Hong Kong is opening up the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge (HZMB) to a wider pool of private motorists, in the most significant change to its cross‑boundary car quota system with Macao since the bridge opened in 2018. The news appeared in multiple media outlets.
From 7 to 20 May, Hong Kong’s Transport Department will accept online applications for 1,400 three‑year permits for non‑commercial Hong Kong private cars to access Macao via the HZMB. The batch comprises 900 newly created permits agreed with the Macao government and 500 reallocated from permits due to expire. For the first time, 400 of these will fall under a new “open” or public category that drops long‑standing requirements to show employment, investment or business ties in Macao.
Any Hong Kong permanent resident or locally registered firm may apply for the latter, subject only to general requirements such as owning a Hong Kong private car and securing Macao insurance. Each person or company can hold just one permit, and those who already obtained them in recent rounds are excluded from this ballot.
[See more: Car journeys to mainland China via the HZMB are booming]
Successful applicants, to be chosen by lottery, can start driving into Macao’s urban area via the bridge as early as 13 July, with permits valid until July 2029 and allowing multiple round trips.
Officials say the reforms are meant to “make better use of the HZMB’s carrying capacity” and improve travel experiences as cross‑boundary flows ramp up. The new public quotas are explicitly framed as a way to facilitate driving to Macao “for work, business, visiting families or sight‑seeing,” signalling an expectation that self‑drive trips will become a more normal part of everyday life in the Greater Bay Area rather than a niche reserved for those with cross‑border corporate structures.
Early reaction suggests demand will be intense. Previous business‑linked quota rounds were heavily oversubscribed, and travel consultancies expect even higher interest now that any permanent resident or locally registered company can apply.
