This November, Filipinos and Foreigners residing in the Philippines may now get a free Reverse Transcription - Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test at the Philippine Children's Medical Center (PCMC) for their domestic leisure trips till the end of 2021. The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) launched this program to promote the country as a safe tourism destination and to facilitate the industry's recovery, which is said to be benefitting around 12,000 qualified local tourists.
This program will run until December 31, 2021 only or until funds is utilized. Thus, applications beyond the said date or when funds is already utilized, will no longer be accepted.
If you are booking with Rajah Travel, then say no more! We are ready to assist you throughout the registration process.
Highlighted below are some things you need to know about this program to kick start your holiday vacation planning.
How to register?
Register at https://www.tpb.gov.ph/rtpcrphtravel-application/ as early as possible, and not later than 5 days prior to the intended travel date. Indicate your travel destination that has been declared as open for leisure travelers already. It is worth noting however that there is a cap of registrations per desired travel date which is at 350; should this allocation be reached, it will automatically be closed.
What documents must be provided?
Applicants must attach the following:
- Copy of any two (2) of the following government-issued IDs (Driver’s License, Passport, PRC License, PhilPost ID, UMID, SSS, Voter’s ID, TIN ID, PhilHealth ID, PWD ID, Senior Citizen ID). In the absence of the above, any of the following secondary IDs (police clearance, NBI clearance, Pag-ibig ID and the like) can be submitted subject to approval of the evaluation team.
For Minors (1- 17 years old), any copy of the following: Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Certificate of Birth, Passport or School ID would suffice.
- Copy of confirmed accommodation booking with a DOT-Accredited and open establishment for leisure and staycation, and should be staying in these establishments within the duration of their stay in the destination.
- Copy of roundtrip transportation tickets, if applicable, bearing name and booking reference number:
- Via air – roundtrip air tickets (MNL-Destination-MNL)
- Via sea – roundtrip ferry tickets
- Via land –
- For Public transport: roundtrip bus tickets
- For Private transport: copy of Official Receipt/Certificate of Registration (OR/CR) and
Photo of Vehicle with Plate Number
- For foreigners living in the Philippines, you must be able to submit proof/s of your residency in the Philippines
What’s the process after the registration and submission of required documents?
TPB shall evaluate the documents and inform the tourist of the status of their application five (5) days prior to travel at the most, as well as, forward, digitally, the list of approved tourists to the PCMC COVID-19 Testing Laboratory daily, between 8:00 am to 9:00 am only. Any additional list will be acted upon by the PCMC COVID-19 Testing Laboratory, as long as it is emailed to them before 3:00 pm and that the RT-PCR test will not be administered on the same day.
Approved applicants will receive an email which includes the swab schedule and the Client Investigation Form (CIF). This should be filled up electronically and once complete, it should be printed out for submission on the day of the swab-test schedule. Apart from the accomplished CIF form, the approved applicant must bring a government issued ID during the scheduled date of swab testing. Note that only those who have received confirmation of the swab test schedule will be accommodated and that walk-in requests shall be strictly denied.
Approved applicants will receive an email which includes the swab schedule and the Client Investigation Form (CIF). This should be filled up electronically and once complete, it should be printed out for submission on the day of the swab-test schedule. Apart from the accomplished CIF form, the approved applicant must bring a government issued ID during the scheduled date of swab testing. Note that only those who have received confirmation of the swab test schedule will be accommodated and that walk-in requests shall be strictly denied.
For those swabbed in the morning, your results will be released on the next day between 4:00 and 6:00 pm. On the other hand, for those swabbed in the afternoon, your results will be released on the next day between 6:00 and 8:00 pm. In case of invalid result due to specimen quality and undetermined mark, you shall be informed immediately by the PCMC COVID-19 Testing Laboratory. Follow ups for the result at the PCMC COVID-19 Testing Laboratory will be entertained through telephone number 02-85889900 local 426 between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.
Failure to show up on the scheduled date would forfeit the subsidy. Reappointment/rebooking will be entertained if made at least 3 days prior to the new departure date. In case of change in quarantine or Alert Level status from the COVID-19 Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) resulting to cancelled travel, no refund or reimbursement for the administered RT-PCR swab test will be made.
Where is PCMC located?
Click here for Google Map.
Related News Article:
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