How to register for Philippines eTravel

What you need before you start

• A phone or computer with a web browser and internet access. No app is required: eTravel works in mobile and desktop browsers.
• Your arrival and travel details.
• The answers for the health declaration (the Electronic Health Declaration Card, eHDC, for the Bureau of Quarantine), including whether you have been sick or exposed to a sick or infectious person in the last 30 days.
• If you have registered before, your reference number and date of birth. Returning travellers update their existing registration instead of starting again.

Step by step

1. 1Go to etravel.gov.ph, or open eTravel in the eGov PH App.
2. 2Complete your profile, your travel details and the health declaration.
3. 3Before you leave the website or app, download or screenshot your QR code. You can also print it.
4. 4Show the QR code to the airline before you board. Some airlines will not let you board a flight to the Philippines without it.
5. 5On arrival, show the QR code to the Bureau of Quarantine officers. A green code means your information is complete and correct and you go straight to immigration. A red code means further Bureau of Quarantine inspection first.

When to submit

Register within 72 hours (3 days) before you arrive in the Philippines, and before you board, because the airline checks your QR code. You cannot register earlier than 72 hours before your scheduled arrival.

This applies to passengers and crew on all aircraft and seacraft, so it covers arrivals by sea too.

Already registered on an earlier trip? You do not start from scratch. Update your details with "Edit Registration". You can also change some details there until the Bureau of Quarantine and Bureau of Immigration have processed and verified your record.

Lost your QR code? Go to etravel.gov.ph/search, enter your reference number and date of birth, and use "Edit Registration" to get it again.

No phone or internet? Free eTravel kiosks are available at major international airports. If you arrive without registering, airline staff may help you before the Bureau of Quarantine assessment. Paper cards are only for passengers who cannot register online or when the eTravel site is down.

Cost

eTravel is free. The official FAQ says "Registration is free and involves no online payment", and the Bureau of Immigration says the process is "absolutely free of charge".

A visa, if your nationality needs one, is a separate requirement.

Families and children

• Foreign children under 15 who are not travelling with a parent need a consent affidavit from a parent or guardian. It is shown at the port of entry to get a Waiver of Exclusion Ground (WEG). This is a separate immigration requirement, not part of eTravel.

Who doesn't need it

• Foreign diplomats and their dependents.
• Foreign dignitaries and members of their delegation.
• 9(e) visa holders.
• Holders of diplomatic or official/service passports.
• Foreign nationals departing the Philippines. Only departing Filipinos must register when leaving.
• Everyone else arriving must register, regardless of nationality and visa privilege, including Filipinos and crew.

Fake websites: how to spot them

The only official eTravel website is etravel.gov.ph. The Bureau of Immigration has warned about fake websites charging PHP 3,000 to 5,000 for registration, often in US dollars. Passengers at airports including NAIA reported paying.

• Check that the address is exactly etravel.gov.ph. It ends in .gov.ph, the Philippine government domain. The Bureau of Immigration's own site is immigration.gov.ph.
• eTravel is free. Any site that charges a registration fee, or anyone who asks for an online payment, is not official.
• Report fake sites to the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) at cicc.gov.ph/report/ or on hotline 1326.

Common mistakes

• Leaving the site without downloading or screenshotting the QR code.
• Entering incomplete or incorrect information. This gives you a red code and an extra quarantine inspection.
• Registering twice and showing more than one QR code. Either code works, but show only one to avoid delays.
• Registering too early, before the 72-hour window opens.
• Not having the QR code at check-in. Some airlines refuse boarding without it.
• Paying a fake site. Registration is free.