GUIDELINES ON THE CONDUCT OF VIDEOCONFERENCING HEARINGS AT THE PHILIPPINE CONSULATE GENERAL IN HONOLULU

Pursuant to Section IV of the Supreme Court of the Philippines’ Administrative Matter (A.M.) No. 20-12-01-SC, the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu (“Consulate”) may facilitate the conduct of hearings via video conference at its premises at the following address: 

          Philippine Consulate General

          2433 Pali Highway

          Honolulu, HI 96817

          United States of America

Following is the procedure in setting an appointment for the conduct of videoconference hearing (VCH), as well as the duties of the witness or litigant and the Consulate:

I. Lodging the Request for VCH

   1. Prior to the submission of the motion to the relevant court, the requesting party, through counsel, must send a signed letter request addressed to the Consulate and the Office of Treaties and Legal Affairs (OTLA) of the Department of Foreign Affairs as an email attachment to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The request shall indicate the following: 

       i. Nature of the case,

       ii. Proposed date and time for the conduct of the VCH,

       iii. Name, nationality, and contact details of the person/s to appear before the VCH,

       iv. Contact details of the requesting counsel, and

       v. An undertaking to do the following:

         a. Pay the prescribed fees to the Consulate for the conduct of the VCH

         b. Comply with the health and security measures being implemented by the Consulate

         c. Ensure that all other parties are notified and aware of the arrangements, including the schedule of the hearing, time zone difference, and other relevant information, and

         d. Provide all necessary equipment, including internet access, pre-installed applications/applications to be used by the court, and if necessary, interpreters.

   2. Upon receipt of the letter-request, the Consulate shall comment on the acceptability of the request. The schedule of the VCH must be mutually agreed upon by the Consulate and the court. As far as practicable, the VCH should be scheduled during business hours of the Consulate (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., except holidays). The duration of the videoconferencing must also be pre-determined and agreed upon by the Consulate and the court.  The Consulate shall communicate its acceptance or denial of the request to the counsel via e-mail, copy furnished OTLA. 

   3. The counsel may only proceed with the filing of the necessary Motion in Court to issue the Order for the VCH after securing the acceptance from the Consulate on the time and date of the hearing.

   4. Upon receipt of the Order for VCH from the court, the counsel must transmit a copy of the said Order to the Consulate.

II. Duties of Witness/es or Litigant/s Appearing before the VCH

   1. On the scheduled date of the hearing, the witness/es or litigant/s must arrive at the Consulate at least one (1) month before the hearing. Only the participant/s to the VCH shall be allowed to enter the hearing venue.

    2. The witness/es or litigant/s must bring the following during the scheduled date of the hearing:

       i. Equipment to be used during the VCH, including the device to be used for internet access

       ii. Fees payable in cash, money order or cashier’s check for the conduct of the VCH, in the following amounts:

       iii. Self-addressed envelope with USD 9.90 worth of stamps to be used by the Consulate to mail the documents pertaining to the attendance of the VCH

III. Duty of the Consulate General

   1. The Consulate is limited to providing the venue for the VCH. It shall neither supply the witness/es or litigant/s with any device to be used during the VCH nor allow connection to any network maintained by the Consulate.

    2. If requested by the Presiding Judge, the duty of the Consular Officer attending the hearing shall be limited only to verifying the identity of the person/s appearing before the VCH through his/her valid identification document. The Consular Officer may not perform any other act unless with prior written consent of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

    3. Issuance of transcript of the stenographic notes shall be the responsibility of the relevant court.

The foregoing guidelines must be strictly complied with.  Any deviation from the guidelines shall be a valid ground to postpone or cancel the conduct of the VCH. 

Further inquiries on this matter may be addressed to the Consulate at e-mail address This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..