Vice President Sara Duterte on Thursday said her overseas travel plans have been cancelled — at least for now — after Malacañang issued her travel authority only at the last minute, raising uncertainty over whether she would actually be allowed to depart.
In a letter dated 23 April 2026 and posted on the official Facebook page of the Office of the Vice President, Duterte addressed the Office of the President directly, thanking it for issuing the clearance while making clear she considered the timing inadequate.
“Thank you for the last-minute issuance of the travel authority. I regret to inform you that the plans have since changed due to uncertainty as to whether I will be permitted to depart,” the Vice President wrote.
Duterte issued the letter a day after the Palace granted her authority to travel from April 23 to May 15 to five countries — the Netherlands, South Korea, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom — in the midst of ongoing impeachment proceedings against her.
Duterte said she would be submitting a new travel request, and called on the Palace to process future applications with more lead time. “You will be receiving a new request soon. Please ensure that the necessary documents be processed and issued promptly, allowing sufficient time for travel preparations rather than only a few hours before the intended departure,” she wrote.
She also raised concerns about the handling of the document itself. “Ensuring the confidentiality and proper handling of sensitive documents would greatly contribute to maintaining effective security arrangements,” she added — an apparent reference to how the original travel authority had circulated online before she had received it through official channels.
A copy of the travel authority surfaced online on the same day the House justice committee was holding its hearings on the impeachment complaints against her.
The Vice President did not attend Wednesday’s hearing. The complaints include allegations of misuse of confidential government funds and failure to fully disclose assets in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth.
The day’s proceedings proved damaging. The Anti-Money Laundering Council told the committee that bank accounts linked to Duterte and her husband Manases Carpio were repeatedly flagged for suspicious and covered transactions from 2006 to 2025, totalling PHP 6.77 billion. Her declared net worth climbed from PHP 55.6 million in 2019 to PHP 88.5 million last year, yet for those six years she reported having no cash on hand and no bank deposits.
Some of Duterte’s most recent overseas trips have been to the Netherlands, where her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, has been detained since March last year on charges being heard by the International Criminal Court at The Hague. The Netherlands was among the five destinations listed in the now-shelved travel authority.
The Vice President closed her letter with: “God save the Philippines.”
Her office has not indicated when the new travel request will be submitted.
