DFA: OFWs going to jobs in HK, Macau need to sign waiver before departure
By Roy Mabasa
Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) returning to China’s administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau will be required to execute a declaration stating they are aware of the risks posed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Wednesday.
Department of Foreign Affairs (MANILA BULLETIN)
This development came following the partial lifting of the travel ban imposed on all Filipino nationals as an offshoot of the COVID-19 outbreak that originated in Wuhan City.
The travel ban was imposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) on Filipino nationals and holders of permanent resident visas traveling to China and its SARs Hong Kong and Macau, on Feb. 2 amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
Newly-hired Filipino employees are likewise exempted from the ban as long as they also sign the form that can be obtained from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).
The lifting of the travel ban for OFWs working in Hong Kong and Macau was one of the decisions adopted at the sixth IATF-EID meeting concluded on Tuesday.
In the meeting, the IATF-EID redefined the exemptions from the travel restrictions after a thorough risk assessment of the current situation.
Aside from the travel ban exemption for OFWs, the resolution also allowed permanent residents of the two Chinese administrative regions, as well as Filipinos studying abroad, to travel to Hong Kong and Macau.
On the other hand, Filipinos and their foreign spouses or children, as well as holders of diplomatic visas entry into the Philippines, are also allowed to travel there subject to the required 14-day quarantine.
READ MORE: Travel ban to HK, Macau partially lifted
Department of Foreign Affairs (MANILA BULLETIN)
This development came following the partial lifting of the travel ban imposed on all Filipino nationals as an offshoot of the COVID-19 outbreak that originated in Wuhan City.
The travel ban was imposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) on Filipino nationals and holders of permanent resident visas traveling to China and its SARs Hong Kong and Macau, on Feb. 2 amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
Newly-hired Filipino employees are likewise exempted from the ban as long as they also sign the form that can be obtained from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).
The lifting of the travel ban for OFWs working in Hong Kong and Macau was one of the decisions adopted at the sixth IATF-EID meeting concluded on Tuesday.
In the meeting, the IATF-EID redefined the exemptions from the travel restrictions after a thorough risk assessment of the current situation.
Aside from the travel ban exemption for OFWs, the resolution also allowed permanent residents of the two Chinese administrative regions, as well as Filipinos studying abroad, to travel to Hong Kong and Macau.
On the other hand, Filipinos and their foreign spouses or children, as well as holders of diplomatic visas entry into the Philippines, are also allowed to travel there subject to the required 14-day quarantine.
READ MORE: Travel ban to HK, Macau partially lifted