Philippines travel ban lifted May 1st.....

[seekingthetruth 1,246]

Philippines lifts entry ban on foreign nationals from May 1

MANILA — The Philippines will lift this weekend its entry ban on foreign nationals except those coming from India, Malacañang said on Friday, as the country continued to battle a surge in COVID-19 infections. 

The inter-agency task force leading the country's COVID-19 response, in a meeting on Thursday, approved the entry of foreigners who satisfy several requirements from May 1, 2021, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a press briefing. 

These are the following: 

They must have a valid and existing visa at the time of entry, except for those qualified under the Balikbayan Program 

They must have a pre-booked accommodation for at least 7 nights in an accredited quarantine hotel or facility 

They should be tested for the novel coronavirus in their quarantine facility on the sixth day from the date of their arrival

They are subject to the maximum capacity of inbound passengers at the port and date of entry 

They are subject to the maximum capacity of inbound passengers (1,500 per day) at the port and date of entry

 
"Travel restrictions, however, shall continue to be in effect for those coming from India or those with travel history to India," Roque said in a statement. 

The Philippines suspended the entry of travelers from India from April 29 to May 14. India is fighting a surge in coronavirus cases that has pushed the health care system close to collapse in major cities. 

Catastrophe in India as daily COVID-19 death toll climbs above 3,600

"The Commissioner of Immigration shall have the exclusive prerogative to decide on the waiver or recall of exclusion orders of foreign nationals, subject to regular reporting to the IATF Secretariat," Roque said. 
 
The Philippines has tallied 1,028,738 coronavirus infections, of which 69,354 remain active as of Thursday. 

 

https://manilanews.ph/philippines-lifts-entry-ban-on-foreign-nationals-from-may-1/

[RO_AH 1,659]

Maybe I will be able to go for my son's birthday. But it still sucks that I have to quarantine for a week by myself. 2 week trip to spend 1 week with my wife and children.

[Joe Kano 327]

Who would want to go there?

 

You have to get a visa, which seems to be easy.  But the quarantines and lockdowns and curfews makes it a place I have no desire to visit.

 

Another con game the Philippines is pulling is making you have to pay for a expensive COVID test and you have to stay at an approved hotel for so many days, that is to put money into the government and Philippines backs pockets.

 

I am going to Cancun Mexico in  few weeks, to get back into USA the hotel is offering free COVID test to satisfy the USA requirements of having a negative COVID test within 3 days if traveling by air..

 

I am looking for USA to waive that requirement soon if you have had your Covid vaccine.

[Joe Kano 327]

5 hours ago, seekingthetruth said:

The Philippines has tallied 1,028,738 coronavirus infections, of which 69,354 remain active as of Thursday. 

 

Why is the country closed with such low Covid cases?

 

I am in Texas we have had like 3 million active cases, and we never shut down and kept on living and working.  Philippines gets a few cases and they run and stick their head in the sand.  

Really sad to see how bad the government of Philippines has handled the virus.  

[Skyman 321]

1 hour ago, Joe Kano said:

Philippines gets a few cases and they run and stick their head in the sand.  

The claim, at least, is that they were trying to keep the meager hospital facilities from being overrun.

[Joe Kano 327]

12 minutes ago, Skyman said:

The claim, at least, is that they were trying to keep the meager hospital facilities from being overrun.

That does make sense 

[coa24 69]

9 hours ago, Joe Kano said:

That does make sense 

From personal experience, Philippines health system isn't that great and can easily be a death trap if there were truly a big pandemic. Not saying COVID isn't big (though seems to be overblown and a lot about control). 

[payxibka 10,045]

10 hours ago, Skyman said:

The claim, at least, is that they were trying to keep the meager hospital facilities from being overrun.

As American hospitals throw brand new ventilators into the landfill

[Trompie 9]

On 4/30/2021 at 1:38 AM, RO_AH said:

Maybe I will be able to go for my son's birthday. But it still sucks that I have to quarantine for a week by myself. 2 week trip to spend 1 week with my wife and children.

I've got a valid 9A and a ticket to the Philippines, but now the Bureau of Immigration has added that 9a's visa's need "DFA exemption", so it's clear as mud whether people like us can travel there. Hoping they clarify it in the next week.

[flicks1998 1,044]

24 minutes ago, Trompie said:

I've got a valid 9A and a ticket to the Philippines, but now the Bureau of Immigration has added that 9a's visa's need "DFA exemption", so it's clear as mud whether people like us can travel there. Hoping they clarify it in the next week.

Looking at the details, it appears they have reverted back to the same requirements that were in place for March, although they did add some categories for people with work visas that could return.  If you have a current 9a, you can use it as long as you travel to the Philippines with your spouse or child.  The requirements between October and end of February 2021, which was the timeframe I had applied, was you had to prove that your spouse or child was already in the Philippines and that was how I spent Nov-February there.  

 

However since every time they make an announcement its as clear as fatberg, try writing to the Consulate for your area and get clarification.  Dont call.  You want the details in writing.

[RO_AH 1,659]

19 hours ago, payxibka said:

As American hospitals throw brand new ventilators into the landfill

Because in the beginning they were using ventilators then they found out that was killing people.

[RO_AH 1,659]

The Philippines announcements are all overly filled with legal speak to sound very intelligent but in reality are extremely confusing at best and lead to everyone having different opinions on what the rules are. I see people on social media saying anyone can fly there now and you can get a visa when you arrive.

 

I read it to mean that they are going back to the standards of what was in place before this recent extreme lock down with a few exceptions.

 

I believe if I want to go there I will need to obtain a visa (my wife and 2 children are there) and book an approved hotel for the first 7 days, take a covid test on the 6th day. Then go on to my destination. Can anyone confirm this?

[payxibka 10,045]

27 minutes ago, RO_AH said:

Because in the beginning they were using ventilators then they found out that was killing people.

Not a new phenomenon.   I'm not a doctor and I already knew that it's almost impossible to wean someone off a ventilator.

[flicks1998 1,044]

1 hour ago, RO_AH said:

The Philippines announcements are all overly filled with legal speak to sound very intelligent but in reality are extremely confusing at best and lead to everyone having different opinions on what the rules are. I see people on social media saying anyone can fly there now and you can get a visa when you arrive.

 

I read it to mean that they are going back to the standards of what was in place before this recent extreme lock down with a few exceptions.

 

I believe if I want to go there I will need to obtain a visa (my wife and 2 children are there) and book an approved hotel for the first 7 days, take a covid test on the 6th day. Then go on to my destination. Can anyone confirm this?

The info I have is they must travel with you. I’ll send information I get from a paid source as a PM in a few hours. However since the PI Govt is clear as mud, you may want to check the consulate in Hawaii and see if they can tell you. But everything I have is they need to be with you. Same rules in place from March 22 to end of April.  

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

5 hours ago, RO_AH said:

Because in the beginning they were using ventilators then they found out that was killing people.

That's because in the beginning they were primarily using the invasive ventilators that had the tube down the throat. That leads to increased chances of a infection in the lungs. Now they are using the ventilators that look like CPAP machines.