THE Department of Tourism (DOT) said the Philippines will not be able to increase its foreign tourist arrivals to pre-pandemic levels until the country implements electronic visas (e-visas).
At the post-State of the Nation Address discussions yesterday in Pasay City yesterday, DOT Christina Frasco expressed hope e-visa will be implemented by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Bureau of Immigration as soon as possible to make the Philippines competitive with other countries in Asean that have e-visas.
Frasco said the Philippines anticipates it will exceed last year’s visitor receipts this year following the more than 100 percent recovery from 2019 numbers.
“However, as far as arrivals are concerned, unless and until we are able to fully ease the convenience of coming into the Philippines especially as far as e- visas are concerned, it does remain a challenge,” Frasco said.
The DOT targets 7.7-million visitor arrivals this year from 5.45 million in 2023. Pre-pandemic or in 2019, arrivals were at 8.26 million.
Inbound and domestic visitor receipts totaled P3.367 trillion in 2023.
“With the digitalization of the requirements for entry into the Philippines, we have seen this has increased convenience for travelers coming into the country, “ she said.
The plan is to roll out the e-visa to the Indian market, one of the biggest source of tourist arrivals globally.
Frasco said the government is working on the possibility of carriers both countries mounting direct flights.
Frasco ikewise expressed support in advancing tourism-related policies, including the CREATE More bill that stands to impact on tourism investments.
