With only 10 days before Christmas, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said balikbayan boxes sent by overseas Filipinos starting today will probably reach their families by February of next year.
In a statement, PPA general manager Jay Santiago said that, on average, it takes about 45 days for balikbayan boxes to arrive here. But due to the Christmas season rush, the delivery period will certainly take longer by as much as 2 months.
He also clarified that PPA only handles containers and cargo, while all the other procedures are under the Bureau of Customs.
The PPA also advised the public to ensure that their balikbayan boxes are properly wrapped and do not contain prohibited items, so as not to have problems with customs inspection and avoid possible delays.
PPA also cautioned the public against exploiters who scam money for their shipment.
At the same time, Santiago also warned against texts or calls that say that someone has to pay in exchange for the quick release of their cargo.
“First of all, they should only transact with legitimate freight forwarders or those who provide door-to-door cargo handling service. It is not true that if a bribe is not given, the ship sail again. That is not true,” Santiago said.
Santiago earlier said that he is optimistic on achieving PPA’s P26.08 billion revenue target for this year driven by higher service and business income.
As of the end of September this year, PPA generated a total revenue of P20.06 billion, which is 6.67 percent higher than in the same period last year which is mainly attributed to higher service and business income, and income from other sources and regulatory income.
On cargo throughput, PPA is projecting to hit 5.79 percent to 288.23 million metric tons (mt) by year-end from 272.5 million mt recorded in 2023.
PPA data showed the country’s cargo volume increased by 7.3 percent in the first nine months of the year to 218.28 million mt from 203.5 million mt in the same period last year driven by 8 percent and 5.8 percent growth in foreign and domestic cargoes respectively.
