Validity Period of the Philippine Voter’s Identification Card

A Comprehensive Legal Guide (2025 Edition)

1. Quick-look summary

Key point	Take-away
Statutory basis	Primarily Republic Act 8189 (Voter’s Registration Act of 1996); supplemented by RA 10367 (Mandatory Biometrics) and RA 11055 (PhilSys Act).
Stated validity	No expiration date is printed or prescribed. The card remains valid for life so long as the voter’s registration itself is active.
Automatic loss of effect	When COMELEC deactivates (failure to vote in two consecutive regular national elections) or cancels the voter’s registration (death, dual registration, court order, etc.).
Issuance status (2025)	Mass printing halted since 2016–2017; COMELEC now issues Voter’s Certification on security paper. Existing cards remain valid nationwide.
Future landscape	The Philippine National ID (PhilSys) will eventually supersede the Voter’s ID for general identification, but RA 8189 has not been repealed, so the Voter’s ID remains legally recognized for electoral purposes until Congress says otherwise.

2. Statutory and regulatory foundation

2.1 Republic Act 8189 (1996)

Section 10 authorizes the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to issue an identification card to every registered voter containing the voter’s biometrics and precinct assignment. The Act is silent on an expiry; legislators assumed registration would remain current via the deactivation rules in Section 27 (two-election failure to vote, death, insanity, final conviction, etc.).

2.2 COMELEC Rules & Resolutions

Key issuances flesh out RA 8189:

Resolution	Salient point
Res. No. 9476 (2012)	Shifted to PVC “super-lam” cards and mandated biometrics capture.
Res. No. 9853 (2013)	Implemented RA 10367, ordering biometrics validation and deactivation of “No-Bio” voters.
Res. No. 10148 (2016)	Suspended further card printing to divert funds to the 2016 AES; started issuing printed voter certifications.
Res. No. 10549 (2019) and succeeding circulars	Reaffirm that existing Voter’s IDs “remain valid and may be presented as government-issued photo ID.”

2.3 Republic Act 10367 (2013) – Biometrics Requirement

Failure to appear for biometrics capture led to automatic deactivation in 2016. Once reactivated, the old card could still be used but no replacement card is printed; a certification is issued instead.

2.4 Republic Act 11055 (2018) – Philippine Identification System (PhilSys)

The PhilSys law did not abolish the Voter’s ID. It designates the national ID as the “foundational ID” but allows sector-specific IDs—e.g., Voter’s ID—to coexist until rationalized by future legislation.

3. Nature and legal character of the Voter’s ID

Attribute	Explanation
Perpetual validity	Because the enabling statute imposes no sunset clause, the card is intrinsically perpetual.
Non-transferability	It is tied to the voter’s biometrics and precinct; giving or lending it is an election offense (RA 8189 §53).
Government-issued photo ID	Banks, PhilHealth, DFA, and most government agencies list it as an acceptable secondary ID, subject to agency circulars.
Not proof of citizenship	It proves registration, not nationality; COMELEC requires birth certificate or passport at the registration stage.

4. Events that terminate usefulness of the card

Deactivation under RA 8189 §27
- Two consecutive regular national elections (e.g., 2022 & 2025) missed.
- The voter may reactivate; card need not be surrendered but no longer appears in the precinct book.
Cancellation of registration
- Death, dual registration, loss of Filipino citizenship, final conviction of a crime involving disloyalty, or court/COMELEC order.
- Card is deemed void ab initio once COMELEC updates its database.
Transfer of precinct
- A registrant who moves residence files a transfer application; the old ID’s precinct data become inaccurate. COMELEC historically re-issued a new card (now replaced by a certification).
Replacement by future legislation
- Congress could pass a law making the PhilSys ID the sole electoral ID; until then, RA 8189 stands.

5. Current practical realities (2025)

5.1 Issuance pause and backlog

Printing machines broke down in 2016; budget realignments for the 2016 & 2019 elections halted card production.
About 5 million backlog cards (as of 2017) were never printed.

5.2 Voter’s Certification as stop-gap

Issued same day in local COMELEC offices upon payment of a ₱75 fee (fee waived for first-time job-seekers under RA 11261).
Contains dry-seal, QR code, and 6-month validity only for non-electoral transactions; for voting, validity matches registration status.

5.3 PhilSys rollout impact

Over 80 million Filipinos enrolled as of mid-2025.
Government agencies gradually migrate to PhilSys as primary ID, but the Bangko Sentral and the DFA still honor Voter’s IDs issued before 2016.

6. Use of an “expired” card in practice

Because the card bears no printed expiry, frontline agencies check registration status via:

COMELEC Precinct Finder (online) – verifies name & precinct.
Election Day Computerized Voter’s List (EDCVL) – poll workers rely on this, not the card’s physical condition.
QR scan or serial number lookup – older PVC cards have a hologram and bar code still machine-readable.

If COMELEC records show the voter as deactivated, the physical card is rejected only for voting, but agencies may still accept it as photo ID (discretionary).

7. Selected jurisprudence & opinions

Case / Opinion	Gist
Domino v. COMELEC (G.R. No. 189071, Jan 25 2011)	Supreme Court upheld COMELEC’s power to deactivate voters who failed to vote twice, reinforcing the idea that registration status, not card possession, controls voting rights.
COMELEC En Banc Minute Resolution 21-0013 (2021)	Clarified that existing PVC Voter’s IDs “remain valid for identification purposes” even while PhilSys is being rolled out.

8. Comparison with other Philippine IDs

ID	Statutory life	Typical printed expiry
Voter’s ID	Indefinite (RA 8189)	None
Driver’s License	RA 4136, as amended	5 or 10 years
Passport	RA 8239	10 years (5 yrs for minors)
PhilSys ID	RA 11055	None (but data update required at 5-yr intervals <15 data-preserve-html-node="true" yrs old, 10-yr for adults)

9. Frequently asked questions

Does my 2010-issued Voter’s ID still work in 2025? Yes, provided your registration has not been deactivated or canceled.
I transferred residence; is the old card invalid? For voting, yes; apply for transfer and request a Voter’s Certification reflecting the new precinct.
Will COMELEC ever print cards again? COMELEC officials have repeatedly said “unlikely” because PhilSys will assume the role. Congress would need to fund new printers.
Is a Voter’s ID a primary ID for banks or DFA? Generally treated as secondary; always check the latest circular of the accepting agency.

10. Practical tips for citizens

Keep your voter registration active.
- Vote every election or file for absence on two-consecutive-election rule if overseas.
Get a PhilSys ID even if you still hold a Voter’s ID; it is already free and broadly accepted.
For urgent transactions (passport, SSS, Pag-IBIG), request a Voter’s Certification—it is honored where the PVC backlog caused problems.
Watch for COMELEC announcements on continuing voter registration and precinct transfers, especially ahead of the 2025 Barangay/SK elections and the 2028 national polls.

Conclusion

Under existing law, the Philippine Voter’s Identification Card is valid without expiry so long as the voter’s registration remains active in the COMELEC database. While mass issuance ceased and the PhilSys ID is rising to prominence, the Voter’s ID is still a legally recognized government-issued identification document for elections and many civil transactions. Citizens should remain mindful that the card’s real value lies in a current voter status—not in the physical plastic itself. Keep voting, update your records when you move, and obtain a PhilSys ID to complement your aging—but still perfectly legal—Voter’s ID.