Philippines
General Information for Philippines
Geo-political:
Capital City: Manila.
Nationality: (noun) Filipino(s), (adjective) Philippine.
Population: 109,180,815 (July 2020).
Communications:
International Direct Dial Code: 63.
Number of Internal Airports: 247 (2013).
Major Languages Spoken:
Economy:
Currency: 1 Philippine Piso (PHP) of 100 Centavos.
Exchange Rates:
(as of November 2020)
USD 1.00 = PHP 48.40
PHP 1.00 = USD 0.02
Exchange rates under licence from
XE.com
Main Industries: Semiconductors, electronics assembly, business process outsourcing, food, beverage
manufacturing, construction, electric/gas/water supply, chemical products, radio/television/communications
equipment, apparatus, petroleum, fuel, textile, garments, non-metallic minerals, basic
metal industries and transport equipment.
Agricultural Products: Rice, fish, livestock, poultry, bananas, coconut, copra, corn, sugarcane, mangoes,
pineapple and cassava.
Imports: Electronic products, mineral fuels, machinery, transport equipment, iron, steel, textile
fabrics, grains, chemicals and plastic.
Exports: Semiconductors, electronic products, machinery, transport equipment, wood manufactures,
chemicals, processed food, beverages, garments, coconut oil, copper concentrates,
seafood and bananas/fruits.
Commodities: Crude: Production 13,000 bbl/d. Exports 16,450 bbl/d. Imports 211,400 bbl/d. Reserves 138,500,000 bbl.
Products: Production 215,500 bbl/d. Exports 26,710 bbl/d. Imports 211,400 bbl/d. LNG: Production 3,058,000,000 cu.m..
Reserves 98,540,000,000 cu.m..
Environment:
Territorial Sea: 100 n.m.
Continental Shelf: Continental Shelf: to the depth of exploitation. Exclusive Economic Zone: 200 n.m.
Coastline Extent: 36,289 km.
Climate: Tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April); southwest monsoon (May to
October).
Natural Resources: Timber, petroleum, nickel, cobalt, silver, gold, salt and copper.
Natural Hazards: Astride typhoon belt, usually affected by 15 and struck by five to six cyclonic storms
each year, landslides, active volcanoes, destructive earthquakes, tsunamis and significant
volcanic activity; Taal (311 m), which has shown recent unrest and may erupt in the
near future, has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of
Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive
history and close proximity to human populations; Mayon (2,462 m), the country's most
active volcano, erupted in 2009 forcing over 33,000 to be evacuated; other historically
active volcanoes include Biliran, Babuyan Claro, Bulusan, Camiguin, Camiguin de Babuyanes,
Didicas, Iraya, Jolo, Kanlaon, Makaturing, Musuan, Parker, Pinatubo, and Ragang; see
note 2 under "Geography - note".
Terrain: Mostly mountains with narrow to extensive coastal lowlands.
Average Temperatures:
| Month | High | Low |
|---|---|---|
| January | 30° C | 21° C |
| June | 33° C | 23° C |
| September | 30° C | 23° C |
CHARTS:
Notices to Mariners and navigational warnings published by the Philippines Coast Guard
and National Mapping & Resource Information Authority. Available online at and
DOCUMENTS:
Inward Foreign Manifest (IFM)/Consolidated Cargo Manifest (CCM):
Every vessel from a foreign port must have on board a complete manifest of all its
cargoes. All cargoes intended to be landed at a port in the Philippines must be described
in separate manifests for each port of call. A true and complete copy of the cargo
manifest and CCM shall be electronically sent in advance by the shipping company,
NVOCC (Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier), freight forwarder, cargo consolidator,
or their authorised agents within the following cut-off period prior to the arrival
of the carrying vessel at the port of entry:
- if the transit time from port of origin to port of entry is at least 72 hours, the Cargo Manifest and CCM must be electronically submitted to the Bureau of Customs 24 hours prior to arrival
- if the transit time from port of origin to port of entry is less than 72 hours, the Cargo Manifest and CCM must be electronically submitted to the Bureau of Customs 12 hours prior to arrival.
Submission of documents shall be via any accredited value-added service provider (VASP)
onto the BOC-VASP Gateway.
PRATIQUE:
All vessels from foreign seaports calling at any seaport in the Philippines to disembark
its passengers or discharge its cargoes, or for other purposes must secure a quarantine
clearance in compliance with the health regulations. This Quarantine Certificate or
clearance (pratique) shall be a prerequisite to Customs clearance.
Upon arrival, such vessel shall be boarded by a Quarantine Officer, and after pratique
or health clearance is granted, shall be boarded by a Customs Officer. Subsequently,
no person shall be permitted to board or leave the vessel without the permission of
the Customs Officer; however, if a vessel has already been issued a Quarantine Certificate
in the first Philippine port of entry, she will not be required to undergo another
quarantine formalities at succeeding ports of call in the Philippines.
The health clearance shall be part of the required documents to be received by the
authorised Customs Officer from the Master of the vessel.
No Quarantine Permit shall be required for the discharge of the regularly manifested
cargo including animals, plants, etc. unless otherwise required by law or regulations.
However if animals or plants are carried as baggage, their discharge shall be subject
to regulations promulgated by the Bureau or office concerned.
PRE-ARRIVAL INFORMATION:
Notice of Arrival and Application for Berthing Anchorage should be submitted electronically,
by registered users, on the PPA Online section of Philippine Ports Authority website.
iports.ppa.com.ph/
POLLUTION:
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is the responsible agency for preventing and controlling
pollution in the country's territorial waters. The Marine Environmental Protection
Command (MEPCOM), a unit of the PCG, is the point of contact for oil spill response
operations and comprises the National Operations Center for Oil Pollution (NOCOP).
