The Bureau of Immigration (BI) assured that the revised guidelines on departure formalities, once implemented, will not make it harder for Filipinos to travel abroad.

“Wala pong dapat ipangamba ‘yung public natin (The public has nothing to worry about),” BI Spokesperson Dana Mengote-Sandoval said on Friday, Sept. 1.

Sandoval pointed out that under the revised guidelines “same pa rin po ‘yung metrics natin in assessing departing passengers (we use the same metrics in assessing departing passengers).”

“‘Yung new guidelines lang po mas pinalinaw at tinanggal lang po ‘yung arbitrariness ng ilang immigration officers (The new guidelines are clearer and removed the arbitrariness of some immigration officers),” she said.

“One of the feedbacks that sometimes we’ve been getting strange ‘yung mga requirements ng ilang immigration officers (some immigration officers have been asking strange requirements),” she explained.

“Sometimes the requirements are not connected anymore to the bigger picture, the purpose of travel,” she stressed.

“That’s why the new guidelines listed down the documents na magiging guide ng immigration officers should a passenger undergo secondary inspection (will be used as guide by immigration officers whenever a passenger undergoes secondary inspection),” she said.

She pointed out that a passenger undergoes secondary inspection only if there are questions over his or her intent to travel.

The Inter-Agency Council Against Human Trafficking (IACAT) had deferred the enforcement of the new guidelines which was to be implemented starting Sept. 1.  IACAT granted the request of the Senate on the deferment.

“Ako po kahit mga kamag-anak ko, ultimo ‘yung nanay ko tinatanong ako kung ano ‘yung mga requirements (My relatives and even my mother have asked me what are the requirements for departing Filipino passengers),” Sandoval recounted during an interview on DZBB.

She said the guidelines have been enforced since 2012 and revised in 2015.  The new revision was done this year, she also said.

Since the implementation of the 2023 revised guidelines has been suspended, Sandoval said immigration officers will keep on using the 2015 guidelines.