Backpacking Philippines: Unaccompanied Minor Fees/Charges for Children/Baby/Kids Flying Solo

Unaccompanied Minor Fees/Charges for Children/Baby/Kids Flying Solo

Whenever Tutubi hears of kids flying solo, he remembers the romantic film Sleepless in Seattle, starring Tom Hanks (Sam) and Meg Ryan (Annie), where Sam's son Jonah flew alone to New York to meet Annie to realize his wish for his lonely daddy.

That's the movies where almost every rule can be broken for "cinematic effect."

In reality, you need to know the rules and the law before before your kid flies on an airline alone. Usually, you need to pay additional fees for the service as well the law of the destination country.

For unaccompanied minor children below fifteen traveling to the Philippines alone or without a parent, be aware of the (stupid) Waiver of Exclusion Ground contained in an old Commonwealth Act 613 (that should be repealed, Tutubi thinks). More information on WEG below from one official Philippine Embassy website:

"WAIVER OF EXCLUSION GROUND (WEG) FOR UNACCOMPANIED MINOR CHILDREN

(12) Children under fifteen years of age, unaccompanied by or not coming to a parent, except that any such children may be admitted in the discretion of the Commissioner of Immigration, if otherwise admissible;

Non-Filipino minors below fifteen (15) years of age, who are traveling unaccompanied and are not joining a parent in the Philippines, are required to apply for a WAIVER of EXCLUSION GROUND (WEG) at the Philippine Embassy in order to be admitted entry in the Philippines regardless of whether or not the minor requires a visa.

Applications for the WAIVER of EXCLUSION GROUND (WEG) are approved and processed by the Bureau of Immigration in Manila, subject to the following conditions:

1. Submission of Affidavit of Request and Consent by either parent or legally appointed guardian of the child, naming the person who will be accompanying the child to the Philippines and with whom the child will reside while in the Philippines, and

(a) Clear photocopy of the data page of the child’s passport.
(b) Clear photocopy of the data page of the passport of accompanying adult or guardian.

2. Payment of the WEG fee at the Bureau of Immigration-NAIA upon arrival of the minor child/children;

3. Payment of notarization fee (in cash)."

How much does WEG costs?

The Waiver of Exclusion Ground (WEG) Fee is PhP3120.00. Details here

Information on various Airlines and Budget Carriers below:

Cebu Pacific Unaccompanied Minor:

We do not accept for carriage unaccompanied children below four (4) years old unless they are accompanied by a guest of at least eighteen (18) years of age.

Children aged four (4) to twelve (12) years old may be accommodated on the flight provided that they pay the Unaccompanied Minor Handling Fee of PhP500 + VAT per sector per unaccompanied minor for domestic and USD25 per sector per unaccompanied minor for international (at selected airports)."

Philippine Airlines Unaccompanied Minors

Children aged eight to below twelve years of age may be allowed to travel alone.

A service fee shall be assessed on each unaccompanied minor for travel on international routes. The unaccompanied minor service fee shall be as follows:

US$50.00 for travel between Manila and USA/Canada
US$20.00 for all other international sectors

Details about the minor's meeting party at destination and other pertinent information must be arranged by the parent or guardian with PAL Reservations office or ticket office at the time of booking

Singapore Airlines Unaccompanied Minor fees
This service is accorded to our young customers between the ages of 5 and under 17 years when they travel without their parents or guardians aged 18 years and above.

Check also fees and policies of your airline for updated information.

Labels: Travel Warnings

posted by GingGoy @ 10:46 PM,

23 Comments:

At Jun 1, 2008, 11:34:00 AM, Toe said...: Very good information Tutubi.

May I just add that the WEG is for non-Filipino minors coming in to the Philippines. For Filipino minors leaving the Philippines, either unaccompanied, or accompanied by a guardian not his or her parent, a travel permit is needed from the DSWD.
At Jun 1, 2008, 11:41:00 AM, GingGoy said...: Toe, thank you for that information on outbound unaccompanied minor. forgot about that. i remember you're in the foreign service. i hope that WEG law gets scrapped soon.
At Jun 2, 2008, 6:59:00 PM, Anonymous said...: THere's many rules about children travelling nowadays. Last time my wife and daughter visited Pinas, the airport authorities here needed to have a letter from me authorizing my daughter to travel with my wife :)
At Jun 5, 2008, 12:03:00 PM, sempiternal said...: tutubi - i agree with you... actually, didnt know about this WEG until today...

bw - fyi, for outbound travel, dont have the exact date when, but heard that rule was lifted here and no more authority letter required from the parent not present...

