Visa on arrival to lure more Chinese tourists

MANILA, Philippines - The implementation of the visa upon arrival (VUA) program is expected to lure more Chinese tourists to the country, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said.

“The DOT expresses its appreciation for the favorable action of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to DOT’s long-standing proposal to ease the visa rules and procedures, specifically to implement the VUA policy for Chinese visitors,” DOT said in a statement.

Earlier this week, the DOJ issued a circular granting the VUA option to Chinese citizens to attract more tourists and investors from China.

Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo had pressed the DOJ to approve and implement the VUA as the DOT positions the country to become a rightful competitor in the international tourism industry.

“We also believe this will serve as an incentive 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,” 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.

“Accommodating our visiting Chinese friends with a visa grant upon arrival will only help keep the momentum of massive influx of Chinese tourists into the country since the inception of the Duterte administration in July of 2016?,” Teo said.

The tourism department 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 the implementing the VUA policy, the Bureau of Immigration(BI) released a statement earlier this week that only qualified Chinese nationals will be granted the 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 Investment, 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.

For this year, the Philippines is expecting Chinese tourist arrivals to hit the one million mark, which will help the tourism department hit its 7-million tourist arrivals target for 2017.

Tourist arrivals grew 12.7 percent in the first six months of the year to 3,357,591 from 2,978,438 in 2016.