Business
travellers engaged in selling goods or services and investments between
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies will experience streamlined
entry to participating economies.
This,
as the APEC business travel card (ABTC) transitions from physical to virtual
cards using the new mobile application that will provide real-time
updates/approvals by economies using their application status.
“As
the virtual card will replace the current physical cards, they are considered
as good as the physical card when presented to the immigration authorities at
points of entry in APEC member countries,” Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)
acting Asst. Secretary Senen Mangalile informed Philippine Exporters
Confederation Inc. (PHILEXPORT) President Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. in a letter.
The
ABTC provides business people streamlined entry to participating economies
through a simple pre-clearance system that allows them to obtain a multiple
short-term entry to participating APEC economies through a single application.
The
virtual ABTC has been created for the convenience of approved cardholders and
will bring the ABTC scheme into the modern and digitized era of global travel.
It is free to download and accessible for those applicants who have been
approved for an ABTC.
“It
provides cardholders from fully participating member economies with a more
secure, efficient, convenient and user-friendly service.
The
virtual ABTC automatically updates as a cardholder opens or refreshes their
smart device ‘app’, ensuring all relevant information is up-to-date and readily
available for the cardholder’s travel,” according to the APEC Business Mobility
Group.
Participating
economies in the ABTC scheme currently includes Australia, Brunei Darussalam,
Chile, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea,
Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, People’s Republic of China,
the Philippines, Peru, Russia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Each
economy determines its own timeline to transition to the virtual ABTC for its
cardholders.
In
line with this, Mangalile requested the exporters’ group to provide the
department with a list of ABTC cardholders among its members with their
respective personal email addresses.
“The
information is needed so that they could be provided with access or log-in
credentials to the mobile application,” he said.
Mangalile
also asked the PHILEXPORT to inform its members who are ABTC holders about the
new process, adding that the department will provide a user manual and
frequently asked questions once APEC has finalized them.
September 27, 2021
