Most Western passports can leave Manila's airport without a visa: the Philippines lets them stay up to 30 days, as long as they register on the free eTravel site before landing. Staying airside is the harder part, because only one kind of connection has a published route that skips immigration.
No visa is needed to leave Manila airport on a US, UK, EU, Canadian or Australian passport: you can stay up to 30 days, with a passport valid 6 months beyond your stay and an onward ticket. Everyone arriving registers free on eTravel in the 72 hours before landing. Indian passports get 14 or 30 days visa-free under conditions, but should check with their airline first. Only Philippine Airlines international connections inside Terminal 1 have a published airside route.
If you stay airside
At Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL), only one kind of connection has a published route that keeps you out of Philippine immigration: Philippine Airlines (PAL) international to PAL international, both in Terminal 1, on one ticket.
- PAL to PAL in Terminal 1. Follow the Transit / Connecting Passengers signs from your gate, go through security screening again, and walk to your next gate. PAL’s minimum connection is 50 minutes. If you have no onward boarding pass or have missed your flight, go to PAL’s Transfer Desk before screening.
- PAL to another airline. In Terminal 1, PAL allows 1 hour 30 minutes; to or from Emirates or Qatar Airways, 3 hours. PAL warns that a transfer can involve collecting bags, immigration, customs and checking in again, so ask your airline what yours involves.
- Any other airline, or a change between Terminals 1 and 3. No airside route is published, and the two terminals are a drive apart, so expect to pass immigration: you need to be able to enter the Philippines, and you need eTravel. PAL allows 2 hours for a change between Terminals 1 and 3.
- A domestic connection means entering the Philippines in Manila. PAL’s domestic flights leave from Terminal 2, and PAL runs a free bus between Terminals 1 and 2 for its own connections.
Which airlines use which terminal changed in 2026: see at the airport.
If you want to leave the airport
You’re entering the Philippines, even for a few hours, so your passport has to let you in, and you register on eTravel before you land.
| Passport | What you need to leave Manila airport |
|---|---|
| US, Canada, Australia | No visa for up to 30 days; eTravel |
| UK | No visa for up to 30 days; eTravel |
| EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland | No visa for up to 30 days; eTravel |
| India | 14 days visa-free with a hotel booking, funds and an onward ticket, or 30 days with a US, UK, Schengen, Canadian, Australian, Japanese or Singaporean visa; eTravel. Check first (below) |
Visa-free entry
The Department of Foreign Affairs lets these passports in without a visa for an initial stay of 30 days, far longer than any layover. Two conditions apply, and airlines check them at check-in as well as at the border:
- Passport validity. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months beyond your stay.
- An onward ticket. You need a ticket out of the Philippines, which your next flight is.
eTravel
eTravel is the Philippines’ free online arrival registration, and every arriving passenger fills it in, Filipino or foreign.
- Where. Only on the government’s site, etravel.gov.ph. It’s free and never asks for payment, so ignore any site that charges.
- When. In the 72 hours before you land. Airlines may ask to see it before you board.
- What you get. A QR code. Keep it on your phone, or a screenshot of it, to show on arrival.
Indian passports
Since 8 June 2025, Indian passports can enter the Philippines without a visa in two ways. Neither can be extended:
- 14 days, for tourism or business, with a passport valid 6 months beyond your stay, a confirmed hotel booking, proof that you can pay your way and an onward ticket.
- 30 days, for tourism, with a valid US, UK, Schengen, Canadian, Australian, Japanese or Singaporean visa or residence permit, and an onward ticket.
The same Department of Foreign Affairs page also says Indian nationals “transiting in the Philippines” must get a visa from a Philippine embassy or consulate, and doesn’t say whether a few hours in town on a layover counts as transit or as tourism. Before you plan to leave the airport, confirm with your airline or a Philippine embassy. PAL’s Transit Tour also takes only passengers from visa-free countries.
If you’re on separate tickets
The airport doesn’t treat you as a connecting passenger if you booked two separate flights. You pass immigration, collect your bags, then check in again and clear security for your next flight. So you need to be able to enter the Philippines, and you need eTravel, even if you never planned to leave the airport.
If your second flight leaves from another terminal, take the free inter-terminal shuttle, and allow at least 2 hours between flights, as PAL does for its own connections between Terminals 1 and 3.
At the border
Visitors queue at the staffed immigration desks. NAIA’s eGates are set up for departing Filipino passengers, and the airport sells no fast lane through immigration. It publishes no queue times either, so allow about 75 minutes from landing to sitting in a taxi, as this guide’s plans do. Have your passport, your eTravel QR code and your onward booking ready.
Before you go landside
- Check whether your bags are checked through to your final destination. If they are, you leave with your hand luggage only, which is also the rule on PAL’s own programmes.
- Know which terminal your next flight leaves from: it may not be the one you land at.
- Plan to be back at the airport 90 minutes before departure, with your onward boarding pass, or 2 hours on PAL’s City Layover and Transit Tour. See getting into the city.