DOT targets 1-M Chinese tourists with visa upon arrival program

The Department of Tourism (DOT) is targeting at least a million tourists from the People’s Republic of China with the the implementation of the visa upon arrival (VUA) program last month.

DOT undersecretary Rolando Canezal told reporters that VUA will be implemented in major international airports and sea ports.

“The first batch of Chinese tourists to avail of the program are 3,000 cruise ship tourists who arrived on Aug. 29,” he said.

Canezal said that the VUA program will be expanded to Indian tourists.

“We believe this will serve as an inel centive to Chinese guests who may be prospective investors wanting to prove that the country is not only a safe haven for tourists but also a lucrative business location as well,” Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo said.

In 2016, the Philippines saw a 37.65 percent rise in Chinese visitor arrivals to 675,663 from 454,962 visitors in 2015, following President Duterte’s state visit to China in mid-October 2016 and the lifting of Beijing’s travel restriction against the Philippines.

Chinese tourist arrivals continued to surge in the first half of the year as it jumped 33.44 percent to 454,962 visitors from 340,958 in the same period last year.

The DOT said the approval of the VUA program might catapult China as the top source market of visitors for the Philippines.

At present, China is the country’s third highest source of foreign arrivals, after South Korea and the United States.

In line with implementing the VUA policy, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) released a statement that only qualified Chinese nationals will be granted VUA.

The program applies to Chinese nationals who are members of tour groups organized by tourism department-accredited tour operators; investors endorsed by local and foreign chambers of commerce, the Board of Investments, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry or the Philippine Retirement Authority; and delegates to sports competitions, delegates to conventions, exhibitions and symposia.

The BI said Chinese nationals should file their applications at least 10 working days before they arrive in the Philippines.