Philippine Identification System Act

The Philippine Identification System Act, also known as the PhilSys Law[1] and officially designated as Republic Act No. 11055, is a Philippine law that provides for the basis of for the Philippine government's national identity document system known as the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys).

Philippine Identification System Act
Congress of the Philippines
  • An Act Establishing the Philippine Identification System
CitationRepublic Act No. 11055
Territorial extent Philippines
Passed byHouse of Representatives of the Philippines
PassedSeptember 8, 2017
Passed bySenate of the Philippines
PassedMarch 19, 2018
Signed byPresident Rodrigo Duterte
SignedAugust 6, 2018
Legislative history
First chamber: House of Representatives of the Philippines
Bill titleAn Act Establishing the Filipino Identification System
Bill citationHouse Bill No. 6221
Introduced byCongressman Feliciano Belmonte Jr. et al.
IntroducedAugust 17, 2017
First readingAugust 22, 2017
Second readingAugust 30, 2017
Third readingSeptember 8, 2017
Committee reportCommittee Report No. 360
Second chamber: Senate of the Philippines
Bill titleAn Act Establishing the Philippine Identification System
Bill citationSenate Bill No. 1738
Received from the House of Representatives of the PhilippinesMarch 12, 2018
Member(s) in chargeSenator Franklin Drilon, Panfilo Lacson et al.
First readingMarch 12, 2018
Second readingMarch 14, 2018
Third readingMarch 19, 2018
Committee reportCommittee Report No. 277
Conference committee bill passed by House of Representatives of the PhilippinesMay 30, 2018
Conference committee bill passed by Senate of the PhilippinesMay 29, 2018
Status: In force

Legislative history edit

 
President Rodrigo Duterte shows a copy of the PhilSys Act after signing it during a ceremony at Malacañang Palace on August 6, 2018.

House Bill No. 6221 edit

House Bill No. 6221 was filed before the House of Representatives proposing the establishment of the Filipino Identification System or FilSys requiring Filipino citizens of at least 18 years old to obtain a FilSys ID. The information gathered for the proposed system will be restricted from law enforcement agencies except under certain circumstances. In the bill's third and final reading, 142 members of the lower legislature voted for the bill in the final reading while seven voted against.[2]

Senate Bill No. 1738 edit

Senator Panfilo Lacson authored and sponsored Senate Bill No. 1738,[3] or the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) Act of 2018 which mandates a national identification system with compulsory registration.[4] The PhilSys is meant to provide Filipino citizens and foreign residents in the Philippines a single and unified proof of identity to ease public and private transactions and deter criminality. The document from the national identification system will be called as the PhilSys ID which will bear a permanent identification number called the PhilSys number (PSN). The ID will contain the full name, facial image, birth date, address, and fingerprints of the bearer. However, possession of the ID card itself will not be compulsory. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) will be the registry of the national identification system.[5] Similar to the House of Representatives bill, the data from the national identification system will only be made available to third parties under certain circumstances.[3]

The third and final reading of the bill was held on March 19, 2018, with Senators Francis Pangilinan and Risa Hontiveros voting against the measure.[3]

Bicameral Conference Committee edit

The Bicameral Conference Committee has approved Lacson's bill with minor revisions in May 2018.[4] The consolidated version was ratified by Senate on May 29 and the House of Representatives on the following day.[6] The bill could then be signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte.[7]

Republic Act No. 11055 edit

On August 6, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the "Philippine Identification System Act" (R.A. 11055).[8] Section 9 of the Act requires every Philippine citizen and resident alien to personally register with the Philippine ID system.[9]

Implementation edit

The Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) national identity card program was launched on August 24, 2018, although the implementing rules and regulations were approved on October 5, 2018, by the PhilSys Policy and Coordination Council.[10][11]

References edit

  1. ^ Quiros, Judy (May 15, 2021). "PSA explains importance of PSN, PCN, PhilID". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  2. ^ Ilas, Joyce (September 8, 2017). "House approves national ID bill on final reading". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c Elemia, Camille (March 19, 2018). "Filipinos to have national IDs soon after Senate, House pass bill". Rappler. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Senate, House panels approve nat'l ID system bill". CNN Philippines. May 24, 2018. Archived from the original on May 27, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  5. ^ Cabico, Katreena (May 29, 2018). "What you need to know about the proposed national ID". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  6. ^ Colcol, Erwin (May 30, 2018). "House ratifies bicam version of national ID bill". GMA News. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  7. ^ Lopez, Virgil (May 25, 2018). "Palace: Duterte ready to sign national ID bill into law". GMA News. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  8. ^ Lopez, Virgil (August 6, 2018). "Duterte signs national ID system law". GMA News. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  9. ^ Republic Act No. 11055; Philippine Identification System Act (PDF). Official Gazette. Philippine Government. July 24, 2017.
  10. ^ "Council okays Nat'l ID IRR". Daily Tribune. October 6, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  11. ^ Esguerra, Darryl John (October 29, 2018). "IRR for national ID system finalized — PSA". The Philippine Star. Retrieved June 29, 2021.