step 2 involves the validation of supporting documents and capture of biometric information, such as fingerprints, iris scans, and front-facing photographs at registration centers as per the registrants’ appointments. The house-to-house collection strategy of Step 1 and the appointment setting for Step 2 were arranged to adhere to health and safety protocols and minimize contact and possible health risks among registrants.

Registrant Marlo Dalisay shares his experience with the registration process. “Sa fingerprint scanning, umulit lang ako ng dalawa o tatlong beses. Kahit saang proseso ko ginagawa ang fingerprint scanning, marami talagang nagkakaproblema. Para sa akin, mas dagdag na seguridad ‘yun kasi sinisiguro talagang ‘yung mga marka ng kamay na ‘yun, iyo. Hindi siya mapepeke.”

“It was relatively easy. All you needed was one document, at least from my case. Isang document lang ‘yung kailangan. And there were several options, kung wala kayo ng document na ‘yun, you can have other documents ready,” said Registrant George William Hong.

PSA has also partnered with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) to enable registrants to open bank accounts on site after completing Step 2 Registration. With a formal identification to streamline financial services, Filipinos will be less vulnerable to informal lending practices that charge onerous interest rates.

“Inaanyayahan po namin ang mga PhilSys registrants na magtungo sa mga registration centers at magbukas ng Landbank transaction accounts,” said LANDBANK Tayug Branch Head Laarni Garbo. “Matapos po ninyong magparehistro sa national ID, lumapit lamang po sa LANDBANK booth para sa libreng LANDBANK Mastercard prepaid card. Kasabay ng pagbibigay ng pormal na identification sa ating mga registrants lalo na ang mga nasa laylayan, kasama ang LANDBANK sa paghahatid ng mga importanteng serbisyo sa ating mga mamamayan.”

Garbo further encouraged more Filipinos to register for PhilSys. “Huwag silang magdalawang-isip na kumuha ng PhilSys ID kasi madali lang naman, hindi mahirap ang proseso. Tsaka magiging ID mo ito sa lahat ng transaction na gagawin mo.”

The conduct of house-to-house Step 1 Registration will end on 31 March 2021. By April 2021, the PSA plans to open the online Step 1 Registration to the public, with tech-savvy youths as the primary target, banking on their expertise to encourage and help their family members to register via the PhilSys portal. Meanwhile, the ramp-up implementation of Step 2 Registration in all registration centers of the 32 provinces will start by mid of March 2021.

PhilSys registration will involve the completion of three steps. Step 3 registration, the third and final step, is the issuance of the PhilSys Number (PSN) and the physical ID or the PhilID. The PSN is a randomly generated number, and will serve as a permanent identification number for every registrant used for digital transactions. PSA partnered with PHLPost for the delivery of the PSN and PhilID to successful registrants.

For the latest information on PhilSys, please visit the official PhilSys website (www.psa.gov.ph/philsys) or Facebook page (www.facebook.com/PSAPhilSysOfficial/). You may also reach the PhilSys Registry Office via hotline number 1388 or e-mail at info@philsys.gov.ph.

-PhilSys Registry Office