Philippines: Restore e-visas for Chinese citizens, hoping more Chinese tourists will come to spend money!
Manila announced on November 1st that it has resumed the trial operation of e-visa services for Chinese citizens and plans to officially launch them on November 3rd.
This policy is aimed at Chinese citizens who have tourism and business needs. The e-visa is a single-entry visa with a stay period not exceeding 14 days, which cannot be extended or converted. It is currently only available for entry through Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila or Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
Philippine Tourism Minister Frasco spoke very directly, saying that the e-visa service for China is intended to attract Chinese tourists to come and spend money.
Frasco admitted that the suspension of the e-visa policy in 2023 made it difficult for the Philippines to achieve its tourism goals, especially in expanding the Chinese market.
In the first half of 2025, the number of foreign tourists entering the Philippines decreased by 3.48%, with a drop of as high as 22.06% in Chinese tourists, leading among the main source markets of the Philippines.
China was once the second-largest source market for the Philippines, with 1.7 million entries in 2019; however, its ranking has since dropped to fifth, behind South Korea, the United States, Japan, and Australia.
The competition in the Southeast Asian tourism market is becoming increasingly fierce, with countries like Malaysia and Vietnam performing strongly, which makes Manila very envious. With the continued economic downturn in the Philippines, more and more people in the tourism industry are calling for Chinese tourists to come and spend money as soon as possible.
Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1847649882240138/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.