A suspected foreign terrorist was barred entry to the Philippines after being alerted by the Bureau of Immigration’s (BI) Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS).
Through the APIS, the identities of passengers can be detected even before their departure and arrival, said Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado who noted that “technology is a vital tool in protecting our borders.”
Viado said the suspected terrorist, whose name was withheld, was stopped last week from entering the country after the APOC (APIS Operations Center) received advance information about his international records.
The foreigner was included in the BI’s blacklist that will prevent his re-entry.
Last Oct. 4, the BI stopped the entry of a Canadian fugitive identified as Ripin Deep Takhar.
It said that APIS is a project funded by the Australian Government through the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT).
“As of October 2025, APOC now processes 70.84 percent of all arriving and departing passengers across international ports nationwide, and 22 airlines are submitting advanced passenger information,” it also said.