All you need to know: PH’s inbound travel from UAE re-opens today

The Philippine government has lifted its travel restrictions on 10 countries including the United Arab Emirates starting today, September 6. 

The COVID-19 protocols, testing, and quarantine requirements for arriving travellers will be implemented according to classifications of countries (Green, Yellow and Red categories) set by the Philippine government.

“This is based on their respective incidence rates and case counts as primary criteria, and testing data as secondary criteria. The incidence rate is the cumulative new cases over the past 28 days per 100,000 population while case counts are cumulative new cases over the past 28 days,” the IATF said in a statement over the weekend. 

Travellers allowed to enter PH

Currently, only Filipinos, foreign spouses, parents and children of Filipinos, and several categories of foreigners are allowed to enter the country. 

Foreign nationals allowed to enter the Philippines are those with valid and existing visas, entry exemption documents, as well as diplomats. Tourists remain subject to a COVID-19 travel ban.

Important registration to complete

If you wish to enter the Philippines, you must first register on the online portal One Health Pass. A QR code to be generated after registration is necessary and will be presented upon arrival.

Ahead of your travel, download the Traze app on your mobile phone. It is used by all Philippine port passengers and terminals to automate contact tracing.

Remember that aside from face mask, face shield is also mandatory in all public places and business establishments throughout the country.

Quarantine, PCR testing

The COVID-19 protocols, testing, and quarantine requirements for arriving passengers are based on the following categories:

Yellow list – “Moderate risk” countries
Red list – “High risk” countries

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement: “International travellers coming from the abovementioned countries shall, however, comply with the appropriate entry, testing, and quarantine protocols, depending on the country’s approved ‘listing.'” 

The country, however, has yet to release list of countries under the red or yellow categories. It’s not yet clear under which category do the previously travel-banned countries including the UAE would fall.

Nonetheless, Filipinos passengers from yellow and red list have the same quarantine process. Regardless of vaccination status, they must undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival. 

10 days – Quarantine facility

4 days – Home quarantine in local government units of destination

Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing will be conducted on the 7th day, as mandated by the IATF.

Yellow list countries/territories 

The IATF classified “Yellow List” countries/jurisdictions/ territories as “Moderate Risk” based on the following metrics: (i) for populations greater than 100,000, the incidence rate shall be 50 to 500; and (ii) for populations less than 100,000, the COVID-19 case counts shall be 50 to 500; and testing rate of tests over the past 28 days per 100,000 population. 

“Inbound international travellers, regardless of their vaccination status, coming from or with travel history within the last 14 days prior to their arrival in the Philippines from “Yellow List” countries/jurisdictions/territories shall be governed by entry, testing and quarantine protocols,” the government said. 

Here are the steps to be followed by those coming from ‘yellow list’ countries:

1. Arriving travellers shall undergo 14-day quarantine upon arrival. They have to complete the first 10 days in a quarantine facility while the remaining 4 days must be spent under home quarantine in their respective local government units. 
2. They shall undergo RT-PCR testing on the 7th day, with their day of arrival serving as Day 1. (Returning Filipinos must finish their mandatory 10-day quarantine.) (Notwithstanding a negative test result, they have to complete their facility quarantine for 10 days.)
3. The Bureau of Quarantine shall ensure strict symptom monitoring while in the facility quarantine for 10 days.
4. The foregoing shall be subject to special protocols approved by the IATF or the Office of the President for certain classes of travellers or ports of origin.

Red list countries/territories 

Only Filipinos coming from red list countries will be allowed to enter the Philippines except for government-initiated repatriation, non-government repatriation and Bayanihan flights. 

“Inbound international travellers, regardless of their vaccination status, coming from or who have been to Red nations shall not be allowed to enter the Philippines,” the IATF said. 

The following will be applied to travellers from red list areas:

1. Filipinos from Red-listed places shall undergo 14-day quarantine upon arrival – the first 10 in a quarantine facility and the remaining four days under home quarantine in their LGUs of destination.
2. They shall undergo RT-PCR testing on the seventh day, with their day of arrival serving as Day 1 and the BOQ shall ensure strict symptom monitoring.
3. All passengers, whether Filipinos or foreigners, merely transiting through a country, jurisdiction, a territory under the Red list, shall not be deemed as being there if they stayed in the airport the whole time and were not cleared for entry by its immigration authorities.
4. They shall likewise be covered by existing testing and quarantine protocols.

Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Emirates and Etihad Airlines are some of the major airlines flying from the UAE to the Philippines and vice versa.