(Eagle News) — The Bureau of Immigration will temporarily stop issuing tourist visas on arrival to Chinese nationals, the Bureau of Immigration said on Tuesday, Jan. 28.
In a statement, Immigration commissioner Jaime Morente said they were “taking this proactive measure to slow down travel, and possibly help prevent the entry of the 2019-nCov.”
He was referring to the novel coronavirus that was first identified in Wuhan, China in December 2018.
Over 100 deaths have so far been recorded.
Several cases have been reported in Singapore, the US, Germany, France, Thailand, Taiwan, Macau, among others.
Philippine health authorities are so far monitoring at least 10 individuals for symptoms, but they have clarified no novel coronavirus case has been confirmed in the country so far.
A 5-year-old boy from Cebu and a Brazilian family in Palawan have been cleared of the virus.