With effect from the stroke of midnight on Thursday (June 2), people intending to travel to Macau from neighbouring Guangdong province, in mainland China, must hold a nucleic acid test certificate issued within seven days proving they are ‘negative’ for Covid-19 infection. That is a relaxation from the previously-maintained 72 hours.
The updated rule applies to travellers to Macau from Guangdong via any land or marine checkpoints, according to a Wednesday announcement by Macau’s Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre.
The statement said the decision took into consideration “the epidemic situation in neighbouring areas,” and followed an “agreement reached” via a cross-border liaison system known as the “Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism between Zhuhai and Macau”.
Mainland China is the only place to have a mostly quarantine-free travel bubble with Macau. Guangdong is the largest-single source of mainland tourists to Macau.
The latest easing of the test requirement comes on the heels of a Monday meeting between Macau’s Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng, and officials from Zhuhai. Mr Ho had said at the meeting that he expected a further relaxation of the rules regarding the test validity for inbound travellers from Guangdong.
Since April 20, people travelling to Macau from Guangdong had to hold a Covid-19 test certificate issued within 72 hours. The rules had been tightened in mid-March, coinciding with an uptick of Covid-19 infections in mainland China.
