ILOILO – The Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) here has started issuing the International Certificate of Vaccination (ICV) or “yellow card” for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to fully-vaccinated outbound travelers such as overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), seafarers and tourists.
The ICV, which is recognized by member-countries of the World Health Organization (WHO), is a document that records an individual’s vaccinations required to travel abroad.
According to Dr. Bea Camille Natalaray, medical officer at the Department of Health (DOH) Region 6, their central office issued interim guidelines and tasked their line bureau BOQ to release the ICV for COVID-19 to travelers going to countries requiring proof of vaccination.
“Supposed to be ang Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) amo ‘ni sia ang mahatag sang Certificate of Vaccination… Since subong on the process pa ang DICT, ang BOQ for the meantime ang ma-release sang ICV or “yellow card” for COVID-19 kay gina-require ‘na sang some destinations sang aton OFWs,” Natalaray explained.
Some countries do not honor vaccination cards issued by local government units (LGUs) because these are not uniformed.
DOH is also waiting for the LGUs to complete their submission of vaccine recipients’ information in their verification database system.
“DICT and DOH are trying to reach out sa WHO kon ano pa gid ang mga requirements para ang mga vaccination card nga mahalin sa DICT could be accepted internationally,” said Natalaray.
However, DOH clarified that securing “yellow card” is not mandatory as not all countries require such.
BOQ advised clients to check whether their countries of destination will require them to have a “yellow card”.
In Iloilo, Natalaray said some OFWs were already able to secure ICVs.
DOH further clarified that ICV cannot be considered an “immunity passport” as it serves as “proof of vaccination” of an individual.
How to apply for ICV?
One can book appointment using these links: https://icv.boq.ph/ and https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.icv.boq.
On the date of appointment, the client needs to submit an original copy of his/her COVID-19 vaccination card and vaccination certificate issued by the LGU, passport, the uploaded Valid ID, SMS/email of appointment status or screenshot of the appointment status.
The clients can request vaccination certificate from his/her LGU or vaccination centers that verify the authenticity of their vaccination card.
The appointment system allows clients to schedule an appointment slot on a “first come, first serve” basis. Slots are limited per site and there is no guarantee that a client’s first choice of appointment schedule will always be available.
Meanwhile, all payment is non-refundable. Payment shall be forfeited for applicants who fail to show up on their confirmed appointment, applicants who cancel their appointment, applicants whose application was rejected due to inconsistency and/or incorrect information, and applicants who present discrepant and/or fake spurious documents./PN