toe - additional info, if you dont want the trouble of applying for the permit, you just need a contact... no need for DSWD permit for minor travelling without the parents for like PHP5K... sigh! i hate immigration here... not sweeping but at the airport, they make money... this is a different story...
At Oct 18, 2008, 8:56:00 AM, Unknown said...: Why Philippines has this rule for minor's travel?
At Oct 18, 2008, 8:58:00 AM, Unknown said...: why 15 year-old?
At Oct 18, 2008, 9:02:00 AM, GingGoy said...: wenyu, don't ask me, ask the "bright" people of immigration and tourism plus the "porky" congressmen and senators. It should be repealed. The unknown law is the cause of many extortion and scandals at the airport reported by media. only in the philippines!
At Oct 18, 2008, 9:05:00 AM, Unknown said...: Anyone knows why "15 year-old"?
At Feb 16, 2009, 3:17:00 PM, Anonymous said...: That’s great that you are teching technology to kids! I just found your blog and it’s really good! I’m going to read more posts!
At Jun 15, 2009, 11:20:00 AM, Anonymous said...: So this doesent affect me? i was born in the philipines, went to the U.S at age 9 and I want to go back to the philipines by my self (age 13) as a unaccompanied minor traveler. Because my parents can come with me due to work. So im just asking if this law is going to affect me?

also, what does my parents have to do so i can have an easy flight back to my hometown [pinas :)]
At Jun 16, 2009, 9:07:00 PM, GingGoy said...: rockinxangelo, if you're a Filipino traveling alone to the Philippines, you're not covered by this requirement. but if you're going back to the US alone, you need the travel permit from the DSWD
At Jun 16, 2009, 9:19:00 PM, GingGoy said...: rockinxangelo, if you're a Filipino traveling alone to the Philippines, you're not covered by this requirement. but if you're going back to the US alone, you need the travel permit from the DSWD
At Sep 5, 2011, 3:17:00 PM, Anonymous said...: Im 17 years old and im bringing my 13 years old brother to the Philippines and were going with some other friends but without any parents.

Me and my brother has never been to the Philippines before since we were both born in Hong Kong and have no relatives there. But both our parents are filipino. This coming November were going to boracay for 5 days and another 5 days in manila.

What requirements do I need? Does the waver also apply to me and my brother? and as to my friends who are also both 17. But have experience Philippines.
At Sep 8, 2011, 9:12:00 PM, GingGoy said...: anonymous, better get in touch with the philippine embassy or consulate to answer your question.
At Oct 25, 2011, 9:31:00 AM, Anonymous said...: what if the minor traveling to the U.S. alone is a holder of U.S. permanent card? is there a need to get clearance from the DSWD?
At Oct 25, 2011, 9:38:00 AM, Anonymous said...: what if the unaccompanied minor from the philippines want to travel back to the U.S. does she need a clearance from the DSWD even if she is the holder of a U.S. permanent resident card?
At Nov 28, 2011, 6:53:00 PM, Anonymous said...: my 2 kids (singaporean) will be flying back from Phil to Singapore together with my mother, do i need to get clearance from DSWD?
At Nov 28, 2011, 10:41:00 PM, GingGoy said...: anonymous, singaporeans don't need the dswd clearance
At Nov 30, 2011, 2:06:00 PM, Anonymous said...: thanks backpacking phil
At Jul 30, 2012, 4:36:00 PM, CathyP said...: Jonah did not actually fly into a foreign country
At Jul 30, 2012, 4:37:00 PM, Anonymous said...: Jonah did not actually fly into a foreign country
At Oct 6, 2012, 1:07:00 PM, concernchic said...: i am bringing my niece to bankok for three days only,together with my eldest sister,my niece i a frequent flyer to japan because her mother which is my twin sister is currently based there.i am the legal guardian of my niece here in the phil.my questions is, shes 17 right now and we misplace her dswd travel clearance and it is valid up until next year, its so messy getting another one,is it ok if we continue our trip without the said docs??
At Oct 6, 2012, 1:18:00 PM, concernchic said...: my niece which is already 17yrs old is a frequent flyer to Japan because her mother which is my twin sister is currently based there.we always prepare travel clearance every time they visit their mother.we are scheduled to go to Bangkok together with my eldest sis and ofcourse my niece michelle,its just that we misplace her travel clearance and we are about to leave on the 23rd of this month.can we just go with our trip without getting another travel clearance from dswd?anyways its just 3days and i read soe comments fr here that 15 below are only required to get one.

Unaccompanied Minor Fees/Charges for Children/Baby/Kids Flying Solo

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