The Bureau of Immigration said on Friday it would take only 30 minutes or less to line up at the immigration counters at the airport as OFWs return to their work places after the holidays.

BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval said based on their time and motion study, a passenger will only need to line up for half an hour or less despite the expected rise in the number of passengers this month.

In previous years, some passengers said they lined up at the immigration area for about an hour during peak season.

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“Maximum falling in line time is 30 minutes, maximum na po yun kapag puno ang immigration area natin,” she said.

She said that following the holiday season, many overseas Filipinos are expected to return back abroad in the first two weeks of January. The number of departing passengers per day could reach up to 40,000.

But lines will move faster this time, she said, as BI added more immigration officers. International flights at NAIA are also now concentrated in two terminals, compared to last year where there were international flights in all terminals, spreading out the immigration officers.

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“Kumpleto po ang ating counters, ang ating immigration officers. Nag deploy tayo ng added immigration officers… naglagay tayo ng mobile counters,” she added.

Sandoval also announced that BI has started to implement the new look of the arrival and departure stamp which is first being done at NAIA. The change was done to bolster security measures, aligning with global best practices.