Philippines – COVID-19: Updates to Entry Protocols and Travel Ban

The Philippine Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) released Resolution No. 165 allowing fully vaccinated foreign nationals to enter the Philippines without need for an Entry Exemption Document (EED), but subject to updated immigration arrival protocols as of 1 April 2022.¹

(For prior coverage, see GMS Flash Alert 2022-27, 4 February 2022.)

All fully vaccinated individuals, regardless of nationality, will now be allowed to enter the country for tourism, business, and health purposes. Without the need for an EED, it is expected there will be faster resumption of business visits and deployment plans of visa-required nationals to the country. Moreover, processing applications of employment visas upon arrival in the Philippines ought to significantly reduce the waiting time to start assignments.  

Fully-vaccinated foreign nationals will be allowed to enter the Philippines subject to the following updated entry, testing and quarantine protocols as follows.

1.      Effective 1 April 2022, foreign nationals may enter the Philippines without an EED provided they comply with the following requirements. They must:

a.  be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, except for minor children below twelve (12) years of age traveling with their fully-vaccinated foreign parent/s;

b.  possess an acceptable proof of vaccination;

c.  present a negative RT-PCR test taken within forty-eight (48) hours or negative laboratory-based antigen test taken within twenty-four (24) hours prior to the date and time of departure from the country of origin / first port of embarkation;

d.  have a passport valid for at least six (6) months at the time of arrival in the Philippines;

e.  have a valid return or outbound ticket to their country of origin or next destination not later than thirty (30) days from date of arrival in the Philippines;

f.  obtain prior to arrival, travel insurance for COVID-19 treatment costs from reputable insurance providers, with a minimum coverage of USD 35,000.00 for the duration of the stay in the Philippines.

2.      A foreign national is fully vaccinated only if the following requisites are met:

a.  Received the second dose in a two-dose series or a single-dose vaccine more than fourteen (14) days prior to the date of departure from the country of origin/port of embarkation.

b.  The vaccine is included in the following:

i.  Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) List or Compassionate Special Permit (CSP) issued by the Philippine Food and Drug Administration; or

ii. Emergency Use Listing of World Health Organization.

3.      Foreign nationals are no longer required to observe facility-based quarantine but must self-monitor for seven (7) days with the first day being the date of arrival.

4.      Foreign nationals with valid and subsisting EEDs issued prior to 1 April 2022, will be allowed entry to the country.

5.      IATF Resolution No. 131-A allowing the interim application for visa issuance (9G-131A and 47A2) will no longer be applied beginning 1 April 2022.

1   See IATF Resolution No. 165 (24 March 2022).

*  Please note that KPMG LLP (U.S.) does not provide any immigration services.  However, KPMG Law LLP in Canada can assist clients with U.S. immigration matters.   

The information contained in this newsletter was submitted by the KPMG International member firm in the Philippines.