JEDDAH — The authorities at Ninoy Aquino International airport in Pasay city, Metro Manila, have sent back a number of Saudis because they were not carrying return tickets, Makkah Arabic daily reported on Tuesday quoting informed sources. Under the country's law, travelers going to the Philippines without return tickets will be stopped and questioned. The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has sent a circular to all travel agencies operating in the Kingdom's airports to make sure that passengers to the Philippines possess return tickets. The Foreign Ministry has also issued the same warning on its website asking all Saudis traveling to the Philippines to respect the country's laws and regulations. The ministry asked the Saudis wishing to travel to the Philippines for tourism or study to make sure that their passports have at least six-month validity. The country's laws prevent converting tourism visa into a study visa so as to obtain residency. The duration of the visit to the Philippines is 21 days and the passport authorities should be informed in case of visit extension or emergencies. The Saudi driving license will not enable its carriers to drive in the Philippines and any amount of money exceeding $10,000 should be declared on arrival at the airport. Last week, four Saudi embassies warned Saudi tourists against violating visa regulations while visiting foreign countries and asked them to be extra cautious while traveling to insecure and unstable regions, including southern Philippines. The Saudi Consulate in Hong Kong said there are special instructions issued by Chinese authorities relating to businessmen and businesswomen and these regulations are applicable to all Saudis. The consulate said that travelers should obtain visas from the Chinese Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate in Jeddah before heading to the country as they would not get visas on arrival. The Saudi Embassy in Greece has urged Saudis to obtain travel and health insurance documents from an insurance company in Saudi Arabia before heading to Greece. The Saudi Embassy in Tokyo advised Saudi tourists to avoid visiting certain public parks in Japan. It also advised Saudi businessmen and businesswomen to note the new measures taken by the two countries in favor of them following the state visit by Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense. The Saudi Embassy in Canada said it has launched a new emergency service for citizens in order to deal with special cases. The Saudi Embassy in Manila issued a statement warning citizens against visiting southern parts of Philippines due to unstable situation.
