More than 30,000 former Filipinos reacquired their Philippine citizenship under the so-called dual citizenship law in 2012, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) yesterday said.
Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David Jr. disclosed the bureau in 2012 processed a total of 30,362 applications for dual citizenship under Republic Act 9225 or the Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act of 2003.

Under Republic Act 9225, also known as the citizenship retention and reacquisition act of 2003, natural-born Filipinos who became naturalized citizens of other countries are deemed not to have lost their citizenship by taking the required oath of allegiance to the Philippine republic.

David said of the total number of dual citizens processed last year, 5,564 filed their petitions at the BI main office in Manila while the rest applied at the various Philippine consulates abroad.

There were more applicants last year compared to 2011 when only 19,328 petitions were processed, of which 15,657 originated from the Philippine consulates.
David urged former Filipinos who wished to enjoy again their rights and privileges as Philippine citizens to avail themselves of the benefits of the law.
BI legal officer Marc Anthony Antonio, who heads the BI task force on RA 9225, stressed that all natural-born Filipinos who lost their Philippine citizenship can avail themselves of the benefits of the law.

Antonio also clarified that the number of those who actually applied at Philippine consulates was much higher as BI statistics only refer to those who applied for their identification certificates at the bureau.

He estimated that since RA 9225 was implemented in 2004, no fewer than 150,000 former Filipinos worldwide may have already availed themselves of the law.
Antonio said Americans topped the list of the applicants, followed by Britons and Canadians, most of whom filed their petitions at the Philippine consulates in Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Honolulu, Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto and London.

Antonio added that an applicant pays only a fee of P3,000 and the petition is immediately processed if all documentary requirements submitted are complete.
Conrado Ching