Philippines tourism
Image Credit: Department of Tourism Philippines

Highlights

  • More than 150 nationalities can enter the Philippines visa-free.
  • The Philippines has scrapped a rule requiring pre-departure travel insurance to cover the cost of COVID treatment as well as the pre-departure RT-PCR requirement for most visitor categories.

Manila: As travel rules continue to ease across the world, the Philippines has updated its health requirements for in-bound visitors and business travellers.

In general, the country follows a policy in listing countries whose nationals can enter the Philippines without a visa, based on Executive Order No. 408 signed by the late President Carlos P. Garcia on November 9, 1960.

Health travel rules

From April 1, 2022, fully-vaccinated passport holders from non-visa required countries (listed below), diplomatic and official/service passports with existing visa-waiver agreements, and foreign nationals with valid visas shall be allowed entry into the Philippines, provided they:

[1] Are holders of passports valid for at least six (6) months at the time of arrival;

[2] Have a return or outbound ticket to their country of origin or next country of destination;

[3] Have any of the following proofs of vaccination against COVID-19 recognised under existing IATF regulations:

(i) World Health Organisation International Certificates of Vaccination and Prophylaxis;

(ii) VaxCertPH; or

(iii) National/state digital certificate of the foreign government which has accepted VaxCertPH under a reciprocal arrangement (unless otherwise permitted by the IATF).

(4) A pre-departure RT-PCR/ART negative test result is no longer required for the following categories:

[a] Foreign nationals aged 18 and above who have received primary series COVID-19 vaccine and at least one (1) COVID-19 booster shot;

[b] Foreign nationals aged 12 to 17 who are fully vaccinated with primary series COVID-19 vaccine;

[c] And foreign nationals below 12 years old, regardless of vaccination status, accompanied by parent/guardian who have received a complete primary series and one booster shot.

> Those who do not belong to any of the mentioned categories shall present a negative RT-PCR test taken within 48 hours or laboratory-administered antigen/ART test taken 24 hours prior to departure from the country of origin.

(5) Have filled out the OneHealthPass Health Declaration Form.

Prior to Departure

> Three days before departure, register through Bureau of Quarantine’s OneHealthPass (OHP) Online Registration Platform [https://www.onehealthpass.com.ph/], for free. Save your transaction number.

> Every traveller, including children, should each have an OHP Registration.

> The transaction number will also be sent through your registered e-mail address.

> Save your transaction number (This is also sent to your e-mail address)

> For travellers who do not have an address in the Philippines, you may put your company address or the address you will stay in after your quarantine period in the “permanent residence” field

>Travellers with no booster shot must secure and present a negative pre-departure RT-PCR test taken within 48 hours or negative laboratory-administered antigen/ART test within 24 hours from their travel from an approved provider.

> Under current regulations, foreign nationals with no booster shot who test positive on their pre-departure RT-PCR or ART (whether fully-recovered or as new infection) will not be allowed entry into the Philippines.

> On the day of your departure, a visitor must update the OneHealthPass/OHP registration (seat number, health declaration, RT-PCR test results and other details). Input your transaction number and last name. Save or print the QR code generated. The OHP QR Code will also be sent through your registered e-mail address.

> Be ready with a print-out of your digital vaccination certificate for outbound travel, with QR Code, and OneHealthPass QR Code.

Terminal 1 NAIA Manila Airport
A scene at Ninoy Aquino International Airport T1 in Manila. Image Credit: Gulf News File | Jay Hilotin

Temporary visitors to the Philippines

After accomplishing the health requirements above, nationals from the following countries traveling to the Philippines for business and tourism purposes are allowed to enter the Philippines without visas for a stay not exceeding thirty (30) days or less.

