If you have a red passport

You are lucky in many ways.

You get to travel in many countries without securing first a visa in Manila. I’ve been to China and South Korea on a red passport. I’m looking forward to travel in the Schengen area, and guess what, except for Amsterdam and France as ports of entry, I don’t need to secure a visa first. A few thousand pesos were saved, not to mention a lot of effort and time going to the appropriate embassy and perhaps do interviews. Some countries like Japan require a visa but the fees are waived and the procedures are simple. If you use a red passport, most likely you don’t need to secure appointment with the embassies first. And most of the time, there is no need for a personal appearance because things will be done through your liaison officer.

The privileges don’t come without a catch though. If you want a red passport, then work in the government service. And your travel has to be an official one, which means that you need to secure a Foreign Travel Order (FTO) from your office, which means that you are going on a legitimate purpose like training or a conference. Or if you will be on leave, a Travel Authority from the Chief of your office. If you are travelling on a red passport, all the more that you carry a responsibility and the name of your country.

To get a red passport, go to this page of the DFA website.

http://www.dfa.gov.ph/main/index.php/consular-services/diplomatic-and-official-passport

In case you want to prove it for yourself, check out these links for the following countries:

China

http://ph.china-embassy.org/eng/lsfw/hzqz/t185503.htm

Spain

http://www.vfsglobal.com/spain/philippines/allaboutyourvisas.html

Korea

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/GK/GK_EN_2_1_1.jsp