BI: Chinese arrivals at 500K, 20% rise from 2023
Amid the ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) announced last year and other recent developments affecting Chinese nationals in the country, the number of inbound travelers from China increased by around 20 percent in 2024.
Citing data from the Bureau of Immigration (BI), Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said in a statement on Sunday that Chinese arrivals last year was at 500,082, a slight increase from 417,128 in 2023.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) last month reported a relatively smaller figure of 313,856 Chinese arrivals, but this was still an increase from 264,922 in 2023.
South Korea topped the arrival of foreign visitors last year with 1.76 million, followed by the United States with 1.3 million, according to the BI.
The bureau recorded a total of 14.7 million international arrivals in 2024, nearing the prepandemic figure of 17 million in 2019.
BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval noted that while arrivals from China had increased, the number was “still far from the prepandemic [record] of 1.9 million.”
Tourists, Pogo workers
The DOT, for its part, said the rise in Chinese tourists “can be attributed to the increased number of flights from 2023, both commercial and chartered, including the first half of 2024, connecting China directly to Cebu, Bohol, and Davao.”
“Cruise ships, carrying loads of visiting tourists, also started to arrive during the second half of 2024, with the new cruise visa waiver program becoming an important factor for such improved numbers,” it added.
The DOT’s data showed that in the past decade, except in 2022, China had consistently ranked among the Philippines’ top foreign visitors.
From 675,663 arrivals in 2016, the number grew to 968,447 in 2017, then to 1.26 million in 2018, before peaking at 1.7 million in 2019.
That same year also saw the “peak of Pogo activities,” according to Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, who noted in a forum last year a spike in Pogo employment based on data from the Department of Labor and Employment.
In 2024, a total of 118,239 Pogo workers were employed, with 82.3 percent being Chinese and other nationals.
Crackdown
The BI has recently intensified efforts to deport foreign nationals involved in Pogo operations as part of a broader crackdown on illegal activities linked to the gambling industry, including kidnapping and other crimes.
This follows the nationwide ban on Pogos that came into effect on Jan. 1.
Last week, 98 Chinese nationals caught working for a Pogo company were deported via a Philippine Airlines chartered flight to Xi’an, China.
Authorities said there are still an estimated 11,000 foreign nationals linked to Pogos who have not yet been arrested and deported.
In one notable case, a Chinese teenager was recently kidnapped in Taguig City, with the Department of the Interior and Local Government saying the kidnappers were linked to Pogo activities.
In the wake of a number of Chinese nationals caught for alleged espionage, civic leader Teresita Ang See has raised concerns about “churn[ing] turbulent waters” in Philippine-China relations and called for an impartial investigation.
