China said on Friday that cross-border travel between the mainland, hong kong And Macau Will resume fully from February 6, removing existing quota and eliminating mandatory COVID-19 test that was required prior to travel.
Group travel between China and its two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau will resume, while the number of customs checkpoints will return to pre-pandemic levels, China’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said in a statement on its website. Said.
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Even after China reopened its borders to the world on 8 January, a quota system and COVID testing requirements for travelers between the mainland and Hong Kong remained in place.
Hong Kong leader John Lee told a news conference on Friday that three border posts that have not yet reopened will open from February 6.
Lee said Hong Kong would also eliminate the need for a COVID vaccination to enter Hong Kong for all arrivals, including non-Hong Kong residents.
Searches on Chinese travel website Kunar for air tickets to and from Hong Kong and the mainland jumped sevenfold on Friday after China’s announcement, data from state media China Transportation News showed.
China’s announcement came a day after Hong Kong launched a promotional campaign including 500,000 free flights to bring visitors, businesses and investors back to the financial hub after more than three years of tough COVID restrictions.
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Hong Kong has been largely locked behind closed borders for the past three years to ward off COVID, with a three-week mandatory quarantine for incoming people as well as intensive testing and screening.
The former British colony closely followed China’s zero-COVID policy until mid-2022 when it began to gradually open up its regulations.
Hong Kong lifted most of its remaining COVID rules in December, but wearing masks is mandatory until exercising, and students must take daily rapid antigen tests.
(Reporting by Farah Master and Twinnie Siu in Hong Kong, Liz Li and Ethan Wang in Beijing; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Jamie Freed)