The new arrival/departure cards launched by the Department of Tourism will greatly help in updating a database on incoming and outgoing tourists in the country, a press release from the DOT said.

Launched recently, the new machine-readable A/D cards will significantly increase the processing for passengers’ travel documents at airports, the DOT said.

Under the new scheme, the Bureau of Immigration will immediately move processed information from the A/D cards to the DOT which in turn, will create a travel database.

“Global trends have changed the way people travel.  Right now, people are moving at increased speed, and this faster scheme in getting necessary data from tourists is indeed a welcome development,” Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said in the press release.

Details such as type of accommodation and exact purpose of travel are in the form.

Instead of general categories under holiday, visit, convention, business, and ‘others,’ the updated A/D cards ask specific purposes such as Shopping, Wellness, and Second Home, under “Holiday/ Pleasure”, the press release said.

Also, options like Education/ Training, Official Mission, Religion/ Pilgrimage, Health, Transit, and Permanent Resident or Returning Resident are made available on the list, requiring more focused information about the passengers, it added.

Undersecretary for Tourism Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque, Jr., said that data obtained from the cards will increase the Department’s capacity to respond to tourists’ inclinations.

Current situations call for the most updated information on travelers, allowing all tourism stakeholders to respond well and make informed decisions to sustain their businesses, Allan Cañizal, Director for Tourism Development Planning said in the same press release.*

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