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Quarantine Reduced to 7 Days for Vaccinated Arrivals to Hong Kong

The Government announced today (21 June) that the quarantine requirements for persons arriving at Hong Kong who have received COVID-19 vaccination will be adjusted in phases from 30 June. Except for those who had stayed in extremely high-risk or very high-risk places (Group A1 and A2 specified places), fully vaccinated persons with a positive result of serology testing for antibodies will be subject to a further shortened compulsory quarantine period of seven days upon arrival.

Non-Hong Kong Residents

Additionally, the restriction from entry to Hong Kong will be relaxed for fully vaccinated non-Hong Kong residents who have a vaccination record and who have only stayed in Group B specified places, Group C specified places or Taiwan to enter Hong Kong.

Such non-Hong Kong residents have to comply with the same quarantine and nucleic acid testing requirements as those applicable to Hong Kong residents, including a seven-day shortened compulsory quarantine period for those who possess positive result proof of a recognised serology antibody test conducted within the past three months.

Fully Vaccinated

Fully vaccinated means complying with these three criteria

Fully vaccinated with a vaccination record (14 days after second dose);
Obtained a negative nucleic acid test result during “test-and-hold” upon arrival at Hong Kong; and
Possess positive result proof of a recognised serology antibody test conducted within the past three months (Note 2).

Overseas places outside China have been categorised under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances and Travellers) Regulation (Cap. 599H) into extremely high-risk Group A1 specified places, very high-risk Group A2 specified places, high-risk Group B specified places, medium-risk Group C specified places, and low-risk Group D specified places.

Low-risk Group D

Under the new arrangements, persons who have stayed in low-risk Group D specified places, and who have been fully vaccinated, will be subject to compulsory quarantine in designated quarantine hotels for seven days (14 days unvaccinated). They will subsequently be required to self-monitor for seven days and undergo compulsory testing on the 12th day of their arrival at Hong Kong.

Group D: Australia, New Zealand

Medium-risk Group C, High-risk Group B

For persons who have stayed in medium-risk Group C specified places and high-risk Group B specified places, and who have been fully vaccinated, they will be subject to compulsory quarantine in designated quarantine hotels for 7 days vaccinated, 14 days unvaccinated, and subsequently, be required to self-monitor for seven days and undergo compulsory testing on the 16th and 19th day of their arrival at Hong Kong.

Group B: Argentina, Bangladesh, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Vietnam

Group C: All places except China which are not Group A1, Group A2, Group B or Group D specified places *China means the Mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan

Extremely High-risk Group A1, Very High-risk Group A2

As for extremely high-risk Group A1 specified places and very high-risk Group A2 specified places, the boarding, quarantine, and testing arrangements will remain unchanged.

Groups A1, A2: Brazil, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, South Africa, Ireland, Indonesia

Details on the grouping of specified places and their respective boarding and compulsory quarantine requirements can be found at www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/high-risk-places.html.

Two Extra Hotels Added to Fourth Cycle Quarantine Hotels

On the 3 June the HK Government, to help with increased demand, added two extra hotels to the list of designated Hong Kong quarantine hotels for the period 22 June – 20 August 2021 (fourth cycle) taking the total available to 33.

The two new hotels are Crowne Plaza Hong Kong Causeway Bay and Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel and Towers.

The list of designated hotels in the fourth cycle and related details such as room rates have been uploaded to www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/designated-hotel.html

Or download the pdf here

There is an excellent google docs form here about the various hotels including room prices, contact details, restrictions,

Central and Western District
1. Best Western Plus Hotel Hong Kong
2. CM+ Hotels & Serviced Apartments
3. Grand City Hotel
4. JEN Hong Kong by Shangri-La
5. Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Kau U Fong
6. One-Eight-One Hotel & Serviced Residences
7. Ramada Hong Kong Harbour View
8. The Landmark Mandarin Oriental

Hong Kong Eastern District
1. Ramada Hong Kong Grand View

Islands District
1. Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung
2. Regal Airport Hotel

Kowloon City District
1. Bridal Tea House Hotel Hung Hom Gillies Avenue South
2. iclub Ma Tau Wai Hotel
3. Kerry Hotel, Hong Kong
4. Metropark Hotel Kowloon Hong Kong
5. Regal Oriental Hotel

