In line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to bring government services closer to the public, all Philippine Foreign Service Posts in Canada launched this year their Saturday consular services on a monthly or quarterly basis to accommodate consular clients who can only transact on weekends. This program was agreed upon by the heads of the Philippine Foreign Service Posts in Canada in a meeting convened by Ambassador Petronila P. Garcia in Toronto last December.

The Philippine Embassy in Ottawa, which had already been offering monthly Saturday Consular services earlier, served a total of 93 clients during its first Saturday session in 2018 last 03 February 2018.

In Toronto, the Philippine Consulate General inaugurated its quarterly Saturday service last 03 February 2018, with 144 clients served.

The Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver commenced its 2018 Saturday service on 27 January 2018 at Saint Patrick Church in Vancouver BC where fifty services were rendered to applicants.

The Philippine Consulate General in Calgary, which opened only in 2016, conducted its first Saturday consular services last 13 January 2018 at its premises in Calgary and served 78 clients.

The Saturday consular services by Foreign Service Posts in Canada will be a regular offer to the Filipino diaspora in Canada in order to better serve their needs. There are more than 800,000 Filipino in Canada, representing the second largest number of Filipinos outside of the Philippines after those in the United States.

The Philippine Consulates General in Calgary, Toronto, and Vancouver are headed by Consul General Julius D. Torres, Consul General Rosalita S. Prospero, and Consul General Neil Frank R. Ferrer, respectively.