(Eagle News) — All Filipino citizens are now allowed entry into the Philippines.
This was after the National Task Force Against COVID-19 revised its March 16 circular that temporarily suspended the entry of returning Filipinos who are not Overseas Filipino Workers.
According to the new March 18 circular signed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, the revisions were in view of the agreements made in the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases meeting held on March 18.
The March 18 circular said the temporary ban on the entry of foreign nationals into the country starts at 12:01 after midnight on March 22, and will end at 11:59 p.m. on April 21.
The following foreign nationals are exempted from the travel ban:
- diplomats and members of international organizations and their dependents 9(c) or 47(a)(2) visa at the time of entry
- foreign nationals involved in medical repatriation
- foreign seafarers under the “Green Lanes” program for crew change
- foreign spouses and children of Filipino citizens with valid visas at the time of entry
- emergency, humanitarian and other analogous cases approved by the NTF provided they have valid visas at the time of entry
The March 18 circular said the entry of allowed foreign nationals and Filipinos “shall be subject to the arrival quota set by the Department of Transportation.”
The Philippines is at present battling a surge in COVID-19 cases, something the Department of Health attributed to an increase in mobility and the failure to follow minimum health protocols, exacerbated by the presence of COVID-19 virus variants that are said to be more transmissible.
The Philippines confirmed 5,290 additional COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the seventh consecutive day the Philippines reported over 4,000 COVID-19 cases in a single day.
