Vietnamese community leaders are pushing for a more streamlined visa process that would make it easier for their compatriots to travel to and work in Macao, TDM reports. About 8,000 non-resident workers currently hail from Vietnam, making their community the second largest group of foreign non-resident workers in Macao. Almost half of them are employed as domestic helpers.
Speaking at a recent event celebrating the Southeast Asian country’s National Day, president of the Overseas Vietnamese Association in Macao Duong Tung Duc noted that the SAR’s Vietnamese community was just over half the size it was in 2019, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Duong said that it took around two months for Vietnamese citizens to get a Macao entry visa, which was a barrier for many who wanted to return to the city for jobs, come here to study, or to visit as tourists.
[See more: The Vietnamese: Inside Macao’s second biggest foreign community]
The country’s new consul general for Hong Kong and Macao, Le Duc Hanh, told TDM she was working to shorten the application process. She said she believed it would benefit both Vietnamese people and Macao, especially the tourism sector.
The first wave of Vietnamese migrants to Macao arrived 1975, as refugees during the country’s drawn-out war with the US. The second wave started after Macao’s 1999 handover and were primarily economic migrants.
The SAR’s Vietnamese community celebrated Vietnam’s 79th National Day anniversary on Sunday. More than 400 guests gathered at the Grand Plaza to mark the occasion. This year also marks the 74th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Vietnam.
