Sources said some senior crew members switched off their mobile phones just before flight operations, citing health issues
[Editor's Note: An update to this story is available here, in which the government issued an apology and a clarification after the news sparked an uproar among OFWs.]
Starting September 3, Filipino expats who are flying home on holiday will have to secure and prepare more documents as the government enforces new travel rules.
The Philippines' Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (Iacat) on Thursday listed the new travel requirements — in a bid to curb illegal recruitment and fight the "menace of human trafficking".
Besides Filipino expats who are returning home for vacation, the new departure rules apply to all travellers, from those funding their own trips to tourists who are being sponsored by relatives who are living and working abroad.
Here are the basic travel documents for all, as stated in an advisory published by Iacat on Thursday:
For "Balik-Manggagawa" — or overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are currently serving their employment contract — here are the requirements:
Tourists and visitors who are being sponsored by Filipinos living abroad will have to prepare more documents, too.
If the sponsor abroad is a relative within the first (1st) civil degree of the passenger, here are the requirements:
First civil degree relationships refer to parents, children, and spouse. Travel is considered sponsored if any part of it is funded by a person other than the passenger, such as airfare, hotel bookings/accommodation, daily expenses.
If the sponsor, however, is a relative up to fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity (cousin, brother-in-law, mother-in-law, etc), additional supporting documents are required:
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