Visa waivers granted to certain Chinese, Indian nationals

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The Philippines has granted visa-free entry to certain Chinese and Indian nationals.

What does the change mean? Chinese and Indian nationals holding a valid and current American, Australian, Canadian, Japanese or Schengen visa may enter the Philippines without a visa for seven days.

• Implementation timeframe: Immediate and ongoing.
• Visas/permits affected: Visa waivers.
• Who is affected: Chinese and Indian nationals holding the above visas and entering the Philippines for tourism or short business trips.
• Impact on processing times: The change will reduce processing times for affected travelers.
• Business impact: The rule will ease business travel.

Background: In addition to the requirement that they hold a current and valid visa for one of the enumerated jurisdictions, a Chinese or Indian national must also hold a return or onward ticket to a destination country, have at least six months of validity on their passport beyond their anticipated stay, and have no negative record with the Philippines’ Bureau of Immigration in order to qualify for visa-free entry.

The seven-day visa-free stay may be extended by 14 days for a maximum duration of 21 days.

BAL Analysis: Eligible travelers should note that they cannot convert a visa-free entry to any other visa category.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group and our network provider located in the Philippines. For additional information, please contact your BAL attorney.

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