China: Macau requiring negative COVID-19 tests to leave territory as of Aug. 4 /update 51

Event

Authorities in Macau have tightened travel and domestic controls after discovering several COVID-19 cases within the territory. As of Aug. 4, all individuals who leave Macau are required to produce a negative result from a nucleic acid COVID-19 test taken within 24 hours prior to departure. Officials have also quarantined the Meilin Building on Coelho do Amaral Road. Residents of the location and individuals with recent exposure to the site must remain in their homes; exceptions may be possible for essential reasons. Additional controls may be imposed at short notice if additional COVID-19 cases are discovered.

Travelers and residents must register their address or most frequented locations to receive a health code. Macau still requires COVID-19 testing for people attending social gatherings having more than 400 attendees. Facemasks remain mandatory in casinos, government offices, and on public transport. Thermal scanners are in place at all entry points into Macau, casinos, and many other businesses.

Travel Restrictions
Residents of mainland China, Macau, Hong Kong, and Taiwan can still enter the territory if they have not been to other locations in the previous 21 days. However, officials require entrants from mainland China to be in possession of a negative result from a COVID-19 taken within the previous 48 hours. Inbound passengers from medium- and high-risk areas of mainland China must quarantine for 14 days at designated hotels. As of early Aug. 4, the requirements are in place for travelers from the following locations:

• Liaoning Province: Rongle Community, Dadong District, Shenyang, and parts of Dalian

• Jiangsu Province: Nanjing, Yangzhou, and Xihu Community, Siyang County

• Sichuan Province: Factory Zone No. 1 in Fucheng District, Mianyang City, and parts of Chengdu

• Yunnan Province: Ruili City and Longchuan County, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture

• Hunan Province: Zhangjiajie, Changde, and parts of Changsha, Ningxiang, Zhuzhou, and Yibin

• Fujian Province: Xiamen

• Henan Province: Zhengzhou and parts of Shangqiu City

Similar controls will likely be imposed on additional medium and high-risk areas in mainland China. Arrivals from the designated areas must also participate in self-health management, which entails restricting travel to work or school, wearing a facemask in public, and twice-daily temperature checks, until the 14-day exposure period ends.

Officials require travelers from Taiwan to take a COVID-19 test within 24 hours of departure and quarantine for 21 days at a government-designated facility. Permitted arrivals from Hong Kong must provide a negative COVID-19 test result obtained within 24 hours of arrival, quarantine for 14 days, and undergo an additional seven days of self-health management. Affected people must receive a negative COVID-19 test result the day before the management period ends or depart Macau during the management period.

Returning citizens and permitted international travelers from international locations must take a COVID-19 test within 72 hours of departure, quarantine for 21 days at a designated location upon arrival, and undergo self-health management for seven more days. Officials can increase quarantine to 28 days if passengers return a positive serological test result. Passengers who have visited Brazil, India, Nepal, Pakistan, or the Philippines within the 28 days prior to arrival in Macau must present three negative PCR COVID-19 test results taken 24 hours apart within seven days of entry; the last test must take place within 72 hours of boarding flights. These travelers are subject to a 28-day quarantine in designated facilities. Authorities will extend quarantine to 35 days for individuals that have a positive serological test result. Travelers must pay quarantine fees; locals are exempt from the quarantine fee for their first entry but must pay for subsequent quarantine periods unless traveling for select purposes.

Officials have introduced a closed management system with Hong Kong for cargo crews. The program exempts shipping crew members from quarantine regulations if they undergo COVID-19 testing weekly, maintain adequate health standards, and refrain from disembarking in Hong Kong.

Transport between Macau and Hong Kong remains available only via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. Several airlines have suspended flights at Macau International Airport (MFM); further flight cancellations are possible amid low demand. Authorities have also canceled ferry services from Dongguan; ferry service disruptions from Shenzhen and Zhuhai are also possible.

Advice

Follow all official instructions. Consider postponing travel to Macau if impacted by travel restrictions. Allow additional time for immigration and health screenings. Delay travel if experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, as they may prompt increased scrutiny, immigration delays, or mandatory quarantine. Confirm reservations and business appointments.

Resources

Macau Health Bureau (Chinese and Portuguese)
Macau Higher Education Bureau