BY JUN RAMIREZ
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has ordered the blacklisting of 11 Chinese for overstaying.
BI Commissioner Jaime Morente issued the orders placing the aliens in the Immigration blacklist for exceeding their allotted stay.
“They were allowed to come here by availing with our visa upon arrival (VUA) program, yet they abused that privilege by overstaying without valid reason at all,” the BI chief said.
It was learned that the 11 aliens arrived here on separate dates in November and December 2019 and January 2020, making them overstaying for nine to 10 months.
The said foreign nationals earlier appeared at the BI main office in Manila presenting plane tickets and manifesting their intention to leave the country when visa officers noted the violation.
Under the rules, VUA grantees are allowed to stay for 30 days without extension.
The VUA program was launched by the government three years ago to attract Chinese tourists to come allowing them to stay for one month without the need to apply for visas at Philippine consulates in their places of origin.
VUA grantees apply for the scheme through tour operators accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT).
The BI suspended the implementation of the VUA in January with the outbreak of coronavirus disease in Wuhan, China.
The scheme remains suspended as the government continues to restrict the entry of foreign tourists due to the pandemic. (Jun Ramirez)
