The proposed ₱480 border security fee

What the proposal says

CAISS stands for Civil Aviation and Immigration Security Services. PhilSTAR Life reported on 28 May 2026 that the project stemmed from an unsolicited proposal by Securiport LLC, submitted through the PPP Center in May 2023 ¹.

The project would cover 11 international airports, one major international seaport and six mobile border crossing stations. It uses a Build-Train-Maintain-Transfer model. Securiport and a local partner would finance, design, build and maintain the platform, which Bureau of Immigration (BI) personnel would operate ¹.

Planned functions include advance passenger information processing, entry and exit processing, identity management, background screening with social media checks, risk assessment, secondary screening and analytics ¹. A later report described facial recognition, behavioural analytics and links to Interpol databases ⁶. One Daily Tribune report used a different full name for the CAISS acronym ⁶.

The fee and the ₱480 figure

The BI project document quoted by PhilSTAR Life says: "Investment recovery is through a user fee of $4 per international traveler, built into airline ticket costs." The fee would apply on departure and on arrival, so a round trip comes to USD 8, about ₱480. It would be on top of the travel tax ¹.

The ₱480 figure is a round-trip conversion, not a single charge. Peso conversions in the reports vary. PhilSTAR Life used about ₱240 per trip ¹, the BI cited about ₱247 ², and a Philippine Star column used about ₱250 ⁷.

The Daily Tribune reported on 7 September 2026 that the fee is USD 4, about ₱240, per international traveller, or ₱480 round trip, added directly to airline tickets ⁶.

Cost, revenue and contract terms

The project cost is ₱10.74 billion. Securiport would cover the full capital investment, upgrade the technology every four years and train immigration staff without taxpayer funds ⁵. PhilSTAR Life reported the BI said there were no government guarantees or subsidies ¹.

The concession would run 20 years from the start of commercial operations, after which the assets go to the government ¹. The Daily Tribune reported a projected 95 to 5 revenue split in favour of the vendor, which drew criticism ⁵. A Philippine Star column said Securiport would get USD 3.80 of each USD 4 fee and the BI USD 0.20 ⁷.

Columnist Iris Gonzales estimated in June 2026 that the fee could raise about ₱14 billion a year, based on 29 million passengers in 2025 ⁴.

Review status and timeline

PhilSTAR Life reported that the Department of Justice, the approving body under the PPP Code (Republic Act 11966), approved the project on 2 December 2025, and that the BI hoped to issue a notice of award in November 2026 after a challenge ¹. A Philippine Star column on 4 June 2026 cited a target notice of award of 11 to 14 September 2026 and a contract signing target of 13 to 19 October 2026 ⁴. The sources give different dates.

The same column said a bid bulletin dated 18 May 2026 recorded that no challengers filed prequalification documents by the 14 May 2026 deadline ⁴.

On 2 June 2026 BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado ordered a full review and stakeholder consultation on the fee. He said: "The reports were based on a proposal that has not yet received the final approvals" ². Palace press officer Claire Castro said the plan was still under study, might not be implemented, and that President Marcos had not taken a position ³.

On 27 August 2026 Viado told a House budget hearing that no contract had been signed. The Daily Tribune reported the proposal had been under review for two years by the Department of Justice, the Department of Finance, the PPP Center and the Office of the Solicitor General ⁵. On 5 October 2026 the Daily Tribune reported it was still under review by the Department of Finance, the Office of the Solicitor General and the PPP Center ⁸.

Data localisation and privacy

Securiport chief technology officer Nate Carpenter said all traveller data would be kept only in government data centres in the Philippines. "The data for any national security system needs to stay in the country," he said. "The data is used by the government only for its lawful purpose, and that data is not sent anywhere else." He spoke at the 21st ICAO Traveler Identification Program Symposium in Montreal, as reported on 5 October 2026 ⁸.

Viado told lawmakers on 7 September 2026: "Sovereignty and control over this data are retained by the Philippine government." He said Securiport supplies tools and operational training only ⁶. In August he said final entry decisions stay with Philippine immigration officers ⁵.

A Philippine Star column on 4 October 2026 said no privacy impact assessment had been done and that no consultation with the National Privacy Commission had been disclosed ⁷.

What officials, lawmakers and critics said

• Viado, 7 September 2026: "This is not a form of tax. This is a service fee." He compared it with charges he said were higher in Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong and Japan ⁶.
• Representatives Leila de Lima and Edgar Erice raised concerns at the 27 August 2026 House hearing about the burden on OFWs. Viado said OFWs are legally exempt and that foreign employers carry ticket costs under migrant worker rules ⁵.
• Viado told the Senate the project was still under evaluation and that the proponent must justify the fee, technology, financing and terms, according to a 4 October 2026 Philippine Star column ⁷.
• Columnist Mary Ann LL. Reyes wrote on 4 October 2026 that NAIA already has biometric gates from NNIC and that the BI signed a separate ₱1.5 billion contract for more gates, and questioned the project's scope ⁷.
• Columnist Iris Gonzales wrote on 4 June 2026 that the cost recovery needed was far below the expected revenue, and reported criticism from OFW groups online ⁴.