Traveling from Manila to India via Emirates? Travel guidelines- January 2021

International traveling is no more a pleasure especially when covid-19 has casted an inauspicious shadow on the planet. Gone are the days when traveling was exhilarating, now it is a painstaking phenomenon. The word 'guidelines' plays a major role when it comes to taking international trips. Apart from our luggage, a file or folder containing all our vital documents has forcefully gained an entry into international trips.

Now, coming straight to the point, in order to avoid any loopholes in our documentation we had prepared ourselves well ahead of our journey from Manila (The Philippines) to Mumbai (India) on Jan 30, 2021. 

The documentation phase :

As a spontaneous response to the dilemma in our minds for the above travel, we got our tickets booked on Emirates (the only option available was via Dubai) for Jan 30, 2021. With the confirmed tickets in hand, a full-fledged process started for the arrangement of the documents listed below -

1. Emigration Clearance Certificate (ECC) : ECC-B is issued to departing holders of Immigrant and Non-immigrant visas with valid ACR cards and are leaving Philippines temporarily. It must be applied at least 72 hours prior to departure from the Philippines. Supporting documents required for ECC-B are: Passport, ACR card and Tickets. 

             - ECC-A (tourist visas with > 6 months of stay in the Philippines): A few more additional documents are required as compared to ECC-B. Kindly visit https://immigration.gov.ph/47-clearance/309-ecc-tourist-more-than-six-months for the checklist.

Both ECC-A and B can be processed at the Bureau of Immigration main office at IntraMuros. Also you may click Directory of authorized immigration offices for the list of authorized extension counters for ECC processing.

[The above process can be done at the airport too at the time of departure. In order to have a hassle-free travel, we have applied for the ECC at Makati extension office and received it within 30 minutes.]

      2. Negative RT-PCR report for Covid19 : This paper, rightly termed as a 'travel pass' next in importance to ID proofs, is another addition for both domestic and international travel. The test has to be undertaken within 72 hours prior to departure at a cost of 5000PHP (@7500 INR or 104 USD) per person at one of the DOH (Dept. of Health) accredited diagnostic centers. 

Prior to taking the test, we ensured to get our reports delivered within 24 hours .i.e. Jan 30, 2021.

[Check the list of licensed Covid-19 testing centers at https://hfsrb.doh.gov.ph/1729-2/]

     3. Air-Suvidha self-declaration form and quarantine exemption request form : The self-declaration form under the 'Air Suvidha' banner has to be compulsorily filled by all International passengers travelling to India. After filling the form, you will receive a Unique Application Request no. starting with SR-------- on your email address given during registration. 

Take a printout of the attachment and keep in the documents folder.

Similarly, in case you want an exemption from institutional quarantine, the form bearing Exemption Request has to be filled in and submitted. Also, you will receive an email having Unique Application Request no. starting with ER---------. You do not have to take a printout in this case. Just save the request number.

 

The link for Air-Suvidha is https://www.newdelhiairport.in/airsuvidha/apho-registration.

         4. For travel to Mumbai, it is advisable to visit https://www.csmia.aero/government-update.aspx for updated guidelines at Mumbai CSMIA because of the frequent changes in their guidelines. Keep an eye on the updates till the last date of your journey so that you do not face last minute surprises at Mumbai airport in spite of carrying a negative RTPCR report.

(For instance, our tickets were booked on Jan 23, 2021 and rules got updated for quarantine exemption in Mumbai on Jan 25, 2021 with mandatory hotel quarantine for a span of 7 days). 

At present, hotel quarantine is mandatory for 7 days with a few exceptions (refer to the form below)

The List of hotels allocated for quarantine along with the rates and contact numbers in Mumbai is available at the airport itself. You may choose any hotel as per your budget and contact them for the booking.

Note : Do not forget to check the guidelines for your destination airports (For non-Mumbaikars).

In a nutshell, the folder of a traveler from Philippines to India will comprise the following documents:

• Passport
• Alien Certificate of Registration card (if any) OR tourist visa extension proofs.
• Tickets
• Negative RT-PCR reports in original.
• ECC-A or B receipts (whichever is applicable)
• Air Suvidha self-declaration copy

The above guidelines has been written down during my quarantine period (Day 4) in a hotel in Mumbai. Our experience on the journey from Manila to Mumbai will be shared in my next blog post.

Till then, stay safe.

In case of any queries, kindly post them in the comment section.