Travel permits for kids now processed online
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has gone digital in the processing of travel permits for minors going abroad, doing away with the manual method which allowed travel agencies to represent the applicants.
The online processing of applications was aimed at averting cases of child trafficking and other forms of exploitation, Ada Colico, DSWD assistant secretary for statutory programs, said in a news briefing on Thursday.
Colico noted the risks posed by the old system of processing the Minors Traveling Abroad (MTA) clearance for children and teens who were not required to appear in person before DSWD personnel.
Under the new application process, the child and their parent or legal guardian must schedule a videoconference with the DSWD as an added layer of authentication.
According to Colico, this will help the DSWD “validate and verify that the parent/guardian gave [their] consent [for the minor] to travel abroad.”
In addition, the parent/guardian will no longer have any reason for missing the appointment with the DSWD because they can schedule the online meeting at their convenience, she said.
No personal appearance
Under the manual method, travel agents or other third-party representatives were allowed to process the applications without the minor or parent/guardian being required to make a personal appearance before the DSWD.
“There were cases wherein travel agents merely submitted a special power of attorney and they were the ones who processed the [MTA permit], which is risky on our part because we are held accountable,” Calico explained.
“We are basically authorizing a person not related [by blood to the applicant] to process the papers and accompany the child abroad,” she said.
Among those required to secure a travel clearance are minors who are traveling alone; illegitimate children traveling only with their biological father; or minors leaving the country with their “prospective adoptive parents, with an adult other than their parent or legal guardian,” or a child below 13 years old who will be “accompanied by a sibling or relative 16 years old and up within the fourth consanguinity or affinity and whose purpose is to permanently join the parents abroad.”
Cutting red tape
Aside from addressing the long queues and “traditional paperwork,” the new digitalized system also cuts red tape by trimming the application process from 11 to seven steps. These are the setting up of an account on the website, payment of fees, document assessment, scheduling of virtual interview, selecting the interview appointment date, approval of travel clearance or certificate of exemption, and downloading the approved permit.
As of March 11, the DSWD has received around 1,749 applications for MTA, or an average of 125 per day, since the automated application was launched in mid-February as one of the agency’s digital initiatives.
An estimated processing time of one to three days, as long as documents are complete and verified, is expected under the online process. Calico advised the public to apply on mta.dswd.gov.ph one week before their travel date.
