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DOT welcomes IATF approval to accept the national VaxCert of 12 additional countries
Manila, PHILIPPINES—The Department of Tourism (DOT) welcomes the recent decision of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to expand its list of accepted and recognized national COVID-19 vaccination certificates, approving twelve more from countries whose travelers are allowed visa-free travel to the Philippines.
Based on Resolution No. 162 of the IATF-EID, the national/state vaccination certificates of Argentina, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Chile, Denmark, Ecuador, Indonesia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Portugal, and Spain, mainly 12 of the 157 countries that can visit the Philippines visa-free under Executive Order (EO) 408, shall be accepted and recognized as other proofs of vaccination required as entry requirements to the Philippines.
These are in addition to the national COVID-19 vaccination certificates that were approved in the previous resolutions of the task force.
The same resolution also directed the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ), and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) One Stop Shop (OSS) to only accept vaccination certificates recognized by the IATF-EID.
“The DOT commits to working with other member agencies of the IATF-EID in making the travel process and requirements to the country easier for balikbayans and foreign tourists alike. This move will greatly help in restoring jobs under the heavily impacted tourism industry,” tourism chief Berna Romulo-Puyat said.
“We are grateful to the IATF-EID for this development as we aim to make travel as seamless as possible for our travelers from visa-free countries. We look forward to opening our doors to guests from all over the world, but of course, with all the necessary health and safety protocols in place,” the tourism chief added.
Meanwhile, Puyat noted that the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme that has been agreed by the governments of Philippines and Singapore will further boost arrivals from the latter.
Here is the full list of countries whose national vaccination certificates are recognized by the Philippines: https://visitor.tourism.gov.ph/vaxcert/
Published:February 21, 2022
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