Right now they are not accepting any foreigners arriving in the Philippines, will that restriction still be in place in another month, who knows, my guess is it probably will be. If it is still in effect then your airline will refuse to carry you, KLM/AirFrance just cancelled my flight for the second time I was due to fly on April 15th until May 6th AirFrance cancelled it the first time back at the start of March and re-booked me for the 17th of April, then on Sunday KLM cancelled the whole trip, I am literally just off the phone to them, I have had to accept an EMD (Electronic Miscellaneous Document) a voucher which if unused before March 31 2021 they will refund in cash, or so they say and of course only if they still exist as a business in 2021. And if they no longer exist well I suppose I have to fall back on my travel insurance which is the next thing you need to think about because you won't be covered for Covid-19 if you choose to travel while the FCO is advising against all travel, if you get ill and need ICU care you are on your own and that could be a death sentence for anyone old or young and particularly if you are trying to find expensive care in a Philippine hospital. Honestly Martin if I were you I would be planning to delay your travel till much later, you can probably delay an immediate decision for a month or so to see how things go but I doubt restrictions will have been lifted even by then and your airline will very likely make the choice for you. edit: it was a really good flight too, £588.24 and I paid £64.60 extra for seats I like, the flight should be returned as cash if I don't use it but I will have lost the extras if I don't use the vouchers (the extras were refunded as 4 separate vouchers one for each seat).
Hi oss. Thanks for your reply. The reason I asked for clarification, is that the Philippines Embassy website states that foreign spouses and family members are allowed entry. However, as the airlines are refusing to carry then it seems pertinent not to plan a flight until there is a lifting of restrictions. I understand your advice and accept it is wiser to wait and see how things pan out. Interestingly the three airlines I have looked at booking with are all accepting bookings for my dates. I expect they want the business like any of them do given the situation, and can always reschedule me if things change for the better. Hey ho! The wait continues.
Fair point but I suspect that might be along the lines of the Balikbayan stamp where you are returning with your spouse, it would be harder to prove when travelling to reunite.
That's the problem I find myself in, KLM will not issue an immediate refund, the reason is they can't afford the hit on their cash flow, any business that runs out of cash is dead, if everyone asks for their money back at the same time it is like a run on the banks, no business can hand all that cash back just like that because that cash is their operating capital. So yes they all want the business but if they cancel they are not likely to return your money to allow you to re-route on your own through other airlines, instead it will be vouchers and if your re-planned trip is more expensive you will have to pay the difference.
Yes, you're right on both counts. Makes me wonder if we will all end up on a boat the way the airlines are going!
Not quite right, foreigners traveling with a Filipino spouse can fly into the Philippines however my view on this now would be if they were returning home( home being the Philippines ) they would get in, I would imagine under the now current climate foreigners trying to go with a Filipino spouse for a holiday (if they got a flight even) would be turned away.
Yes I would suspect they would be turned away if returning for a holiday with a spouse but it might have been possible to claim Balikbayan status with the intent to stay longer than any normal holiday if returning with a spouse, who knows I would not like to chance it and it would be hard to convince an airline to allow you to board anyway with this excuse.
The advice doesn't actually distinguish but I totally agree a sensible way to look at would be if you live there with your spouse probably ok to travel any other circumstances delay travel. @royal hope this helps
Good question! I remember Spike Milligan used to do the UK <> Australia trip I think on the documentary I watched it was 4 to 6 weeks not sure now. edit: and that was probably via Suez so the long way round would be worse.
Have you tried doing a chargeback on your credit card? Whilst the liquidity of the airline is important to them, your own liquidity should take preference. I'm fighting a similar battle with Emirates as I foolishly booked tickets for my father and family to travel to Brisbane (which should have been tomorrow) which of course is cancelled. He has £4.5k tied up with them. The airline is offering a refund via voucher (EMD style) which can be refunded if unused after one year! Totally non compliant with the EU Regulations! Lots of airlines pulling a similar stunt. I won't let my father do a chargeback as it will go against my company which we then have to chase with Emirates. It will be too much grief on a professional level if I do that. Instead, unless Emirates give me personal dispensation after chatting with our account manager, it will be off to the Small Claims Court. If the chargeback option is available to you, I'd use it. My father wants to rebook Christmas when Emirates are much more expensive than other airlines so doesn't want to be tied in with them.
Probably a bit late as I accepted the voucher, for various reasons that I can't talk about until December I don't like upsetting credit card companies
On the question of foreign nationals being allowed to travel to the Philippines. I believe Ninoy Aquino is closed to international passenger flights, but Clark Angeles isn't. I looked at a website: dfa.gov.ph which gave a pretty comprehensive description of who could and couldn't enter. This is effective 22 March 2020. Things could have changed since then of course! In part, it states this. All issuance for entry visas for visa -required foreign nationals are suspended, while all previously issued visas are cancelled, except those issued to the following: - Foreign Governmental International Organisation officials accredited the Philippines. - Foreign Spouse and children of Filipino nationals. Does this mean I can fly there or not?
1.will your spouse be with you? 2.do you normally live there? 3.are you going there for a holiday? if you answer no to question number 2 and yes to question number 3 the answer is no you cannot
Thanks for the reply. 1. No, she's in Makati City. 2. No, I'm retiring end of May 3. No, going there to live.
