Are you a Filipino about travel out of the country? Whether you’re flying to a visa-free destination or one where you had to avail a travel insurance for your schengen visa application in the Philippines, you would still have to pay your travel tax.
The Philippine Travel Tax is a fee imposed by the government according to the Presidential Decree 1183. It was a policy implemented by the Marcos administration to lessen the restriction of foreign travel.
How much do I pay?
The amount you have to pay would depend on your seat and your privileges. Overseas Filipino Workers, Filipinos permanently residing abroad, Balikbayans staying for less than a year, and infants (2 years old and below) are all exempted from these fees. Listed below are the corresponding fees:
| TRAVEL TAX RATES | FIRST CLASS | ECONOMY CLASS |
| Full Travel Tax | PHP 2,700 | PHP 1,620 |
| Standard Reduced Travel Tax | PHP 1,350 | PHP 810 |
| Privileged Reduced Travel Tax for a Dependent of an OFW | PHP 400 | PHP 300 |
Where do I pay?
Some airlines have the option of paying the travel tax in their website. You can also skip the long lines and pay on the website of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA). If this doesn’t work for you, you may opt to pay in travel tax service counters in malls and other establishments.
Wondering where the travel taxes go to? According to the Republic Act No. 9593 Section 73, 50% of the travel tax paid by the Filipinos goes to TIEZA. The other 40% of this goes to tourism-related educational programs and courses of the Commission on Higher Education, while the remaining 10% goes to the National Commission for Culture and Arts.
While all these agencies are worthy of contribution, there has been discussions of abolishing travel tax entirely. There have also been talks about imposing a tourist fee of Php 500 instead of the current travel tax rate by 2020. Until then, nothing is for certain and Filipinos are still required to pay the stated amount regardless of where they are flying to internationally.
