No change in intl travel restrictions despite MECQ

EXISTING travel restrictions on international travel remain the same despite the reimposition of the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) on Metro Manila and nearby provinces, according to the Bureau of Immigration.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente clarified on Friday that the government had not imposed additional restrictions or revised the guidelines on international travel.

He added that it would remain as such until changed or revised by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

“Unlike domestic flights, which are suspended under MECQ, international flights at our airports in

Manila, Cebu and Clark continue,” said Morente in a statement.

He advised the public to always keep themselves updated on international travel guidelines implemented by the BI by accessing the Bureau’s website at www.immigration.gov.ph and other social media accounts such as www.facebook.com/immigration. helpline.ph and www.facebook.com/ officialbureauofimmigration.

He said postings on the bureau’s official website and social media accounts were regularly updated to enlighten the public on existing travel guidelines in conformity with the latest issuances of the IATF-EID.

Morente was prompted to issue a clarification after the BI offices were again swamped with numerous calls and queries from the public after the government announced that Metro Manila was reverting to MECQ.

According to BI Port Operations Division Acting Chief Grifton Medina, the country remains off limits to foreign tourists.

Furthermore, aside from Filipinos, only holders of permanent immigrant visas and foreign spouses, minor dependents and foreign parents of Filipino minor children can enter the country.

“However, dependents of Filipinos and children of foreigners who have special needs may enter the country, regardless of age,” Medina said. He also reiterated that only foreigners, overseas Filipino workers, and Filipinos who are permanent residents or students abroad are permitted to leave the country.

Medina also reported that despite the government’s decision to allow the entry of aliens with permanent resident or immigrant visa, only 87 of them have so far arrived since Aug. 1-5, 2020.

The figure represents a 94-percent drop from 1,412 permanent residents who arrived in the country during the same five-day period in 2019.

The BI said its records indicate that there are still about 15,000 foreigners who are permanent residents stranded abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic.