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MANILA - The Philippine Statistics Authority will conduct mass registration for the National ID System beginning October 12.

This, after the mass registration scheduled in July was moved this month in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• PSA moves national ID registration to October

PSA Assistant Secretary Rosalinda Bautista said the priority is to register 5 million heads of low-income households from the list of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Step 1 of the registration process involves going to the houses of selected pre-registrants to get their information and schedule a date for them to go to the registration center.

"Sila ang pupuntahan namin at uunahin namin silang i-preregistrer o pag capture ng kanilang information para po pagdating nila sa registration center mas mabilis na ang kanilang pagaantay at pila. Maglalagay kami ng schedule,” she said.

(We will prioritize their preregistration so that when they go to the registration centers they need not wait in line for a long time.)

Step 2 is when pre-registrants head to the registration centers on Nov. 25 for their biometric capture.

Bautista said an additional 4 million people will be scheduled for registration.

“All in all, ang ipe-preregister namin before the end of the year is 9 million pero 'yung 5 million na household head ay pupunta na sila sa registration centers,” she said.

(All in all, 9 million people will be preregistered before the end of the year but the 5 million household heads will already head to the registration centers.)

Next year, they also target to register 45 million people, and another 42 million by 2022.

“So by the end of the term of President Duterte naparehistro na namin dapat ang majority of the Philippines,” she said.

(So by the end of the term of President Duterte, we will be able to cover majority of the Philippines.)

Bautista said the registration and the ID to be issued are free of charge.

Signed into law in August 2018, the National ID system will provide a valid proof of identity for all Filipinos and residents, making access to services simpler and faster.