The SUN HK : HK eases some rules for people arriving from abroad

By The SUN

Travelers will no longer have to show proof of accreditation for the lab that conducted the PCR test

From next month, Hong Kong will relax some of its pre-boarding requirements for inbound travelers, while fine-tuning its flight suspension mechanism for airlines that fail to ensure passengers' compliance with boarding requirements.

However, the government has stood pat on its decision to continue requiring all arriving passengers to show a negative result for a Covid-19 test and stay in a designated hotel for their seven-day quarantine.

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Also, flight suspensions will continue to be invoked unless the concerned airline is willing to pay a $20,000 penalty at the first offense within a 10- day period.

The new measures as set out in a government press release are the following:

1) (1) Inbound travelers need to show only a negative result for a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test conducted within 48 hours of their scheduled time of departure. They will no longer be required to present a documentary proof that the laboratory or healthcare institution is recognized by the authority or government where it is located

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2) (2) Children below three years old will no longer be required to present a negative result for a Covid test prior to boarding but will be tested on arrival in Hong Kong

3) (3) Travelers transferring or transiting in Hong Kong will no longer be asked to present a negative PCR test result

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4) (4) Recovered Covid patients will be allowed to present a negative result for a RAT, instead of a PCR test, given that viral genome particles in a recovered person’s body may still be detectable through PCR tests. However, the passenger in this case must present (a) a negative result in a RAT taken within 24 hours before departure; (b) documentary proof that they were infected with the coronavirus 14 to 90 days prior to boarding and have recovered;

5) (5) All inbound travelers must undergo PCR tests on the ninth and 12^th day of their arrival at a community testing centre. These will be apart from daily RAT tests during their seven-day hotel quarantine and the PCR test done on the 5^th day of their quarantine.

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As for the adjusted flight suspension rules, airlines that failed to ensure passengers complied with boarding conditions will be issued with a warning and ordered to pay $20,000 in penalty at the first instance within a 10-day period.

If the same flight triggers the suspension criterion again within 10 days, all passenger flights for that route will be prohibited from landing in Hong Kong for five days.