Call to raise 1,000-per-day Shenzhen quarantine quota for Hong Kong travellers so businesses can benefit from Beijing’s newly eased Covid rules
- Beijing’s new policy allows inbound travellers to serve five days of hotel quarantine – down from a week – and three in home isolation
- Those crossing over from Hong Kong are still subject to a daily quota in Shenzhen
Hong Kong businesses could reap the benefits of Beijing’s latest easing of Covid-19 arrival curbs if the Shenzhen quarantine quota for cross-border travellers from the financial hub is raised from the current 1,000, according to a government adviser.
Executive councillor Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung pushed for an alignment in policies on Saturday after mainland China cut its week-long hotel quarantine for inbound travellers to five days. Lam and others also urged authorities to allow business owners and those needing to visit their families across the border to travel under a “closed-loop bubble” arrangement without isolation.
Under the latest rule changes unveiled by the National Health Commission on Friday, incoming visitors will serve five days of hotel quarantine followed by three in home isolation according to a “5+3” model, applicable also to those from Hong Kong.
Businesspeople and sports groups regarded as “important” by authorities will be allowed to conduct their activities in a quarantine-free “management zone”.
“The new ‘5+3’ arrangement on the mainland will definitely help stimulate Hong Kong’s economic recovery. It provides convenience for Hong Kong travellers to visit the mainland while attracting mainland tourists to come to the city,” Lam told a radio programme.