EFFECTIVE Monday, January 17, 2022, airlines are only allowed to accept fully vaccinated passengers for carriage on Philippine Airlines (PAL) domestic flights to and from Manila.

This is a requirement of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and is valid for as long as the Metro Manila area (National Capital Region/NCR) remains under Alert Level 3 or higher.

The requirement applies to all domestic travel to and from NCR, including the travel of individuals who reside outside NCR but who work inside NCR.

Travelers are considered fully vaccinated if at least two weeks have elapsed after their second dose of a two-dose COVID vaccine, or two weeks after receiving a single-dose COVID vaccine.

Passengers are required to present: Physical or digital copies of a vaccine card issued by your local government unit (LGU), or a vaccine certification issued by the Department of Health (DOH), or any document prescribed by the IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease);

Valid government-issued identification card (ID) with your picture and address. The DOTr order can be accessed at: https://bit.ly/NoVaxNoRideDOTR.

However, you are may be exempted from this requirement if:

1. You have a medical condition that prevents full COVID-19 vaccination, as evidenced by a duly signed medical certificate with the doctor’s name and contact details; or

2. You are traveling to procure essential goods and services (e.g., medicine, medical devices, medical and dental necessities, public utilities, etc.), as evidenced by a duly issued barangay health pass or other appropriate proof to justify such travel.

If you are exempted in line with the above, you will need to present a negative RT-PCR test result taken within the last 48 hours before you enter the departure terminal, as required under the implementing rules set by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

PAL will temporarily be unable to accept unvaccinated children for boarding on our domestic flights to and from Manila UNLESS they fall under one of the above exceptions (e.g., traveling for urgent medical reasons).

If the new directive prevents you from traveling, and you purchased your ticket prior to January 17, 2022 and booked for travel on any date from January 17 to January 31, 2022, your ticket is safe and remains valid, and you may avail of the following options;

1. Convert your ticket to Travel Credits equivalent to the unused base fare of your ticket. Voucher validity is one year (1) year from the date of issuance.

2. Rebook or Reroute your ticket to another flight with available space within 60 days from the original flight in the same cabin class.

3. Refund ticket without penalties, excluding Ticketing Service Charge.

No-show fees will be collected if your confirmed reservation was not canceled at least four hours before your booked flight departure time.

You may request the above through our MyPAL Request Hub facility at www.bit.ly/MPRHPAL.