Macau, Hong Kong Require Vaxx for Quarantine-Free Travel Between SARs

Macau and Hong Kong continue to wait on Beijing for permission to allow cross-border travel between the two Chinese Special Administrative Regions (SARs) without quarantine. When that happens, a leading government official in Macau said only those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will be immune from medical observations.

Macau Social Affairs and Culture Secretary Elsie Ao Ieong U provided insight into how the quarantine-free cross-border flow of people from nearby Hong Kong will work once allowed. She spoke at an event this week celebrating the 22nd anniversary of Macau being handed back to China from Portugal,

Ao noted that only people who have been deemed fully inoculated against the coronavirus will qualify to travel between Macau and Hong Kong without being required to undergo 14 days of medical observation. The secretary explained that fully vaccinated travelers will still need to undergo a nucleic acid test upon arrival at the Macau or Hong Kong border gate.

Since quarantines are currently imposed on all travelers regardless of vaccination status, the flow of people between the two SARs remains essentially nonexistent. Nearly 7.4 million people traveled to the casino hub from Hong Kong in 2019. That number tumbled to 843,165 in 2020.

Source: https://www.casino.org/news/macau-hong-kong-require-vaccination-quarantine-free-travel/