14 March 2022 - Further to Public Advisory No. 11, No. 10, and No. 09, the public is advised of the following updates entry regulations into the Philippines per relevant resolutions of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases:

1. Resumption of visa-free entry privilege for Swiss and Liechtenstein nationals and other nationals covered by Executive Order No. (EO) 408 for a maximum stay of 30-days in the Philippines. The list of countries under EO 408 can be viewed from this DFA link.

Holders of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region or Macau SAR passports are entitled to stay for a period not exceeding fourteen (14) days.

Any extension of the said maximum 30-days stay (or 14-days stay for HK-SAR or Macau SAR passport holders) is within the purview of the Bureau of Immigration (BI), which has the sole mandate and prerogative regarding the entry and stay of foreigners into the Philippines. Applications for extension of stay while in the Philippines must be lodged directly with the BI.

2. Resumption of Balikbayan Visa Privilege for the legal spouse or children of Philippine nationals and/or former Philippine nationals travelling with the said Philippine national or former Philippine national. More information the on Balikbayan Visa privilege can be viewed from: https://immigration.gov.ph/faqs/visa-inquiry/balikbayan-privilege.

Foreign nationals arriving in the Philippines (including their foreign spouse and/or children), who are availing themselves of the Balikbayan Visa Privilege under Republic Act No. 9174 at the port of entry are not included as among the foreign nationals who must present a return tickets for their return journey to the port of origin or next port of destination not later than thirty (30) days from date of arrival in the Philippines.

3. Passports must be valid for a period of at least six (6) months at the time of their arrival in the Philippines;

4. All foreign nationals entering the Philippines must be fully vaccinated. The Swiss Covid 19 certificate is acceptable as proof of vaccination status. But, a Certificate of Genesen or Recovery is not accepted in the Philippines.

5. Visa issuance for categories 9(a), 9(g) or 47(a)(2) requires a prior issuance of an Entry Exemption Document (EED) by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Manila.

6. Visa may only be issued to the following upon submission of a letter with complete visa requirements to the following:

1. • Visiting foreign government officials following the receipt by the Embassy of instructions from the DFA in Manila regarding the appropriate visa to be issued. Concerned officials are requested to contact the Embassy by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.;
   • Foreign nationals holding Entry Exemption Document (EED) – 9(a), 9(g) or 47(a)(2) visas will be issued to applicants, which EEDs have been received by the Embassy from DFA in Manila.

Note that EEDs are issued by the DFA to foreign nationals entering the Philippines for work / business (9g visa category), or tourism (9a visa category) with a stay of more than 30-days.  EED processing and approval by the DFA in Manila takes time. Thus, all eligible foreign nationals who can travel to the Philippine visa-free for a maximum of 30-days stay in the country are strongly encouraged to avail themselves of the said privilege instead of applying for a 9a visa to enter the Philippines.

7. Application and visa issuance for 13(a), i.e., Non Quota Immigrant Visa, remains suspended.

8. All incoming travelers are also required to present a negative PCR test taken within 48 hours, or a negative laboratory based Antigen Test taken within twenty-four (24) hours, prior to the date and time of departure from the country of origin/first port of embarkation in a continuous travel to the Philippines, excluding lay-overs; provided, that, he/she has not left the airport premises or has not been admitted into another country during such lay-over.

9. All incoming travelers are also required to register with the One Health Pass (https://www.onehealthpass.com.ph/) prior to your arrival in the Philippines. The One Health Pass is administered by the Bureau of Quarantine and is free of charge.

10. All queries regarding vaccination status, vaccination certificate, One Health Pass and other queries on vaccination and quarantine must be directed to the Philippine Department of Health (DOH) / Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) regarding the One Health Pass. Their details are as follows:

• Websites / Facebook
  • DOH - https://doh.gov.ph/;

           https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDOHgov

• BOQ - https://quarantine.doh.gov.ph/

For details of the IATF Resolution 164A, please visit: https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/downloads/2022/03mar/20220310-IATF-RESO-164-A-RRD.pdf.

Prospective travelers are strongly advised to read the details of the above information from the Visa page at: https://bernepe.dfa.gov.ph/tourism-and-visa/visa.

Due to the high volume of queries and the limited number of Embassy personnel, all clients inquiring about entry regulations in the Philippines and / or visa issuance are strongly encouraged to regularly monitor updates in the Philippine Embassy website and Facebook Page, and inquire by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Please be guided accordingly