Exclusive | Coronavirus: Hong Kong to require passengers from ‘high-risk’ countries to test negative before flying as city records 38 new Covid-19 cases

Local health officials have classified Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and South Africa as high-risk due to their low testing rates

There are an estimated 5,000 Hongkongers in India alone now waiting for flights back to the city

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Hong Kong residents travelling from countries deemed high risk by local officials will now be required to produce a negative Covid-19 test before boarding their flights home. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Published: 5:06pm, 10 Jul 2020Updated: 7:22pm, 3 Aug 2020

Hong Kong will require thousands of air travellers flying from high-risk countries such as India and Pakistan to produce certificates showing they have tested negative for Covid-19 before they arrive, two sources have told the Post, as the city confirmed 38 new cases on Friday, with 32 local infections among them.

The planned air-travel restrictions come as the government is drafting tighter measures to weed out imported coronavirus patients amid a third wave of local infections, which is stretching hospital and quarantine facilities thin.

Friday’s numbers add to the 34 local cases reported on Thursday and 19 on Wednesday. The city’s overall tally now stands at 1,403 cases.

Speaking at a daily press briefing, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said she understood “the arrangement for high-risk travellers going back to Hong Kong is being discussed but has not yet been implemented”.

There are an estimated 5,000 Hongkongers in India alone, representing the vast majority of residents waiting for a flight back to the city. Separately, an estimated 12,000 domestic helpers and 10,000 overseas university students are expected to add to that number.

The Hong Kong government on Tuesday said it would begin talks with the consulates of countries it deemed high-risk. Health officials have classified Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and South Africa as high-risk due to their low testing rates.

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.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Exclusive | Coronavirus: Hong Kong to require passengers from ‘high-risk’ countries to test negative before flying as city records 38 new Covid-19 cases

Exclusive | Coronavirus: Hong Kong to require passengers from ‘high-risk’ countries to test negative before flying as city records 38 new Covid-19 cases