March deadline set for claiming passports

Dubai Filipino expatriates who have not claimed new passports which have been issued six months ago or longer, from the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai have until March 26, 2012 to claim them, or they will be disposed of. "We are talking about 800 unclaimed passports, some of which had been issued more than a year ago," Vice Consul Geronimo Suliguin said. In an advisory issued by the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai, all unclaimed passports after six months from the date of issuance will be disposed of beginning March 12 under Department Order No. 37-03 dated 23 September 2003. "Applicants can always check the status of their passports on our website," Suliguin said adding lost receipts is not a reason for not claiming them.