(Eagle News) — The Bureau of Immigration has said unvaccinated foreigners who need to transact with the bureau may do so in its offices not located inside malls.
In a statement, Immigration chief Jaime Morente said this was in compliance with the resolution of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) and a directive announced by the Palace banning unvaccinated people from dining in restaurants and going to such establishments.
He added foreigners are covered by the restrictions set by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID), and may face deportation proceedings if found in disrespect of the country’s laws.
The bureau noted that in 2020, it filed charges against a Spanish national for undesirability and overstaying after he was shown in a video hurling expletives at a policeman who almost arrested him for violating Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) policies.
Early January, the MMC, composed of the 17 NCR mayors and the MMDA, issued MMDA Resolution 22-01, series of 2022, which urges local government units in Metro Manila to issue ordinances barring the unvaccinated from going outside their homes.
The unvaccinated and minors are exempted if the reason for leaving is procuring essential goods and services, going to work, and for individual outdoor exercise.
The Palace said President Rodrigo Duterte has also ordered the authorities to urge the unvaccinated or those who have not completed their vaccination doses to stay inside their homes “para mapigilan ang pagkalat ng virus na ito, maprotektahan natin sila.”