PAL RESUMES US VISA WAIVER PROGRAM

FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Friday said it had resumed accepting nonimmigrant passengers who qualify for a US visa waiver program (VWP).

"We have received confirmation from US Customs and Border Protection that we may resume accepting nonimmigrant visitors to the United States who are traveling under the US Visa Waiver Program," PAL spokesman Cielo Villaluna said.

"Passengers with valid visa waiver authorizations under the Electronic System for Travel Authorization may resume flying to the United States with Philippine Airlines effective immediately," she added.

Eligible passengers can also immediately resume booking travel to the United States, Villaluna continued.

The flag carrier earlier this week said that it stopped accepting nonimmigrant passengers qualified for the VWP as the agreement with the US government had lapsed. It said that it was working with US authorities for a renewal.

"Passengers previously transferred to other airlines due to our proactive measures have the option to keep their current itinerary. If they prefer to switch back to a PAL flight, they can reach out to us for rebooking via the PAL Customer Support channels in the provided link (https://www.philippineairlines.com/en/about-us/contact-us/global-reservation-hotline)," Villaluna said.

The airline currently offers direct flights to San Francisco, New York, Guam, Los Angeles and Honolulu.

PAL's parent firm PAL Holdings Inc. share price rose by 9 centavos to close at P5.13 on Friday.

2023-09-22T16:35:25Z dg43tfdfdgfd