China, More Countries Included in Philippines Travel Ban

Effective Jan. 13.

by Arianne Merez

Photo/s: Jerome Ascano

The Philippines is expanding its travel ban to include mainland China, Malacañang said Tuesday, as the country guards against a more contagious COVID-19 variant.

Foreign travelers from Pakistan, Jamaica, Luxembourg, and Oman will also no longer be allowed entry in the Philippines starting noon of Wednesday, Jan. 13, until Friday, Jan. 15, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said.

Filipinos coming from the said jurisdictions can return to the Philippines but must undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine even if they test negative for COVID-19 via RT-PCR testing.

The Philippines' travel ban initially included only the United Kingdom, where the new variant of SARS-CoV-2 was first detected. The list now includes:

Mainland China
Pakistan
Jamaica
Luxembourg
Oman
Portugal
India
Finland
Norway
Jordan
Brazil
United States
United Kingdom
Denmark
Ireland
Japan
Australia
South Africa
Israel
Netherlands
Canada
France
Switzerland
Hong Kong
Singapore
Germany
Iceland
Italy
Spain
Lebanon
Sweden
South Korea

Authorities have yet to announce whether the travel ban will be extended or lifted after Jan. 15.

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