The NOCOP Commander serves as the national on-scene commander and is able to request
assistance from other government, private and military sources. In addition to the
NOCOP, there are eight Marine Environment Protection Offices under the control of
the eight Coast Guard districts.
Spill Notification Point:
Philippine Coast Guard Operations Center. T: +63 (2) 527 3880 (24 hr) or +63 (2) 527
3870 (24 hr) or Operator: T: +63 (2) 527 8481. F: +63 (2) 527 3880 or +63 (2) 527 3907.
Marine Environmental Protection Command (MEPCOM). T: +63 (2) 245 9165, (2) 703 3451.
F: +63 (2) 245 9165, (2) 703 3451.
[email protected]
MEDICAL:
The availability and standard of medical care varies across the Philippines. Although
adequate in major cities, medical care is limited in more remote areas. Even some
of the more popular tourist destinations have limited and basic medical provisions.
This may result in a delay when seeking urgent medical attention in an emergency.
Private hospital treatment can be too expensive for many people, e.g. the daily cost
in intensive care units can be more than the equivalent of GBP1,000 (USD1,400; EUR1,100)
per day. Make sure you have adequate health insurance and accessible funds to cover
the cost of any medical treatment abroad and repatriation.
Mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis and chikungunya
virus occur all year round.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE CENTRE:
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is the national maritime search and rescue service
of the country. The Coast Guard Action Center (CGAC) at the PCG Headquarters in Manila
serves as the coordinating centre for all search and rescue operations. There are
twelve Coast Guard districts designated as Maritime Rescue Coordinating Centres (MRCC)
within their areas of responsibility while the 59 Coast Guard stations are designated
as Maritime Rescue Sub-Centres (MRSC). The detachments under these stations are designated
as SAR units.
Contact details of Coast Guard districts available at
www.coastguard.gov.ph/index.php/districts
PIRACY:
In May 2017, the Philippines authorities reported that they had received unsubstantiated
but credible information that the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf may be about to conduct
kidnaps in the Sulu Sea, including around the islands of the Sulu archipelago (Philippines)
and the seas/islands off the east coast of Sabah (Malaysia). Any vessels sailing in
this area could be targeted. You should carefully consider travel plans and be especially
vigilant at this time.
TIME:
GMT plus 8 hours. Daylight Saving Time GMT plus 9 hours from 21 April until 31 August.
HOLIDAYS:
1 January (New Year's Day); 25 February (People Power Day); 9 April (Bataan Day);
Maundy Thursday; Good Friday; 1 May (Labour Day); 12 June (Independence Day); 21 August
(Ninoy Aquino Day); last Monday of August (National Heroes' Day); 1 November (All
Saints' Day); 30 November (Bonifacio Day); 25 December (Christmas Day); 30 December
(Rizal Day); 31 December (New Year's Eve). When any holiday falls on a Sunday, the
following day (Monday) is, by law, considered a legal public holiday. Employees of
the Philippines Port Authority – Port of Manila, Limay Sub-Port, report for work on
Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
WEATHER/TIDES:
Typhoons:
Around 20 typhoons hit the Philippines each year. Most typhoons occur from June to
November. There may be flooding and landslides. You should monitor the progress of
approaching storms on the websites of the Philippines state weather agency
www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph the Philippines Disaster Risk Reduction & Management Council,
www.ndrrmc.gov.ph and
www.typhoon2000.ph
CONSULS:
Contact details of foreign embassies available at
dfa.gov.ph/resources/office-of-protocol/diplomatic-and-consular-list-2016
TELEPHONES:
Telephone numbers in the Philippines follow an open telephone numbering plan and an
open dial plan. Telephone numbers are fixed at seven digits, with area codes fixed
at one, two, or three digits. Mobile phone numbers are always 10 digits.
Since the Philippines employs an open dial plan, telephone numbers dialled within
a given area code do not require the area code, excluding calls made from mobile phones
or pay phones. When dialling other area codes, the domestic long distance access prefix
0 is added, but when dialling from overseas, this domestic prefix is not included.
BANKS:
Some ATMs accept international credit and debit cards. Shops in towns and cities usually
accept international credit cards. Banks and foreign exchange outlets rarely accept
travellers’ cheques. Cash in UK sterling or US dollars can be exchanged for Philippine
pesos at some airports, in banks, hotels and some shops. Buying foreign currency in
the Philippines can be difficult.
You may only bring up to PHP50,000.00 (approx. GBP670; USD950) into the Philippines
without prior authorisation from the Philippines Central Bank. If you plan to bring
more than PHP50,000.00 into the country, you’ll need to obtain written authorisation
from the Philippines Central Bank.
SHORE LEAVE:
There’s a high level of violent crime, including gun crime. Criminal gangs sometimes
use terrorist tactics like kidnapping. Explosions attributed to criminal organisations
have caused fatalities
There is a high incidence of street crime and robbery. You should take sensible precautions.
On arrival (by air) arrange to be met at the airport, or use a hotel transfer service
or an official airport taxi where they exist. Only use taxis from a reputable company.
Some taxi drivers and their accomplices have robbed and harmed passengers.
Avoid displaying cash or jewellery. Beware of strangers offering drinks or confectionery.
They may be spiked. Be particularly vigilant when travelling on public transport.
Armed hold-ups have occurred on ‘jeepneys’ and buses, mainly in larger cities like
metro Manila and Cebu. In some cases these have resulted in fatalities.
