PBBM institutionalizes eTravel information system

By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos, Philippine News Agency

FILE: Passengers waiting to board their flight. (PCI photo)

MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has institutionalized the use of the electronic travel (eTravel) information system for all inbound and outbound international passengers and crew members to ensure efficient travel procedures in the Philippines.

Under Administrative Order (AO) 24, inked by Marcos on Aug. 27 and first published in a local newspaper on Saturday, the e-travel system will serve as the government’s one-stop electronic travel declaration system for all travelers and crew members arriving to and departing from the Philippines.

“It shall be used by the government to efficiently conduct border control, health surveillance, tourism statistics analysis, and other travel-related procedures,” it read.

AO 24 also creates a technical working group (TWG) on the eTravel system that will study and adopt measures that will further adopt the new scheme, including its usage, management, and operation, subject to existing laws, rules, and regulations.

The TWG will be chaired by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and co-chaired by the Bureau of Immigration (BI).

TWG members include the Department of Tourism (DOT), Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), Department of Transportation (DOTr), Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ), and Bureau of Customs (BOC).

All relevant government departments, agencies, bureaus, offices, and instrumentalities are directed to provide the TWG with their full support and cooperation to ensure the effective implementation of AO 24.

The funding requirements for the implementation of AO 24 will be taken from the current and available appropriations of the DICT, BI, DOT, DMW, DOTr, BOQ, and BOC, subject to pertinent budgeting, accounting, and auditing laws, rules, and regulations.

The budget needed for its continued implementation will be included in the budget proposals of the TWG members, subject to the usual budget preparation process.

On Dec. 5, 2022, the DICT, BI, DOT, BOQ, and BOC launched a unified and integrated digital data collection platform known as the eTravel system to streamline various travel declaration procedures for international inbound passengers.

The coverage was expended on April 15, 2023, when these agencies included all international inbound and outbound passengers and crew members.

AO 24 takes effect immediately upon publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation.