Permit· Cebu· Philippines

Cebu Port of Entry (Customs and Immigration)

10° 18.7′ N · 123° 55.4′ E

Cebu is one of the Philippines' designated ports of entry for yachts; Customs, Immigration and Quarantine formalities are handled through the Cebu Port Authority area and, in practice, by officials who meet boats at the Cebu Yacht Club.

Practical

Coordinates are the Cebu Port Authority office (OpenStreetMap). Send a Notice of Arrival by email 48 hours before arriving at ports other than Manila (Noonsite reports a 6,000 PHP fine for a yacht that did not). Noonsite (Jun 2023): give the marina/yacht club 3 days' notice with vessel details (name, flag, call sign, MMSI, dimensions, skipper), ETA, crew list (name, nationality, passport number and expiry, date of birth) and last port; Quarantine, Customs and Immigration can then meet you at the Cebu Yacht Club. Bring original last-port clearance, registration certificate, crew lists and passport copies. Recent reports cite about US$300 to clear in and out here, and older reports (2011-2017) describe unreceipted 'fees' - ask for an official receipt for every payment. Immigration extensions: Bureau of Immigration offices at Robinsons Galleria (Cebu City) and Gaisano Mactan Island Mall (Lapu-Lapu), weekdays 8:00 am-5:00 pm; Cebu is one of the few offices that grants 6-month extensions (Hacking Family, 2022). The Coast Guard has required yachts to clear out of each port since a 2024 Department of Transportation order, though it is usually enforced only at the last port before leaving the country.

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Entering the Philippines in the Visayas

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