MANILA, Philippines -- Departing passengers will have to pay the P200 security fee at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) starting Thursday.

Exempted from the new airport charge are overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), infants below two years old, and airline flying crew, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) said in a statement on Wednesday.

Contrary to earlier reports, the airport authority will accept the dollar equivalent of the P200 security fee, also known as the Security Development Charge (SDC).

The security fee will be collected together with the P500 passenger terminal fee. Passengers will receive one receipt in the amount of P750, representing both the passenger and security fees.

The security fee will be collected for five years from which the airport authority is expected to earn P3.5 billion.

The MIAA said the SDC would be earmarked for its five-year Security Enhancement Program.

The money collected will also be used to improve the airport's existing security equipment, implement the K-9 program, upgrade security fences, and access control points, as well as upgrade surveillance cameras.

It will also shoulder "expenses for other safety and security related equipment and services."
The MIAA stressed that the purchase of high-tech equipment "will minimize contact between security personnel and passengers, thereby decreasing queuing time."

"We shall always have to strike a balance between security and passenger convenience, but with security still the primordial consideration. Nonetheless, we shall continue ... actions aimed at increasing our service levels to make traveling through our managed airports a pleasant, convenient, and safe experience for everyone," MIAA general manager Alfonso Cusi said in the statement.

Approved by the MIAA Board of Directors following public hearings, the security fee "shall be wholly spent for the program and shall be subject to the usual government accounting and auditing rules," Cusi added.