MANILA – The Philippines will, starting next month, allow travellers from more than 30 countries and regions that were previously banned due to confirmed cases of Covid-19 variants, the Xinhua news agency reports, quoting presidential spokesman Harry Roque.
The ban on foreign travellers from 36 countries and regions, including Britain, China and the US, will end on January 31 as planned.
“The restriction remains until January 31, 2021, and will lapse after the aforesaid date,“ Roque said in a statement today.
The government said that foreign nationals who are not allowed entry to the Philippines as stated by previous orders, including those holding tourist visas, are still prohibited from entering the country.
Roque said that travellers allowed entry still need to complete a 14-day quarantine.
Roque also announced that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has retained the general community quarantine for the capital city of Manila until the end of February to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Aside from Manila, Roque said Duterte has also placed a number of provinces across the country under the same restrictions. Many provinces in other parts of the country are under more relaxed restrictions, he added.
The Philippines has come under varying lockdowns since March last year. The Philippines has tallied 519,575 coronavirus infections and 10,552 deaths. – Bernama, January 29, 2021
