Mainland authorities to start issuing tourist and business visas to allow Chinese nationals to enter Hong Kong starting from January 8
- National Immigration Administration also says it will gradually resume land border checkpoints with Hong Kong and Macau, as well as its express immigration channels
- Hong Kong will have to discuss with the mainland side how the reopening is to be done, insider says
Mainland authorities will start issuing tourist and business visas to allow Chinese nationals to enter Hong Kong starting on January 8, while sources have said the city is set to minimise polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing requirements for inbound travellers.
China’s National Immigration Administration on Tuesday said it would also gradually resume land border checkpoints with Hong Kong and Macau, as well as its express immigration channels.
The current 3,500-quota system for Hongkongers heading to the mainland would go “offline” on the same day, in what a Hong Kong government source said was preparation for a gradual border reopening.
“How [gradual reopening] is to be done is something we need to discuss with the mainland side,” the source said.
Health experts and politicians in Hong Kong called on the authorities to review their overall anti-pandemic policies, with some arguing that the city should follow Beijing’s relaxation, while others feared a spike in Covid-19 cases would spill over to the city.
A day after Beijing announced its plan to scrap mandatory quarantine and reopen the borders, the Post learned that Hong Kong would adjust its PCR testing requirement for all arrivals before the end of the year to minimise discrepancies between entry procedures for mainlanders and other travellers.