Consul General Senen Mangalile and NMD VP Norbell sign contract | Photo by Ricky Rillera
NEW YORK – Beginning August 1, 2023, a new online or e-payment portal will be available for customers to pay for consular services in advance or onsite using credit or debit cards at the Philippine Consulate General in New York. This is in addition to paying in cash onsite or postal money orders on mail-in applications.
Consul General Senen Mangalile announced the new system during a presser with the local Fil-Am media on July 3. He said this new mode of payment is in response to the feedback the consulate had received from several customers.
“They have for the longest time requested us to provide a system that will accept other payment options aside from cash or money order,” Mangalile said. “We hear you and we have been working hard to respond to your clamor and in a month’s time, we will be ready to offer you this cashless facility.”
On July 3, the consulate signed a contract for the electronic collection of payment services with NMD Group Corporation, a San Ramon, California-based company registered with the California Secretary of State on April 18, 2023, to design and operate the system. NMD Group also has an office in Muntinlupa City, Metro Manila, in the Philippines.
| Photo by Ricky Rillera
Mangalile said the company was chosen by “our bids and awards committee after a lengthy survey and review of several potential providers.” However, he declined to give the names of the other bidders.
Norbell Ramos Domingo, NMD Group Corporation vice president, signed the agreement.
With this new system, the consulate aims to discourage no-shows by requiring e-payment during appointment booking. The consulate uses an Online Appointment System introduced in 2020 and is used by Philippine consulates worldwide. This may eventually be phased out or integrated into the new system.
Mangalile said New York and Hawaii are the only consulates in the U.S. using an e-payment system.
The new system will benefit customers transacting business remotely. Passport and visa applicants can now pay using credit or debit cards onsite or remotely. However, for citizenship pre-acquisition or retention and legalization or consularization of documents, the e-payment will be required.
The consulate presented data from 2022 which indicate that out of 7,293 dual citizenship applicants that booked an appointment, 2,010, or 28 percent, did not show up. It worsened, the consulate said, during the first six months of 2023. Out of 3,501 appointments, 1,129, or 32 percent, failed to come for their appointment.
Similarly, with document legalization — Special Power of Attorney (SPA), notarial or certified true copies of documents — out of 3,402 appointments made in the first four months in 2023, 799 or 29 percent of applicants did not appear.
A service fee will be charged by NMD Group starting August 1 for applicants that opt to pay using their credit and debit cards. Mangalile said they negotiated with the service provider for a minimal fee comparable to those imposed by other establishments for debit or credit transactions.
In the new system, applicants will pay an additional $5 for credit and debit cards, including the e-payment fee and the additional 3% gateway fee.
“Following the policy of the Department of Foreign Office of Consular Affairs, when you book online,” you pay the passport fee using the online payment facility for a passport appointment. “We will do the same,” said Mangalile. “Payment is not refundable. From our experience in Manila, applicants who have already made the financial commitment by paying the requisite fee are most likely to show up for their appointment. They think twice before scheduling if they are not certain of their availability,” he added.
The NMD Group would train the consular staff to use the e-payment system to be ready to implement it by August 1.
“This is our way of showing that we listen to the feedback that we receive from our applicants and we do our best to come up with solution that will include the way we deliver our services to our stakeholders,” said Mangalile.
