MANILA — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said the government is “fine-tuning” measures to extend electronic visas for foreigners staying in the Philippines.
According to the Presidential Communications Office, the chief executive made the statement during the courtesy visit of Indian Ambassador Shambhu Kumaran at the Malacañan Palace last week.
In response to Kumaran’s request for e-visa extensions for Indian nationals in the Philippines, Marcos said that the provisions for extending electronic visas would not only apply to Indian citizens but also to other foreigners staying in the country.
“It won’t be just India, we are doing it with…several other countries as well to keep it. Again, we will just apply the same principles that we did with others to India. But that is something that’s easy for us,” the president was quoted as saying.
Marcos ordered the extension of e-visas for Chinese, Indian, South Korean and Japanese nationals earlier in January to encourage more visitors to come to the Philippines.
In August, the Department of Foreign Affairs launched the country’s e-visa system. The system was pilot tested at the Philippine Consulate in Shanghai, China.
