Macao and Guangdong residents should be able to visit Hong Kong without undergoing quarantine from next month.
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan announced that the “Come2HK Scheme” would be launched around the middle of May.
Chan made the surprise announcement in response to a question by Hong Kong Legislative Council (LegCo) member Holden Chow Ho-ding.
Chan also said that the Hong Kong government would maintain close communication with the relevant authorities in the mainland and Macao “to discuss the resumption of cross-boundary people flow among the three places in a gradual and orderly manner [with] regard to the latest [Covid-19] pandemic situation.”
The Macao government has yet to respond to Chan’s remarks, The Macau Post Daily reported. Currently, all eligible travellers visiting Macao from Hong Kong must undergo 14 days of quarantine at a Macao government-designated hotel followed by seven days of self-health management.
Travel between Hong Kong and Macao has practically ground to a standstill since early last year due to the two special administrative regions’ respective Covid-19 prevention and control measures. Ferry links between Hong Kong and Macao were halted in February 2020 and vehicular traffic across the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge has been restricted too.
As of today, Hong Kong’s tally of Covid-19 cases stood at 11,728 including 209 deaths, while Macao’s amounted to 49 with zero fatalities.
Travel restrictions between the mainland and Macao have been gradually eased over the past few months.
