The Bureau of Immigration (BI) reminded passengers arriving from abroad who have been fully vaccinated in the Philippines that they still have to present a seven-day booking in a government-accredited quarantine facility upon their return to the country.
In a statement, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente stressed that said fully vaccinated passengers are not exempted from quarantine protocols. “The recent Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) resolution clearly provides that all arriving individuals who are fully vaccinated in the country are required to undergo a seven-day facility-based quarantine upon arrival, with the day of arrival being the first day,” the BI Chief said.
Morente issued the statement following reports that BI offices were being swamped with queries on whether passengers who have been vaccinated here are required to undergo quarantine protocols upon arrival at the airport.
Morente reminded departing fully-vaccinated passengers to bring their vaccination cards as these will be presented to officials of the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) at the airport upon their return.
Fully-vaccinated passengers should still present quarantine booking
He also advised the passengers to secure, before their departure, from the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) or city/municipal health officer of their local government unit a certification that they have been fully vaccinated.
The new protocols for fully vaccinated passengers take effect on Tuesday as part of government efforts to gradually ease travel restrictions.
According to the IATF-MEID, a passenger is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after he or she has completed his second dose (or first dose for single-dose type) of a vaccine that was issued authorization by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Morente added that those not yet vaccinated, or those vaccinated abroad, will still be required to present a 10-day quarantine booking.
Meanwhile BI Port Operations Division Chief Atty. Carlos Capulong stated that measures against those who present fake quarantine bookings are still in place. “If arriving aliens are found by the appropriate agencies to have faked their quarantine bookings, they may be referred back to the BI for initiation of deportation proceedings,” he warned.
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