The Bureau of Immigration (BI) welcomed the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) decision to toughen visa requirements for Chinese nationals on Sunday, 12 May 2024.

According to BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco, the DFA's move adds another strong layer of protection against foreigners with potentially hostile intentions toward the state's security.

Tansingco stated that in 2023, the Bureau was able to reject admission to 3,359 foreign nationals, the majority of whom had questionable travel reasons and were deemed likely to constitute a public charge.

Of the 3,359 foreign individuals that were excluded, 885 are Chinese nationals.

The BI chief believes that stricter visa requirements will have little impact on the country's tourism industry.

"The move is really just filtering out those undesirables that are trying to enter the country," said Tansingco.

"Regular tourists need not be worried," he added.

According to the Bureau, Chinese nationals were the fifth largest group of foreign tourists in 2023, with 246,179 arrivals.

South Koreans topped the list, with 1,467,051 arrivals, followed by the Americans, Japanese, and Australians.

Tansingco stated that this is a welcome development for the Bureau.

They project that there will be fewer exclusions, given that arriving tourists have been better filtered during their visa applications at the Philippine posts abroad.