OPENING BORDERS. The opening of the Palawan Tourism Travel Fair on June 17, 2023 was one of the highlights of the Baragatan festival. The Puerto Princesa City government has been working double-time to grow the local tourism sector. (PNA photo by Izza Reynoso)
PUERTO PRINCESA, Palawan - Residents of this province who want to travel to South Korea no longer need to go to Metro Manila to apply for their visas.
Local courier service provider W Express will launch its Postal Service Visa Application (PSVA) service on Feb. 1 in partnership with the Korea Visa Application Center (KVAC).
”The visa application fee is PHP900 while the courier fee is PHP1,000. The Korean Embassy staff at the KVAC will still be in charge of checking the visa requirements, the company (W Express) will only transport the documents to them,” Lani Jamora, officer-in-charge of the W Express branch in Puerto Princesa City, said in an interview on Tuesday.
Applicants are required to present a government-issued identification for verification and pay non-refundable fees for W Express and KVAC services.
They will receive emails and text messages confirming the acceptance of their documents.
In case KVAC identifies any missing or additional documents, the applicant must submit them via the same W Express branch within seven working days without additional fees, Jamora said.
Meanwhile, the KVAC ‘s Philippine office, located in Taguig City, announced that select W Express branches will accept C-3-9 Tourist Visa applications for short-term stays or under 59 days.
Since Aug. 29, visa applications and releasing of passports are no longer conducted within the Korean Embassy premises.
It can be recalled that the Puerto Princesa and Seogwipo (Jeju) local governments launched an initiative to make travel between the two cities more convenient in order to enhance tourism and cultural exchange.
In December, the Seogwipo (Jeju) Tourist Center and Korean Tourism Information Center opened here to provide a lifeline home for the Korean community in Puerto Princesa and the wider Palawan area. (PNA)
