THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) warned the public against scammers, as it maintained that e-travel registration is free of charge.
In a statement on Wednesday, February 14, 2024, the BI said they received reports about fake websites that charge and collect fees as purported payments for registering in the government’s electronic travel declaration system known as e-Travel.
Based on reports, the passengers paid between P3,000 and P5,000 for their e-travel registration. Upon arrival in the airport, however, the digital QR code generated from their e-travel registration could not be accessed in the system.
“The e-Travel registration process is absolutely free of charge. We, therefore, advise the traveling public to register only in the government’s official website at https://etravel.gov.ph.,” Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said.
Tansingco urged the traveling public to report fraudulent websites or entities involved in such an illegal scheme to the cybercrime investigation and coordinating center (CICC) via its website at https://cicc.gov.ph/report/.
The e-Travel was launched in December 2022 and serves as the single data collection platform for arriving and departing passengers.
It establishes an integrated border control, health surveillance, and economic data analysis. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)