MANILA, Philippines — The new testing and quarantine protocols for passengers coming from countries and territories included in the “green” and “yellow” lists will apply to those who may have arrived in the Philippines on or before Oct. 8.
The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has issued Resolution 142-A, stating that Resolution No. 142, which enumerated the updated protocols for persons coming from “green” and “yellow” list countries, territories or jurisdictions, would be applied retroactively.
“For this purpose, the testing and quarantine protocols are now to be applied to international passengers coming from ‘green’ and ‘yellow’ list countries/territories/jurisdictions in all ports of entry who may have arrived in the Philippines on or before 08 October 2021,” Resolution 142-A dated Oct. 9 read.
Under the updated protocols approved by the government’s pandemic task force last Oct. 7, fully vaccinated persons coming from territories in the “green” or “yellow” lists need to undergo facility-based quarantine until the release of their negative RT-PCR testing taken on the fifth day. They will then be required to undergo home quarantine until their tenth day, with the day of arrival as their first day.
Unvaccinated, partially vaccinated or persons coming from those territories whose vaccination status cannot be independently verified or confirmed as valid or authentic by authorities have to undergo facility-based quarantine until the release of their RT-PCR testing taken on the seventh day. They will then be required to undergo home quarantine until their 14th day, with the day of arrival as their first day.
The task force has instructed the quarantine bureau to ensure strict symptom monitoring while the individuals are in the facility.
Foreign nationals coming from territories that are in the “green” or “yellow” list will be required to secure their own pre-booked accommodation of at least six days for the fully vaccinated and at least eight days for the unvaccinated, partially vaccinated or those whose vaccination status cannot be independently confirmed as valid or authentic by Philippine authorities.
“What will happen to those who are already under quarantine before Oct. 8? Good news is the IATF has issued a resolution making the applicability of the new protocols for those coming from green and yellow list (territories) retroactive,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said at a press briefing yesterday.
“So if you are on your sixth day in a quarantine facility, undergo an (RT-PCR test) because if you test negative, you can already undergo home quarantine,” he added.
Documents accepted to verify vaccination status include a certification from the Philippine overseas labor office in the country of origin for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and their spouses, parents or children traveling with them; VaxCertPH digital vaccination certificate or international certificate of vaccination or prophylaxis (ICV) issued by the quarantine bureau for Filipinos or foreigners fully vaccinated in the Philippines and the national digital certificate of the foreign government which accepted VaxCertPH under a reciprocal arrangement or ICV for non-OFWs and foreigners fully vaccinated abroad.
Roque said the IATF has also ordered agencies to ensure acceptance of the national digital certificate of foreign government that has accepted VaxCertPH under a reciprocal arrangement, or the ICV issued by the World Health Organization to confirm the vaccination status of non-OFWs and foreigners fully vaccinated in other countries.
Meanwhile, Cebu Pacific is offering its first-ever five-day P1 sale for all domestic and international destinations as part of its continuing efforts to spur travel demand.
The promo fare, which allows passengers to enjoy base fare of only P1 to Cebu Pacific’s over 47 domestic routes and 11 international routes, is available until Oct. 14 for flights from June 1, 2022 to Aug. 31, 2022.
“As we enter the last quarter of the year, we are happy to have seen some positive developments in the travel industry. More and more people are gaining confidence to travel again, and we are happy to keep supporting our sector’s recovery through our trademark low fares,” Cebu Pacific vice president for marketing and customer experience Candice Iyog said.
Cebu Pacific said passengers may use their existing travel funds to book new flights, while credit and debit cards, as well as payment centers, may also be used to pay for bookings.
It said passengers could also travel with peace of mind as the carrier continues to enable all passengers to avail of unlimited rebooking as needed.
“We look forward to having more Juans on board again as we endeavor to safely bring you to your desired destinations,” Iyog said. – Richmond Mercurio