Entering by boat: Philippines

Before you arrive

• Notify the authorities 48 hours before arrival.
• Online procedure: Notice of Arrival (NoA) par e-mail au Bureau of Immigration (24 h avant Manille, 48 h ailleurs) + eTravel en ligne pour chaque personne — etravel.gov.ph

The steps

1. Send the Notice of Arrival with the crew list (24 h before Manila, 48 h elsewhere).
2. Complete eTravel for each person, ideally 3 days ahead.
3. Quarantine, then customs before immigration (cruiser advice).
4. Keep the original last port clearance and copies of papers.

Papers to have on board

• Passports for the whole crew
• Visas, if your nationality requires them
• Crew list
• Boat papers (registration certificate)
• Outward clearance from the previous country
• Maritime declaration of health

Good to know

• No official source found: list of the eight ports of entry compiled from noonsite (reliability to be checked).
• Clear in at a designated port of entry before going ashore; a PHP 6,000 fine reported for arriving without a Notice of Arrival.
• August 2025 alert: avoid Davao (customs issues); Holiday Oceanview marina (Samal) is not taking new arrivals.
• Batangas and Cebu discouraged by cruisers (unofficial cash demands).
• Security: kidnapping and piracy reported, mainly in the south (Mindanao, Sulu, southern Palawan).

Ports of entry

The ports where you can clear in, and the services available there.

Sources

• noonsite.com/place/philippines/
• noonsite.com/place/philippines/formalities

This information is gathered from public sources and sailors’ experience. It does not replace the country’s authorities, whose word is final: check before you leave.