Filipinos from UAE can fly home despite Philippine travel ban

Dubai: Filipinos coming from the UAE can still go home despite the temporary ban for foreign nationals coming from 34 countries, including the UAE. Filipinos who wish to proceed with their travel plans will be subjected to a mandatory 14-day quarantine at an accredited facility upon arrival in Manila, regardless of their COVID-19 test result.

Two airlines — Cebu Pacific (CEB) and Philippine Airlines (PAL) — issued travel advisories on Friday following the Philippine government’s decision to extend temporary travel ban for foreign nationals until January 31 due to the new COVID-19 variant. “During this period, only Filipino citizens will be accepted on flights from Dubai, Nagoya (Japan), Singapore, and Seoul (South Korea),” Cebu Pacific said in a statement sent to Gulf News. “Cebu Pacific (CEB) will not accept foreign nationals who originated from, transited via, or visited within 14 days before arrival in the Philippines, any of the 34 countries specified by the (Philippine) Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF),” it added.

Countries affected by the temporary ban include UK, USA, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, Israel, Portugal, China, Spain, Ireland, Netherlands, Singapore, Lebanon, Japan, Finland, Norway, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Australia, France, Iceland, South Korea, Jordan, Brazil, Australia, Jamaica, Oman, UAE, Luxembourg and Hungary.

Exemptions

Philippine Airlines, meanwhile, shared a list of passengers who are exempted from the travel restriction and are allowed to enter the Philippines, subject to prescribed arrival and quarantine protocols. These include: unaccompanied minor Filipino nationals under the repatriation programme of the government, local or accredited non-Filipino diplomats and international organisations such as World Health Organisation or United Nations, non-Filipino dignitaries, and medical and emergency cases, including medical escorts with valid entry visa.

Rebooking

CEB said passengers affected by the temporary ban may avail of free rebooking within 90 days (with waived rebooking fee and fare difference), can get full travel fund (valid for two years) or get full refund.