The Bureau of Immigration said it expects daily departures to rise to 40,000 a day after New Year.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said arrivals remained high after Christmas — with the agency logging as high as 57,000 arrivals in a day.
The BI also processed around 30,000 departures a day post-Christmas.
This brought the total arrivals to 1.48 million and total departures to 750,000 for the month of December.
“We project that the numbers will change after New Year, when OFWs and former Filipinos who came home for the holidays go back to their work and residence abroad,” said Tansingco.
He said no major incidents or concerns have been recorded during their operations during the peak season.
“We hope the smooth operations continue until the New Year when most of those who celebrated Christmas here go back home,” he said.
Of the 161,664 passengers that arrived in the country during the Christmas weekend, nearly 81 percent arrived via the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
“International travel is not just on a rebound. Figures show that the number of travelers is almost surpassing pre-pandemic numbers. It’s a cause for celebration for the tourism and international travel sectors,” the BI chief said.
Before the coronavirus pandemic, the BI saw an average of 55,000 daily arrivals during the month of December.
It also recorded an average of 47,000 departures in December 2019.
The BI earlier implemented measures to ensure efficient processing of arriving and departing passengers during the peak season.
It has also urged arriving Filipinos to use the e-gates for faster immigration clearance and reminded passengers to register via the e-travel portal at etravel.gov.ph at least 72 hours before arrival or departure.