Short-term visitors to the Philippines may soon be able to extend their stay in the country simply by filing their applications online, as the Bureau of Immigration is set to launch its visa waiver online project by the end of the year.
In a televised interview Monday, BI spokesman Dana Krizia Sandoval said the agency aims to attract more international tourists to the country.
“Yes, the program is scheduled for launch before yearend, this is called the visa waiver – it’s an online project,” Sandoval said during the Laging Handa briefing.
She said it was “very simple” for short-term tourists coming to the country from 157 countries who can come to the PH visa-free to extend their visa online.
“It is very convenient, very easy for the traveling public, and we’re really encouraging people to use this platform,” Sandoval added.
Around 32,000 passengers arrived in the Philippines on Christmas eve, the bureau added Monday.
Most of them landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Sandoval said.
A total of 31,992 passengers arrived on December 24, of which 10,047 landed at Terminal 1, 4,646 landed at Terminal 2, and 12,615 landed at Terminal 3.
Meanwhile, Sandoval said 29,968 passengers arrived on Christmas Day.
For departures, she said 22,248 departed from the country on Christmas eve while 27,934 departed on Christmas day.
“This is significantly higher than the last two years because, if you remember, the holiday season for the last two years was slightly glum (owing to COVID-19),” Sandoval said.
She said the BI is expecting the number of arrivals in the country to remain high until New Year, “because our countrymen and their families will visit the country to celebrate Christmas and New Year.”
“Usually, departures will increase during the New Year because our countrymen who live abroad and our OFWs will return to their work,” Sandoval added.