How I Got My Yellow Card / ICV for COVID-19 in the Philippines

NOTE: The rules related to COVID-19 and BOQ are constantly changing. Please verify information with BOQ before proceeding to be sure.

My experience

I was traveling to meet family abroad and was not sure if the city’s vaccination card would be accepted at immigration so we opted to get a yellow card or International Certificate of Vaccination (ICV) for COVID-19 from the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ).

The vaccine passport, at that time, was not yet available so we opted to get the yellow card instead.

We tried to book an appointment via BOQ’s online portal boq.pisopay.com.ph (now the link is icv.boq.ph) but saw that all the appointment slots are filled up until October. (This was late July or early August when we checked.)

We called BOQ’s hotline and was asked to email [email protected] (update: the email address is now [email protected]) with our details, and flight.

We were told to book an appointment online for ANY date, pay the fee, and submit the details to them.

We booked an appointment for November 17 and sent the confirmation details to the same email address.

We then received a confirmation reply stating which BOQ branch we should go to and were given the date of September 3. We were asked to bring the following requirements:
1. Confirmed Flight Schedule
2. Reference Number of Confirmed Appointment
3. Covid-19 Vaccination ID or Certificate
4. Valid ID

On September 3, I arrived around 9 or 10am and asked about the expedited process. The BOQ personnel mentioned that they are processing people with confirmed appointments for that day first. They will then process the expedited group around 1pm after finishing the batch of people with confirmed bookings for that day.

It was a long wait and a long line. The line for the expedited group only started moving around 1pm and I was processed around 3 or 4pm. I noticed there was a lot of line slack by around 3 or 4pm. (If you arrived then, you might have only waited for 1-2 hours instead of waiting for 6 hours. But of course, there is also a risk that you might not be processed on that day.) It’s probably best if you eat a big meal or a big lunch before going to line up, or have a friend / companion with you so you can switch places to eat.

But first, do you need a Yellow Card or ICV for COVID-19 ?

Some countries might look for it and others might not. The best way to figure it out is to ask the embassy of the country you are going to. Your airline might also have additional information and guidance but the embassy should be your primary source of information.

It may be good to check the digital vaccine certificate first and see if that may already be accepted.

Steps to An Expedited Yellow Card or ICV for COVID-19

In summary, if you are an international traveler departing in about 7-10 days and need to get an expedited yellow card or ICV for COVID-19, here are the steps:

1. Book and pay for an appointment at icv.boq.ph
2. Email the following to [email protected] with subject as reference number and flight date (example: PPGBOQ123456789 – MM/DD/YYYY)
   • confirmation of BOQ appointment / payment
   • confirmed flight details
   • if OFW, contract or valid overseas employment certificate (OEC)
   • if senior citizen, senior citizen ID
   • if PWD, PWD ID
   • if medical frontliner, company ID
3. Wait for confirmation within 24-48 hours
4. Proceed to assigned BOQ office on the assigned date based on the email. Bring the confirmation email, confirmation payment, passport, vaccination card. Bring the other details submitted via email, in case.