THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) together with Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and the Bureau of Immigration (BI) have signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) on Wednesday to ensure shorter lines at the immigration counters at the country’s main gateway.
“Based on our assessment the long queues at the immigration counters were because of the lack of immigration personnel due to budget constraints, this is the reason why we came up with this agreement,” Transportation Undersecretary Giovanni Z. Lopez said in a media briefing on Wednesday.
Under the agreement, the Transportation department will authorize the allocation and disbursement of the immigration service charge for the BI when additional immigration officers were asked to perform overtime duties not covered by the 2025 general appropriations budget.
MIAA General Manager Eric Jose C. Ines. did not disclose the amount needed to be extended to the Immigration bureau by MIAA for the program.
“We are still calculating the amount, there is a computation in the agreement but that is a ballpark figure and that is about P5 million monthly,” Mr. Ines said, adding that a technical working group will be formed to also determine the total number of personnel to implement the program.
The Transportation department also said that the deal signed with BI and MIAA will also ensure enough immigration personnel at peak hours, especially with the anticipated travel demand. – Ashley Erika O. Jose
