Philippine Identification System Act (PhilSys)

Republic Act No. 11055, otherwise known as the Philippine Identification System Act, aims to establish a single national identification system for all citizens and resident aliens of the Republic of the Philippines. Signed into law by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte in August 2018, the valid proof of identity provided by the PhilSys shall be a means of simplifying public and private transactions, and shall be a social and economic platform that promotes seamless social service delivery and strengthening of financial inclusion for both public and private services. As a foundational digital ID system, the PhilSys will transform how services are delivered and accessed in the Philippines, and accelerate our transition to a digital economy, including to enable presenceless, paperless and cashless transactions.

The PhilSys project emphasizes inclusive coverage, enabling access to the most vulnerable groups such as the poor, people living in geographically-isolated and disadvantaged areas, indigenous peoples, and persons with disabilities. Built on a Privacy-by-Design principle, the PhilSys will adopt the latest technologies and innovations in the implementation of the project underscoring the importance of privacy of individuals and security of information under the system.

The PhilSys is envisioned to:

• Make services more accessible. PhilSys will be accessible to all Filipinos and its credential will be accepted for most transactions. It will provide access to financial, social protection, health education and other Government services;
• Promote ease of doing business. It will provide a platform for the Government and private sector to identify and verify their customer in a digital and automated manner both in-person and online transactions;
• Enhance the integrity of services and reducing fraud. PhilSys will uniquely identify each registered person at a national scale with high-level of assurance, eliminate identity fraud and strengthen integrity of functional identification registries;
• Enable and promote participation and trust in digital government and the digital economy. PhilSys should enable to broader transition to digital, online citizen-centric service delivery by Government and the private sector; and
• Empower Filipinos with greater control over their personal data. The PhilSys will give PSN-holders the ability to determine who sees what data about them when carrying out transactions using the PhilSys, it will contribute to greater transparency and accountability for how data is used in the Philippines.

A foundational digital ID system, like PhilSys, will contribute to nation building. It will enable the Philippines to move away from inefficient and expensive physical documents, processes and credentials to the use of digital equivalents.

Republic Act No. 11055, otherwise known as the “Philippine Identification System Act” was signed into law by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on 06 August 2018. This mandates the PSA to be the implementing agency of the PhilSys and the creation of the PhilSys Policy and Coordination Council (PSPCC) to formulate policies and guidelines to ensure effective implementation of the PhilSys. Pursuant to RA 11055, Its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) was approved by the member-agencies of the PSPCC on 05 October 2018 and was published in Daily Tribune on 06 October 2018

• Republic Act No 11055
• Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (approved and signed on February 26, 2021)