HK-Macau travel bubble to go ahead once cases reach zero

Chief executive Ho Iat Seng said it is not possible to relax border restrictions yet.

Macau.- The city’s chief executive, Ho Iat Seng, has clarified that the travel bubble between Macau and Hong Kong will not be possible while Hong Kong is still reporting Covid-19 cases.

Macau currently demands people coming from Hong Kong undergo a 14-day quarantine. The measure will not be lifted until the Administrative Region registers no local infections for 14 consecutive days, which means it can be qualified as a “low-risk” region, according to Chinese Covid-19 protocols.

Visitors have to complete the quarantine at a venue designated by the Macau government and present a certificate of a negative Covid-19 test result.

Mr. Ho said: “We really want to welcome back [arrivals from] Hong Kong, which is just one bridge away. Their [Hong Kong’s] situation poses risk to us. If we resume travel ties with them now, how are we to deal with mainland China?”

Macau’s leader referred to the risk that imports of Covid-19 from Hong Kong could represent for the near-universal quarantine-free travel bubble Macau has with mainland China.

Mr Ho added: “We hope that Hong Kong can… reach zero local Covid-19 infection cases [for 14 consecutive days], which would get them qualified by the country [China] as a low-risk place. Then we will have conditions to welcome back Hong Kong travellers, requiring them only to present a Covid-19 test result.”