A ban on non-essential travel by Filipinos within the Philippines and abroad has been lifted despite a surge in the number of coronavirus infections since last week, a Philippine government spokesman said yesterday.
Non-essential travel by Filipinos within the country and abroad were prohibited since the middle of March when a lockdown was imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the lifting of the ban would take effect in August or 15 days after the new resolution of the inter-agency task force on the coronavirus was published on the government’s official gazette.
“The suspension of non-essential travel by Filipinos...is hereby lifted,” the task force said in a resolution dated July 6.
”All travel restrictions relative to the outbound travel of Filipinos...are likewise lifted.”
The ban on the entry of foreigners was still in effect, except for those married to Filipinos and diplomats. 
Filipinos travelling abroad should submit documents showing they have confirmed round-trip tickets, have adequate travel and health insurance, and are allowed entry to the country of destination, according to the task force resolution. The insurance should be able to cover rebooking and accommodation expenses if stranded, and hospitalisation in case of infection, it added. Upon return to the Philippines, they need to undergo a Covid-19 test and go on a 14-day quarantine while waiting for the result of the test. Yesterday, the Department of Health reported an additional 1,540 confirmed Covid-19 cases, bringing the national tally to 47,873.
The death toll was at 1,309, with six additional deaths reported over the past 24 hours.