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The October 5, 2026 “rest day” at Manila ports is a go, after the original September 28 date was earlier postponed
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Organizers, including the Practicing Customs Brokers Association of the Philippines Inc, say foreign shipping lines have refused to accept empty containers for up to a month, forcing them to pile up at truckers’ garages and private CY-depots
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Participation is voluntary and open to all affected stakeholders, with brokers and truckers asked to hold off on gate passes, booking, and truck manifests
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Action follows a September 23 forum where truckers and brokers first urged a transport strike over worsening port congestion
The planned “rest day” at Manila ports is confirmed and set to push through starting October 5, 2026, Monday, onward, after organizers earlier postponed the action from its original September 28 date, according to a notice issued by Reynaldo Soliman, chairperson of the Practicing Customs Brokers Association of the Philippines Inc. (PCBAPI).
In the notice, Soliman said Customs Brokers, Port Truckers, and Alliance members want to continue rendering services for the economy but are being constrained by foreign shipping lines that have refused to accept the return of empty containers for up to a month. “We are only at our office, home, garage, or and vacation,” the notice stated, describing where participating members will be during the action.
Voluntary, open call across the industry
The notice framed the action as a voluntary call open to all practicing licensed customs brokers, truckers, importers, logistics companies, and other affected stakeholders, regardless of organizational affiliation, to signify their discontentment with the business practices of foreign shipping lines and the International Container Terminal Services Inc.
Under the guidance issued, customs brokers may, at their own discretion, continue lodging goods declarations to avoid the 15-day abandonment period, but were advised against generating gate passes, booking, or issuing truck manifests, or to hold off on releasing shipments, since empty containers accepted now would otherwise sit for two weeks to a month without being returned.
Truckers, likewise acting voluntarily, were advised not to accept gate passes from customs brokers or other sources, and not to book, issue truck manifests, or render hauling services, since empty containers they are already holding cannot be returned either.
The notice also carried a direct appeal to foreign shipping lines to “vacate your empty containers now, bring it home to the origin,” noting that thousands of empty containers remain stranded on trucks, in garages, and at private CY-depots. Soliman said providing adequate CY-depot capacity for shipping lines’ own empty containers is a “business, social, and moral obligation and responsibility” that should not be neglected.
From postponement to confirmed action
The October 5 date now stands confirmed after an earlier reschedule. The action was originally set for September 28, following a September 23 forum at Club Intramuros where port truckers, customs brokers, importers, and logistics companies first urged the industry to join a nationwide transport strike over worsening port congestion, delays in returning empty containers, and related concerns. That forum was led by Mary Zapata, president of the Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines, and Soliman, representing PCBAPI.
The September 28 date was subsequently pushed back to October 5 to give importers and brokers more time to finish pending transactions and release shipments ahead of the action, according to an earlier advisory from Customs Brokers, Port Truckers, and Alliance. With that extension now elapsed, organizers have confirmed the rest day will proceed as rescheduled.
The Bureau of Customs has said it is targeting the signing of a Joint Administrative Order addressing port congestion within September.
