Whether you are an outbound overseas worker, a seafarer or a tourist going abroad, this post will come handy in case your will be needing an International Certificate of Vaccination or ICV. Learn how get an ICV and other important notes to consider as well as my personal experience from scheduling an appointment, to payment and day of appointment.

As the world starts to open up and border restrictions begins to loosen, the travelers in us are surely rebooting and looking for new places to go and new adventures to experience. Admittedly, the world has changed and the landscape of travel and tourism are redrawn.

Some countries nowadays require travelers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and the only acceptable proof of  vaccination that other countries accept is no other than the International Certificate of Vaccination (ICV) or popularly known as Yellow Card. What exactly it is, how and where to get it, let’s find out.

What is International Certificate of Vaccination?

The International Certificate of Vaccination or ICV or Yellow Card is a document issued by Bureau of Quarantine under Department of Health. It is a record of an individual’s vaccinations required to travel abroad, recognized by 196 member countries of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Who Needs an ICV?

The ICV is for international outbound Filipinos particularly Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), seafarers, and others, can obtain an ICV for COVID-19. These individuals must be “fully vaccinated” in the Philippines. For international travelers on tourism purposes, note that some countries do not require it. ICV is not mandatory and cannot be considered an “immunity passport.” It only serves as “proof of vaccination” of an individual. You should contact the country you are going to to find out what their entry requirements are.

Who Can Get an ICV?

Currently, only those individuals that are fully vaccinated in the Philippines can get an ICV from BOQ.

What are the Requirements to get an ICV?

The following are the requirements to get an ICV:

• Valid Passport
• Valid ID
• Vaccination card issued by the recognized vaccination establishment.
• Confirmed and paid appointment schedule

How Do I Schedule an Appointment?

To set an appointment, visit https://icv.boq.ph and select your desired date and location. You will have to input your personal information as well as your vaccination records and supporting photos. Once submitted, you can generate a reference number which you need to present when paying for for the fees.

Where Can I Get an ICV?

You can schedule an appointment on the following BOQ offices and satellite offices.

BOQ Metro Manila

• • BOQ Port Area, Manila
  • BOQ SM Mall of Asia Satellite Office
  • BOQ Robinsons Place Manila Satellite Office
  • BOQ SM North Edsa Satellite Office (issuance of COVID-19 ICV only)
  • BOQ Eastwood Satellite Office
  • BOQ Mc Kinley Satellite Office
  • BOQ Resorts World Manila Satellite Office

BOQ Luzon

• • BOQ Batangas
  • BOQ Subic
  • BOQ La Union
  • BOQ Laoag
  • BOQ Palawan
  • BOQ Tabaco

BOQ Visayas

• • BOQ Bacolod
  • BOQ Cebu
  • BOQ Iloilo
  • BOQ Kalibo

BOQ Mindanao

• • BOQ Cagayan de Oro
  • BOQ Davao
  • BOQ General Santos

How Much is an ICV?

The fee for requesting an ICV for COVID-19 costs P300 + convenience fee. Discounts apply to senior citizens and persons with disabilities. There are various payment methods available online to pay for the fees.

How Do I Pay?

Payment can be made in cash via their third party payment partners or online via electronic payment partners with service fee ranging from P40 to P70.

Cash Payment Partners

Pay cash via 7Eleven, LBC, Family Mart, Cebuana Lhuiller, etc.

E-Money Payment Partners

Pay via GCash, PayMaya, and Cliqq.

What to Bring on your Day of Appointment?

Bring your passport, vaccination card and valid ID.

Other Important Notes

• Do not wear sleepers and sando on your appointment.
• You may request to expedite the release of your ICV if you are departing within 7 to 10 days
• Ensure that the information you provided is correct, the system does not allow updates or changes and may result to your payment being forfeited
• If you fail to attend on your scheduled appointment, you forfeit your payment. However, if the reason for not going is medical, you can email [email protected] and attach the medical certificate proving your condition
• Senior citizens, PWDs, and those with medical conditions that may be a reason for failing to attend their appointment can delegate an “authorized representative” to collect their ICV. However, one “authorized person” can only take up to two transactions. They must bring an authorization letter for each transaction and must present two valid IDs. They must also present a document proving the client’s condition, such as senior citizen ID, medical certificate, and others.

My Experience on Getting ICV

Booking an Appointment

Finding a Schedule

Booking an appointment to get an ICV was such a challenge. On my initial try, I was greeted with “No available slots” in any of the offices. I had to check every now and then to see if there is available slot. After almost five days of trying, few slots for the following week finally opened so I grabbed the opportunity!

Filling up the Forms

Once you get an available slot, you have an hour to complete the submission of your information and uploading of documents. Make sure to ready your passport, vaccination card/s, valid ID including your PWD or Senior Citizen ID if you are availing of the discounts. Upon submission of my information and documents, I was directed to payment option page where I chose GCash as mode of payment. The final screen should display a reference number but the page timed out. Nevertheless, I received an email and SMS with my reference number.

Payment

There are variety of online payment options available. I chose GCash with a service fee of P40. I received a confirmation email and SMS off successful payment. Your payment should be posted in almost real time.

Verify Appointment Status

Once paid, you may check your appointment status on their website https://icv.boq.ph/ by inputting your reference number and birthdate. It should display your appointment date with PAID status.

Unluckily for me, the site could not locate my reference number displaying “Ooops Sorry. We cannot find this Reference Number.” I tried emailing my concern on [email protected] but when I didn’t get a response after five days, I reached out to BOQ Online Booking Support on Facebook via direct messaging. Thankfully, they answered and fixed my issue in no time.

Day of Appointment

I set my schedule at 2PM to 4PM in Robinsons Place Manila but I arrived at 3PM. Thankfully, the line was short and the entire process was a breeze and took only around ten (10) minutes. The only thing I brought were the original copies of my vaccination card/s or certificate and a valid ID.

There are only two steps – the screening and releasing. During screening, the agent checked my original documents and asked me to validate the all the information in their system. I got my ICV afterwards in the releasing.