The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said Tuesday that only foreigners with permanent or immigrant visas can enter the country starting Aug. 1, and that tourists and others holding non-immigrant and other categories of visas are still prohibited from entering the Philippines.
"For the information of the public, the entry of foreign tourists, non-immigrant visa holders, and other categories of aliens [is] still prohibited. They will be turned back if they land in any of our ports of entry," Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said.
Morente issued the statement upon learning that immigration offices at the airports and other field offices of the bureau were being swamped with calls and queries from persons who thought that the country has opened its doors to all foreigners.
"The resolution of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) is clear–only foreigners with existing long-term visas will be allowed entry beginning Aug. 1. So if you are not a permanent resident here, do not attempt to travel to the Philippines because you will be… denied entry by our immigration officers," Morente said.
He appealed to the public to stop spreading the wrong information that all foreigners are now welcome to enter the Philippines as it will only sow confusion and create chaos in airports if there is a sudden surge in the arrival of foreigners still covered by the travel ban.
BI Port Operations Division acting chief Grifton Medina said there are only four visa categories of aliens who will be allowed entry starting next month.
Medina said these aliens must fall under the following categories: those who were issued non-immigrant visas under Section 13 of the Immigration Act; those who acquired resident status under Republic Act 7919 or Alien Social Integration Act; those who availed of Executive Order 324 or Alien Legalization Program; and native-born foreign nationals.
Medina also said foreigners married to Filipinos and their dependents, as well as foreign diplomats, can also come here as earlier resolved by the IATF.
"We are therefore advising the different airlines to take note of these latest travel guidelines so that they can accordingly inform their foreign customers who may wish to book their flights to the Philippines," the BI official said.
Medina added that the BI does not expect a major upsurge in foreign arrivals despite the lifting of entry restrictions on immigrant visa holders as the bureau's records indicate that there are only about 15,000 of them who are stranded abroad due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Manila International Airport Authority, meanwhile, announced that air travelers are required to undergo COVID-19 swab testing before flying to Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi, South Korea and Dubai.
"Please be advised that as of today, July 21, 2020, the following international destinations require all passengers coming from the Philippines to present a COVID-19 RT-PCR Negative-Test Result/Certification issued by the respective airline’s accredited testing institutions before they are allowed to board flights," the MIAA management said in its advisory Tuesday.
The airport authority urged affected passengers to get in touch with their respective air carriers to get the details on the implementation of the new regulation.
"Passengers without the required negative PCR test certification may not be allowed to check-in for their flights even if they have confirmed bookings," it said.
The negative COVID-19 PCR test result must be shown at the time of check-in at the airport and upon the time of arrival at the quarantine authority in those countries.
In South Korea, the test result will only be accepted if it was issued by one of the hospitals designated by the embassy.
"The above measures are not related to visa issuance, so even though you have already received a visa, you have to take an additional COVID-19 PCR test before your flight," the MIAA said.
