Getting a Police Clearance in Makati City
I recently obtained a police clearance in Makati City and I will be sharing in this post the steps I had to go through for the application. First, it’s important to know the location of Makati Central Police HQ. I read that this is the place to go to when applying for Police Clearance in Makati.
The police station is:
- Located at the corner of Ayala Avenue and Yakal Street
- Right after Makati Fire Station
- Across The Alphaland Makati Place
You’ll have to leave an identification (ID) card when you enter the police station’s gate along Ayala Avenue in exchange for a visitor’s pass. Go to the leftmost part of the station where police clearance applications are processed. You won’t be asked for another ID in the police clearance area.
Step 1. Fill-up application form
The form is available on the table right by the door of the Police Clearance application area. Remember to bring a pen! 
Step 2. Pay for Community Tax Certificate (Cedula)
If you already have one, then you can skip this step.
The amount you need to pay is dependent on your gross salary. However, the guy didn’t ask for that information and just put a default amount in there. I paid Php 50 for my CEDULA.
Step 3. Pay for the City Treasurer’s Office Fee
This step is labeled by the station as “Order of Payment (OR)”. The amount varies per city (LGU) and on the purpose of your application for Police Clearance. In the table below are rates posted in Makati Central Police HQ. Again, the rates may differ with other cities.
| Purpose | Makati City Treasurer Fee |
| Firearms requirement | 500 |
| Firearms renewal | 50 |
| Naturalization requirement | 500 |
| Travel abroad requirement | 400 |
| Seaman requirement | 200 |
| Embassy requirement | 50 |
| Immigration requirement | 50 |
| Local employment | 50 |
| AFP / PNP requirement | 50 |
| Certification | 50 |
| Police blotter | 50 |
| Change of name | 50 |
| Adoption requirement | 50 |
| DFA requirement | 50 |
| Identification requirement | 50 |
| LTO requirement | 50 |
| Transport requirement | 50 |
Step 4. Pay for the Police Clearance ID and Certificate
These two are bundled together and will cost you Php 250. After payment, they will take all of your papers (application form, cedula receipt, OR receipt) and give you a number.
Step 5. Record checking
You’ll have to wait while they check if you do or do not have any derogatory records in the system. When they finish, they will call out your number and return your papers taken during Step 4, with the addition of police clearance receipt.
Step 6. Picture and Signature
After getting back your papers, you’ll now have to line-up for your photograph and signature to be taken. The queuing will be based on the number provided in Step 4. They don’t take fingerprints. Your details will be manually encoded by the staff when it’s finally your turn and right before taking your photo.
Step 7. Releasing of Police Clearance ID and Certificate
Wait for your certificate and ID to be printed right after Step 6. It won’t take long (unless they’re having technical difficulties with the printer).
My thoughts on the application process in Makati
Accessibility – Bus from Ayala stops at The Columns. Bus from LRT-Buendia stops at Tropical Hut Buendia. Washington jeep from Ayala stops at Yakal. Zapote and Ibabaw jeeps from Ayala pass by Alphaland (not sure if they let people alight there, though). Jeep from MRT-Buendia stops at The Columns. If you’re working around Makati Medical Center area, it’s just a few minutes of walk.
Online form – I wasn’t able to use this since I only learned about the link while I was already processing my police clearance. You can provide your personal details online and this will remove the manual encoding process during Step 6. Fill-up the new application form, submit, and then print the confirmation page which contains your Reference Number. The url is: https://www.idcorp-clearance.com
Steep pricing – the city determines the treasurer’s office fee. In Makati, it can go as high as Php 500. Add to that the fees for Cedula (Php 50) and for the bundled ID and certificate (Php 250), and you can end up paying a grand total of Php 800! You can already get six multi-purpose NBI Clearance certificates with that amount! I don’t understand why a police clearance can cost that much. All I can think of is that cities have found a milking cow.
Bundled ID and Certificate – when you pay at the window for the clearance, they outright charge Php 250 which is also the only amount posted by the window. I wish that applicants are given a choice on whether they want the ID card or not. Both the certificate and ID are valid for just 6 months. The only way the ID will be useful to me is if I will get another certificate within 6 months. The chance of that happening is close to ZERO! I wasn’t able to ask if it’s possible to NOT GET the ID. I went through the motion of paying the fees and just gave whatever amount was asked. I only realized the uselessness of the ID after it was printed and handed to me. If you’re going to apply for PNP clearance and are not interested with the ID, try to ask if it’s possible to get only the certificate.
Technical issues with ID printer – another reason why I’m not a fan of the ID that was bundled with the certificate – the ID card printer kept crashing! It took one hour from the time I arrived at the station to the time I was handed the ID and certificate. If they didn’t have to keep fixing the damn thing, it probably would have taken just 30 minutes.
Additional Note
I did some reading after seeing how expensive the Police Clearance can be and found-out that PNP issues a clearance in Camp Crame called DI Clearance (Directorate for Intelligence Clearance). It costs only Php 80. So, if you’ll ever need a clearance from PNP and you fall under the pricey reasons classified by LGUs, check with the requesting party if the one from Crame is okay. I tried reaching out to PNP to ask the difference between DI Clearance and LGU issued Police Clearance, but I didn’t hear back from them.
Application for DI Clearance is done at transaction windows located along Bonny Serrano Avenue, beside Camp Crame’s Gate 2. Just fill-out this application form and bring it with you, together with your cedula, and Php 80. In case needed, bring a photocopy of your cedula. Better to have more than less.
6 Comments
Joyce
Thank you so much for sharing this information!
Janet
You’re welcome 🙂
R. Driley
Thanks for this detailed process! It was very helpful! I already knew what to expect and how much I should be paying! I agree, the price is quite steep and the card good for 6 months is not necessary!!!
Janet
Hi there! Glad it helped you. Cheers! 🙂
Sol
Hi janet. For the cedula, did you get and pay it at the police station too? Or u went to makati city hall prior visit to the station?
Janet
You can get the cedula at the police station. It’s part of their steps. I paid 50 for cedula issued at the police station (It was in Oct 2018, it seems like their default rate). If you already have cedula, you just skip this step.
Getting a cedula from City Hall is more expensive (or at more realistic rate). City hall requires you to show your income tax form when getting a cedula, computation of cedula payment will be based on that. I didn’t have income tax form when I tried to get a cedula from Makati City hall but I was able to convince the staff there to issue me one since I was already there and my barangay hall didn’t have any cedula to issue. The payment was based on the monthly salary I disclosed on the cedula request/application form. I paid Php 400+ for the cedula issued at city hall. Made me wish that I just went to the police station for it 😅