PH to impose travel ban on Indonesia from July 16 to 31 amid surge in COVID-19 cases

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will impose travel restrictions for incoming travelers from Indonesia starting July 16 until July 31 amid the surge in COVID-19 cases in the neighboring Asian country, Malacañang said Wednesday.

President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the travel ban for all travelers coming from Indonesia or those with travel history to the said country within 14 days preceding their arrival in the Philippines, Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said.

This will start at 12:01 a.m. on July 16 until 11:59 p.m. on July 31.

Roque said passengers who are already in transit from Indonesia and those who have been to the country within 14 days immediately before arriving in the Philippines before July 16 may still be allowed to enter, but they will be required to undergo a 14-day facility-based quarantine and a swab test.

“This action is undertaken to prevent the further spread and community transmission of COVID-19 variants in the Philippines,” Roque said in a statement.

READ: IATF recommends inclusion of Indonesia in travel ban — Duque

The government’s pandemic policy-making body, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) earlier approved the extension of travel restrictions on India and six other countries until July 31 to prevent the entry of the feared Delta variant first detected in India in the Philippines.

READ: H extends travel ban on India, 6 other countries until July 31