Here’s the list:

[1] Andorra

[2] Angola

[3] Antigua and Barbuda

[4] Argentina

[5] Australia

[6] Austria

[7] Bahamas

[8] Bahrain

[9] Barbados

[10] Belgium

[11] Beliz

[12] Benin

[13] Bhutan

[14] Bolivia

[15] Botswana

[16] Brazil*

[17] Brunei Darussalam

[18] Bulgaria

[19] Burkina Faso

[20] Burundi

[21] Cambodia

[22] Cameroon

[23] Canada

[24] Cape Verde

[25] Central African Republic

[26] Chad

[27] Chile

[28] Colombia

[29] Comoros

[30] Congo

[31] Costa Rica

[32] Cote d’Ivoir

[33] Croatia

[34] Cyprus

[35] Czech Republic

[36] Democratic Republic of the Congo

[37] Denmark

[37] Djibouti

[39] Dominica

[40] Dominican Republic

[41] Ecuador

[42] El Salvador

[43] Equatorial Guinea

[44] Eritrea

[45] Estonia

[45] Ethiopia

[46] Fiji

[47] Finland

[48] France

[49] Gabon

[50] Gambia

[51] Germany

[52] Ghana

[53] Greece

[54] Grenada

[55] Guatemala

[56] Guinea

[57] Guinea Bissau

[58] Guyana

[59] Haiti

[60] Honduras

[61] Hungary

[62] Iceland

[63] Indonesia

[64] Ireland

[65] Israel*

[66] Italy

[67] Jamaica

[68] Japan

[69] Kazakhstan

[70] Kenya

[71] Kiribati

[72] Kuwait

[73] Kyrgyzstan

[74] Lao People’s Democratic Republic

[75] Latvia

[76] Lesotho

[78] Liberia

[79] Liechtenstein

[80] Lithuania

[81] Luxembourg

[82] Madagascar

[83] Malawi

[84] Malaysia

[85] Maldives

[86] Mali

[87] Malta

[88] Marshall Islands

[89] Mauritania

[90] Mauritius

[91] Mexico

[92] Micronesia

[93] Monaco

[94] Mongolia

[95] Morocco

[96] Mozambique

[97] Myanmar

[98] Namibia

[99] Nepal

[100] Netherlands

[101] New Zealand

[102] Nicaragua

[103] Niger

[104] Norway

[105] Oman

[106] Palau

[107] Panama

[108] Papua New Guinea

[109] Paraguay

[110] Peru

[111] Poland

[112] Portugal

[113] Qatar

[114] Republic of Korea

[115] Romania

[116] Russia

[117] Rwanda

[118] Saint Kitts and Nevis

[119] Saint Lucia

[120] Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

[121] Samoa

[122] San Marino

[123] Sao Tome and Principe

[124] Saudi Arabia

[125] Senegal

[126] Seychelles

[127] Singapore

[128] Slovak Republic

[129] Slovenia

[130] Solomon Islands

[131] South Africa

[132] Spain

[133] Suriname

[134] Swaziland

[135] Sweden

[136] Switzerland

[137] Tajikistan

[139] Thailand

[140] Togo

[141] Trinidad and Tobago

[142] Tunisia

[143] Turkey

[144] Turkmenistan

[145] Tuvalu

[146] Uganda

[147] United Arab Emirates

[148] United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

[149] United Republic of Tanzania

[150] United States of America

[151] Uruguay

[152] Uzbekistan

[153] Vanuatu

[154] Vatican

[155] Venezuela

[156] Vietnam

[157] Zambia

[158] Zimbabwe.

Allowed to enter the Philippines without a visa for a stay not exceeding fourteen (14) days:

1. Holders of Hong Kong Special Administrative (SAR) passports.

2. Holders of Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) passports.

Allowed to enter the Philippines without a visa for a stay not exceeding seven (7) days:

1. Holders of Macau-Portuguese passports

2. Holders of Hong Kong British passports.

*The Philippines gives Brazilian and Israeli nationals a fifty-nine (59) day visa-free stay based on existing agreements.

This is the latest information as per the Philippines' Department of Health and the Visa Division of the  Department of Foreign Affairs. We'll update as information becomes available. For more details, please check with the Philippine Embassy or Consulate near you.

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