Revenue from immigration fees down 36% in 2020 due to COVID-19 crisis —BI

Income from immigration fees dropped 36% to P5.88 billion last year as the Philippines imposed movement restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

By comparison, collections hit a record high of P9.3 billion in 2019, said Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Jaime Morente.

“We anticipated our revenues to decrease due to the pandemic,” said Morente. “With more foreign nationals going out of the country than going in, we were able to collect less revenue from visa applications.”

Collections in January and February 2020 amounted to P1.8 billion but revenues dropped to P480 million in March with the implementation of an enhanced community quarantine across Luzon, according to BI finance chief Judith Ferrera.

Morente added that transactions in the bureau were suspended for more than two months after the government imposed the movement restrictions.

He said the bureau expects its revenue collection efforts to gradually return to normal this year as the country awaits the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccine and once international travel restrictions are gradually lifted.—AOL, GMA News