If you are planning to travel outside or across the Philippines post-COVID-19 Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), here are the guidelines implemented by the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) adopted by the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) from the new protocols set by the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
These protocols aim to prevent further spread of COVID-19. The guidelines below must be strictly observed:
1. Wear face masks when inside the airport facility
2. Submit yourself to a mandatory body temperature check
3. Strictly observe social distancing measures especially at all queuing points inside and outside the airport complex. Comply with the “one-seat apart policy”.
4. With the Office for Transportation Security (OTS) taking the lead, security procedures shall be done through a “no contact means” but not limited to the use of walk-through x-ray machines, portable scanners, handheld metal detectors, and the like, effectively limiting pat-down or manual frisking to exceptional instances or situations.
5. Only passengers with valid travel documents and confirmed bookings for the day will be allowed to enter the airport facility.
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- TRAVEL DOCUMENTS NEEDED:
- a. Passport
b. visa (for international travels)
c. confirmed flight bookings
d. medical certificate (see details below)
e. travel authority (see details how to obtain travel authority)
6. Continuous disinfection of all NAIA facilities especially those used for flight operations. These include, among others, aerobridges, baggage conveyors, check-in counters, immigration, customs, and other help desks. Disinfection activities are also done extensively on other airport facilities and equipment such as x-ray machines and trays, inspection tables, pushcarts, wheelchairs, and other frequently touched surfaces.
7. Foot baths shall remain in all entry and exit points of passengers and airport personnel, including boarding bridges and/or similar areas for passenger embarkation/disembarkation to and from the aircraft.
8. Safety precaution posters and other health guidelines shall be displayed at noticeable places in the NAIA Terminals. Alert bulletins shall be made through the airport information boards and other display systems and through public announcements in MIAA’s official social media sites.
9. As required by the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ), all passengers that are departing and arriving shall be required to electronically fill-out Health Declaration Form and Passenger Locator Forms for straightforward contact tracing. [FOR THOSE WHO NEED QUARANTINE CERTIFICATE FROM THE BOQ, PLEASE CLICK HERE]
How to obtain travel authority
If you are traveling for leisure or vacation—YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO SECURE TRAVEL AUTHORITY as of today.
Who can obtain travel authority:
1) You’re leaving your province to attend to a family or medical emergency.
2) You’re leaving Metro Manila to attend to a family or medical emergency.
3) You are a “locally stranded individual” going back home to the province or to Metro Manila—a student, a worker, or any person unable to go home because of the ECQ.
Steps to obtain travel authority:
STEP 1: Obtain a medical health certificate from your Municipal Health Office.
STEP 2: Present this to the support desk of your city or municipal police station.
STEP 3: Wait for a notification through SMS or email, once your travel authority is ready for pickup or delivery.
How to obtain medical certificate
Obtain a medical certificate from a hospital. Present this to the help desk in your city or municipal health office. In my hometown, it is just about 12 minutes. You have to pay for the fee and then get your clearance afterwards.
