Terminal Fee Refund for OFWs

Last updated

The ₱950 international terminal fee at NAIA is already included in your ticket when you buy it. OFWs are exempt, but the exemption works as a refund: you pay it with the fare, then claim it back after you fly.

The short version

Two things to do before you fly, both easy to forget:

  1. Check your ticket receipt for a line marked LI International, which is the terminal fee, and save a copy.
  2. Keep your boarding pass after you land. It does not need a stamp.

What the fee is

The terminal fee is officially the Passenger Service Charge, or PSC. On international flights it is the International Passenger Service Charge, the IPSC you see on refund forms. At NAIA, New NAIA Infra Corp collects it. They run the airport, and they put the fee inside your airline ticket when you buy it, so you never pay it at a counter.

Because the airline collects it when you book, you cannot use the exemption at the airport. You pay it with the fare, then ask for it back.

This is the opposite of travel tax, where the OFW exemption is automatic and you never pay at all. The two fees work in different ways, which is why people expect this one to be automatic too.

How much you get back

Ticket boughtRefund
From 14 September 2025₱950
Before 14 September 2025₱550

The rate follows the date you bought the ticket, not the date you fly.

The exemption applies to international departures only. On a domestic flight you pay the charge like any other passenger, so there is nothing to claim on a Manila to Cebu flight.

Find the LI International line on your receipt

Your claim has to show that you actually paid the charge. On the ticket, itinerary receipt, official receipt or invoice, look for the code LI International. That is the IATA code the airline uses when it collects the terminal fee.

If there is no LI International line on your receipt, the airline did not collect the charge through your ticket, and there is nothing to refund.

What to prepare

Everything goes in as PDF. Scan or photograph each item clearly, because blurry documents are the usual reason a claim gets stuck.

  • Proof you paid. Your ticket, itinerary receipt, official receipt or invoice, showing the LI International line.
  • A copy of your OEC. This is what proves you are exempt.
  • Your boarding pass, scanned. An immigration stamp is not required. If you went through the e-gates, which OFWs can use, nobody stamps anything, and the pass works as is.
  • A valid government-issued ID with your photo.
  • The NNIC PSC Refund Declaration, filled in and signed.

IPSC Refund Declaration form

The declaration asks for your name, your OEC number, the official receipt, your flight number and your departure date. One form covers up to five passengers, so a family travelling together only needs one.

Lost the boarding pass? There is another way. Send your passport pages showing who you are and the date you left, together with a certificate from the airline confirming your departure date. It is more work than just keeping the stub.

If someone else is making the claim for you, or a company paid for the ticket, you also need a Special Power of Attorney, or the equivalent letter from the company. Claiming for yourself, you do not need this.

Where to send it

Email the complete set, all in PDF, to pscrefund@newnaia.com.

Email pscrefund@newnaia.com

Send everything at once. If anything is missing, your claim just waits until you send the rest, so it is faster to gather everything before you email.

There is no counter to visit. Since 1 March 2026 the whole refund is done online, and NNIC processes claims on weekdays between 8am and 5pm.

What happens next

New NAIA Infra Corp checks the claim and either approves it or comes back to you. They email you once they are done.

Help keep this guide accurate

Spot something out of date or off?

Better NAIA is maintained by a small volunteer team. If you've travelled recently and noticed a price, schedule, or route that no longer matches reality (or you want to contribute a guide of your own), please write in.