Common money scams in the Philippines, and what they cost you

Manila's airport is where the money side of a Philippines trip most often goes wrong, and the mechanism is always the same: someone approaches you inside the terminal with a fixed price, or a driver announces the meter is broken. The flat rate is typically a few times what the ride is worth. The defense is to ignore anyone who approaches you, walk out to the marshalled rank, or book Grab, where the fare is set in the app before you get in and the trip is tracked. Confirm out loud that the meter will run before the doors close, and if a driver refuses, get out and take the next one. The full picture is in the Philippines taxis and apps guide.

The extreme cases make the news precisely because they are extreme. One widely reported incident involved two visitors charged around 10,000 pesos, roughly 170 dollars, for a short hop between terminals, with the driver producing an official-looking laminated rate card that turned out to be fake. Treat that as what can happen at the far end rather than the going rate. The US State Department also advises asking a hotel or restaurant to call a taxi for you rather than flagging one down, and making a note of the plate number, which is a sensible habit anywhere.

Filipinos are genuinely, unusually welcoming, which is exactly what makes this one hard to spot and worth naming. The US State Department's advice is direct: be wary of unknown people who try to befriend you, especially just after you arrive in the country, and do not accept food, drinks or rides in private vehicles from strangers even when they seem legitimate. It notes that solo travelers have been drugged and robbed after accepting an invitation to visit a tourist spot. Locally the swindle-gang version is called budol-budol: a conversation, a second person joining in, a story, and cash or valuables changing hands.

There is no honest average figure here, because the losses range from a wallet to a bank withdrawal, so treat it as a habit rather than a price. The habit is small and costs nothing socially: decline invitations from people you did not seek out, especially in your first days and especially anything involving a private car or a drink. Hospitality you meet through a hotel, a tour operator or a restaurant is a completely different thing, and there is no reason to be guarded about it.

The State Department describes the exact mechanism worth guarding against: an illicit device attached to an ATM card reader that records the card details and PIN. Use machines inside bank branches rather than free-standing ones in convenience stores or malls, cover the keypad, and glance at the card slot for anything loose or bulky. Keep your card in sight when you pay, and turn on transaction alerts so a bad charge reaches your phone straight away. Philippine ATMs also charge their own withdrawal fee, so fewer, larger withdrawals cost less, which is covered in the Philippines cash and cards guide.

The everyday cost that is not a scam at all: when a card machine or ATM asks whether to charge you in US dollars or pesos, always choose pesos. Dollars uses a poor built-in rate that costs you a few percent on every transaction you accept it on, and it is legal, so nobody is going to warn you. Carry small bills too, for jeepneys, tricycles and market stalls, since the no-change problem is real and 1,000 peso notes are awkward.

You will read about tanim-bala (bullet planting), the Manila airport extortion scheme in which a bullet appeared in a passenger's bag at screening and a payment was demanded to make the problem go away. It was real: the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group recorded about 30 cases in 2015, up from 21 in 2013 and 12 in 2014, the national investigation bureau confirmed it existed, and criminal charges were filed against airport personnel over the case of an American traveler who refused to pay. It was a genuine documented episode, not a rumor, and it received a great deal of international coverage.

It is also not the state of play today. In 2016 the rules were changed so that a passenger found with ammunition is profiled and cleared rather than arrested, which removed the leverage the scheme depended on. Occasional incidents since have revived the worry, so it is worth knowing rather than dismissing. The cheap defense is simply wrapping your checked bag, available at the airport for around 160 pesos, roughly 3 dollars, and keeping your bags closed and in sight before they go to the belt. Treat this as a known airport story to be aware of, not something to expect.

Almost everything here costs tens of dollars at most and is avoided by the same few habits: book Grab or take the marshalled rank, insist on the meter, decline food, drinks and rides from new acquaintances, use bank-lobby ATMs, and always choose pesos. The ones worth active care, because they can reach real money, are card skimming and the friendly-stranger swindle, so guard your card details and be a little reserved in your first few days.

Handled calmly, none of this should shape your trip, and the Philippines rewards openness more than most places. For getting and spending money well while you are there, see the Philippines cash and cards guide and the Philippines cost guide.

Common questions

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