Tighter visa rules may deter Chinese tourists, investments - PTAA

The Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) said that tighter visa rules for Chinese nationals visiting the Philippines could have a negative impact on the country's economy.

"Chinese tourists are a major source of income for the Philippines, so making it harder to visit could discourage tourism and hurt businesses. They might even be the ones to give travel advisories not to go to the Philippines," said PTAA president Evangeline Tankiang-Manotok in a "24 Oras Weekend" interview with EJ Gomez.

Earlier this week, the Department of Foreign Affairs announced that the Philippines would tighten its visa requirements for Chinese tourists amid many fraudulent applications received in its embassy and consulates in China.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Jesus Domingo said the stricter visa requirements intend to "weed out" the "illegitimate and unsavory" tourists from the legitimate ones.

Several Chinese nationals have reportedly been involved in organized crimes such as human trafficking, prostitution, kidnapping, and fraud.

Manotok said that legitimate tourists and investors may avoid going to the Philippines due to the new policy. This decision may also affect the hotel and accommodations sectors.

"They also spend on accommodations, shopping, food, so that has also increased our economy," she said, adding that to avoid being accused of discrimination, the government must make sure that the new policy is fair and clear.

According to the Department of Tourism, over 140,000 Chinese individuals arrived in the Philippines in the first four months of 2024, double the number in the same period last year.

Due to the stricter visa requirements for Chinese tourists, applicants—whether individuals or part of a tour group—must submit a social insurance certificate as proof of identity.

Other requirements are proof of financial capability, such as bank statements, a notarized letter of support from a host in the Philippines if applying for an individual visa, and hotel and airfare bookings.

A personal interview is required for individual applicants.

Over the years, some visa loopholes have permitted Chinese nationals to work and overstay in the country using falsified documents. Domingo said the DFA has also uncovered incidents of attempted bribery of visa officers from Philippine diplomatic posts.

Domingo said that enforcing stricter visa measures promotes "quality tourism" and could help decrease incidents of POGO-related crimes—an issue that has been worrisome for legitimate Chinese tourists. —Sherylin Untalan/VBL, GMA Integrated News