MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has cautioned the public against individuals and online pages offering assistance in securing voter certificates in exchange for payment.

In an advisory, the poll body urged voters not to engage with social media accounts claiming to facilitate the issuance of such documents.

“The public is strongly advised to be wary of online transaction accounts/pages that offer assistance for a fee in obtaining Voter Certificates,” Comelec said.

“This is not authorized by the Comelec.”

The commission stressed that voter certificates are issued free of charge and that no payments should be collected for the service.

A voter certificate is issued upon request by a registered voter and may serve as a temporary voter identification document.

Comelec also reminded applicants for voter registration that they may check their application status online, including those who applied through the Special Register Anywhere/Anytime Program (SRAP) or Register Anywhere Program (RAP).

Applicants may access the status portal via the Comelec website and navigate through the “Voter Registration” tab to the list of RAP approved or disapproved applicants, selecting the relevant Election Registration Board hearing schedule and the corresponding region, city, or municipality where they registered.

As of its latest data, a total of 9,163 individuals have applied through SRAP/RAP activities.