President Rodrigo Roa Duterte approved the following additional measures in light of the new variant of COVID-19.
A. The extension of the temporary suspension of flights from, and the prohibition of entry on all travelers coming from or transiting through, the United Kingdom until January 15, 2021;
B. The prohibition from entering the Philippines effective December 30, 2020, 12:01AM until January 15, 2021, of all foreign travelers coming from, or transiting through, the following countries / areas listed below or who have been to the same places mentioned below within 14 days preceding arrival in the Philippines;
1. Denmark
2. Ireland
3. Japan
4. Australia
5. Israel
6. The Netherlands
7. Hong Kong, SAR
8. Switzerland
9. France
10. Germany
11. Iceland
12. Italy
13. Lebanon
14. Singapore
15. Sweden
16. South Korea
17. South Africa
18. Canada
19. Spain
C. Effective immediately, passengers who are already in transit and arrive before December 30, 2020, 12:01AM, from the 19 countries / areas listed above, including those who have been to the same places mentioned in Paragraph B within 14 days immediately preceding arrival in the Philippines, shall not be prohibited from entering the country. However, they shall be required to undergo an absolute facility-based 14-day quarantine period, notwithstanding a negative RT-PCR test result;
D. Also, effective immediately, Filipino citizens coming from countries / areas in Paragraphs A and B, or who have been to the same countries / areas within 14 days immediately preceding arrival in the Philippines, shall be allowed to enter the Philippines. However, they shall be required to undergo an absolute facility-based 14-day quarantine period, notwithstanding a negative RT-PCR test result;
E. The Office of the President, upon the joint recommendation of the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Foreign Affairs, may impose restrictions to travelers coming from other countries that report the presence of the new variant of COVID-19;
F. Outbound travel to countries with reported new variants shall be subject to the exiting protocols of the Philippines and the entry protocols of the respective countries;
G. Laboratories at points of entry are directed to submit the specimens of travelers from countries with reported cases of the new variant of COVID-19 to the Philippine Genome Center, Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM); and the University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health. In addition, the RITM is directed to develop a Standard Operating Procedure / Response Protocol for reports of new variants and strains of COVID-19;
H. The Bureau of Quarantine and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration are directed to ensure the strict adherence to quarantine and testing protocols for returning Filipinos and overseas Filipino workers and provide line list to the local government units to ensure that the 14-day quarantine is completed and monitored. The DOH COVID-19 Surveillance and Quick Action Team must likewise be provided a copy for their case profile and trend analysis; and
I. The Department of the Interior and Local Government is directed to ensure that all other inbound international travelers from countries not mentioned above strictly finish their 14-day quarantine following the existing quarantine protocols, which allow home quarantine after getting a negative RT-PCR test result at the point of entry.
