Arrivals to take Covid-19 test on 5th day of stay in PH: Malacañang

January 28, 2021

Filipina domestic workers at the Hong Kong Airport on their way home to Manila on July 2020. (FILE PHOTO/DFA/dfa.gov.ph)

Travelers entering the Philippines will get tested for Covid-19 five days after they arrive, Malacañang said, with the new guideline slated to begin Monday next week.

In a statement Wednesday, Philippine Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said arrivals will undergo facility-based quarantine before they test on the fifth day starting Feb. 1.

An arriving passenger may be tested earlier than the fifth day if he or she develops Covid-19 symptoms under quarantine.

If they test negative for Covid-19 on the fifth day, the passenger will then be endorsed to their respective local government unit.

They can complete the rest of the 14-day quarantine under the LGU’s “strict monitoring.”

Foreigners from 35 countries and jurisdictions are barred from entering the Philippines until Jan. 31 in the nation’s bid to stop the spread of several variants of the coronavirus believed to be highly transmissible.

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