MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has set a seven-day facility-based quarantine period for Filipinos returning from abroad who who were fully vaccinated in the country against COVID-19, Malacañang said Friday.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque Roque noted the new policy only covers “fully vaccinated individuals who have been inoculated in the Philippines.”
“10 days pa rin pag foreign [national],” Roque told INQUIRER.net when asked to clarify if the shortened quarantine period also covers vaccinated foreigners.
Roque added there is still no new policy for foreign nationals or Filipinos who were vaccinated abroad.
The Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) was directed to strictly monitor symptoms of individuals in quarantine facilities for seven days.
An RT-PCR or swab test will only be conducted when the individual manifests COVID-19 symptoms within the seven-day quarantine.
After completing the 7-day facility-based quarantine, Roque said the BOQ will issue a quarantine certificate indicating the individual’s vaccination status.
According to guidelines approved by the government’s COVID-19 task force, an individual is considered fully vaccinated two or more weeks after receiving their second dose, or two or more weeks after receiving a single-shot COVID-19 vaccine.
Fully vaccinated individuals must also carry their vaccination cards to be verified by the BOQ and the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
The reduction of the quarantine period to just seven days from 10 days was earlier floated by the Department of Tourism (DOT).
The DOT also proposed a green lane that will help expedite the entry of foreign travelers already fully vaccinated against COVID-19.