GGRAsia – Macau says non-mainland arrivals no longer need quarantine

Macau says non-mainland arrivals no longer need quarantine

Dec 23, 2022 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck

Starting today (December 23), people arriving in Macau either from overseas, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, will no longer need to undergo any type of quarantine. That is according to an update from the city’s Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre, published yesterday (Thursday, December 22).

The measure covers those living in Macau, whether Macau ID holders or non-holders of Macau ID. It also covers visitors.

Inbound travellers will still have to undergo five days of so-called “self-management” of their health.

Under the new inbound arrangements, people intending to enter Macau either from overseas, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, must hold a nucleic acid test certificate issued within 72 hours proving they are ‘negative’ for Covid-19 infection. On arrival, travellers will no longer need to undertake a fresh nucleic acid test.

During the five-day period of “self-management” of their health, the inbound traveller’s electronic health code will be ‘yellow’, meaning they cannot enter certain places including government offices. Previously, people arriving to Macau from either overseas, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, were assigned a ‘red’ health code, meaning they had to undergo some sort of quarantine.

Restaurants and leisure facilities – which is understood to include casinos – can decide whether they allow inside their premises any guests with a ‘yellow’ health code.

The inbound travellers will be required to do a rapid antigen test daily, during the five-day period of “self-management” of their health. Provided the five-day period has been completed with ‘negative’ results each day, the individual’s health code will turn ‘green’ and they will be able to move freely inside Macau, stated the local health authorities.

People arriving in Macau from either overseas, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, will however, not be allowed to travel to mainland China during the first eight days of their stay in Macau, according to the city’s Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre. But these travellers will be able to leave Macau at any time, if travelling either to Hong Kong, Taiwan, or overseas.

The Macau authorities had eased quarantine requirements for inbound travellers with effect from December 17. At the time, it was announced that people arriving in Macau either from overseas, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, would only need to carry out a five-day isolation period at home, instead of a mandatory quarantine at a designated hotel. Now, even the home isolation has been scrapped.

Earlier this week, Macau cancelled all inbound quarantine requirements that had been applied to travellers from certain parts of mainland China previously deemed as “high risk” for Covid-19 transmission. The city’s Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre stated in a Monday announcement that everyone arriving in Macau via the mainland would only need to show a ‘negative’ nucleic acid test result from a test conducted within the prior 72 hours, versus 48 hours previously.

The latest easing in Covid-19-related travel restrictions coincides with the local government relaxing to some extent its pandemic countermeasures, as Macau enters a “new phase” in its approach to dealing with the pandemic, according to local officials. The city is currently facing its largest Covid-19 outbreak since the start of the pandemic in 2020, which is impacting the operations of some businesses locally.