(Eagle News) — The Philippines has suspended the implementation of a resolution allowing the entry of fully vaccinated foreigners with visa-free privileges from countries included in the Philippines’ green list.
The Palace made the announcement on the suspension of the implementation of Resolution 150-A on Monday, Nov. 29, following reports of a new COVID-19 variant in several countries, including Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, and Switzerland.
The detection of the Omicron variant, classified as a variant concern by the World Health Organization and believed to have ten mutations as opposed to Delta’s two and Beta’s three, was first announced in South Africa.
Resolution 15-A was supposed to take effect on December 1 and stay in effect until December 15.
“Kami rin sa (Inter-Agency Task Force), we continue to consult with our health experts, we continue to actively monitor developments with regard to the Omicron variant,” Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said.
So far, the Philippines has included in its “red” list South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini, and Mozambique.
It later added Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, and Italy.
Nograles said travelers from these red list countries within the last 14 days prior to arrival in the Philippines are not allowed into the country regardless of vaccination status.
“Only Filipinos returning to the country via government-initiated or non-government-initiated repatriation and Bayanihan Flights may be allowed entry subject to the prevailing entry, testing, and quarantine protocols for Red List countries, jurisdictions, or territories,” he said.