Kwai Tsing District
1. Dorsett Tsuen Wan

Hong Kong Southern District
1. Nina Hotel Island South (Formerly L’hotel Island South)
2. Ovolo Southside

Tsuen Wan District
1. Silka Far East Hotel Hong Kong

Wan Chai District
1. Best Western Hotel Causeway Bay
2. Dorsett Wanchai Hong Kong
3. Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island
4. Mira Moon Hotel
5. Vela Boutique Hotel
6. Eco Tree Hotel Causeway Bay
7. Crowne Plaza Hong Kong Causeway Bay

Wong Tai Sin District
1. Pentahotel Hong Kong

Kowloon Yau Tsim Mong District
1. Bridal Tea House Hotel Yau Ma Tei Wing Sing Lane
2. Dorsett Mongkok Hong Kong
3. Ramada Hong Kong Grand
4. Silka Seaview Hotel Hong Kong
5. Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel and Towers

New Quarantine Hotel List Announced: 22 June – 20 August, 2021

An updated list of 31 designated Hong Kong quarantine hotels for the period 22 June – 20 August 2021 (fourth cycle) has been released.

The list of designated hotels in the fourth cycle and related details such as room rates have been uploaded to www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/designated-hotel.html

Or download the pdf here

There is an excellent google docs form here about the various hotels including room prices, contact details, restrictions,

Hong Kong Eastern District
1. Ramada Hong Kong Grand View

Islands District
1. Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung
2. Regal Airport Hotel

Kowloon City District
1. Bridal Tea House Hotel Hung Hom Gillies Avenue South
2. iclub Ma Tau Wai Hotel
3. Kerry Hotel, Hong Kong
4. Metropark Hotel Kowloon Hong Kong
5. Regal Oriental Hotel

Kwai Tsing District
1. Dorsett Tsuen Wan

Hong Kong Southern District
1. Nina Hotel Island South (Formerly L’hotel Island South)
2. Ovolo Southside

Tsuen Wan District
1. Silka Far East Hotel Hong Kong

Wan Chai District
1. Best Western Hotel Causeway Bay
2. Dorsett Wanchai Hong Kong
3. Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island
4. Mira Moon Hotel
5. Vela Boutique Hotel
6. Eco Tree Hotel Causeway Bay

Wong Tai Sin District
1. Pentahotel Hong Kong

Kowloon Yau Tsim Mong District
1. Bridal Tea House Hotel Yau Ma Tei Wing Sing Lane
2. Dorsett Mongkok Hong Kong
3. Ramada Hong Kong Grand
4. Silka Seaview Hotel Hong Kong

Boarding and Quarantine Arrangements for Persons Arriving in Hong Kong

Adjusted boarding, quarantine and testing arrangements for persons arriving in Hong Kong (including Hong Kong residents) will apply from 12 May for those who have completed their COVID-19 vaccination course.

Low-risk Group D

Under the new arrangements, persons who have stayed in low-risk Group D specified places, and who have been fully vaccinated, will be subject to compulsory quarantine in designated quarantine hotels for seven days (originally 14 days). They will subsequently be required to self-monitor for seven days and undergo compulsory testing on the 12th day of their arrival at Hong Kong.

Medium-risk Group C, High-risk Group B

For persons who have stayed in medium-risk Group C specified places and high-risk Group B specified places, and who have been fully vaccinated, they will be subject to compulsory quarantine in designated quarantine hotels for 14 days (originally 21 days), and subsequently, be required to self-monitor for seven days and undergo compulsory testing on the 16th and 19th day of their arrival at Hong Kong.

Extremely High-risk Group A1, Very High-risk Group A2

As for extremely high-risk Group A1 specified places and very high-risk Group A2 specified places, the boarding, quarantine, and testing arrangements will remain unchanged.

For persons who have stayed in Group A1 specified places Brazil, India, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and South Africa) for more than two hours, they WILL NOT be allowed to board any passenger flight for Hong Kong.

For very high-risk Group A2 specified places, the relevant persons will be subject to compulsory quarantine in designated quarantine hotels for 21 days (with the number of tests to be conducted during the period increased to at least four times), subsequent seven-day self-monitoring, and compulsory testing on the 26th day of their arrival at Hong Kong. The shortened quarantine period for fully vaccinated persons will not be applicable.

Persons arriving from China (the Mainland, Macau and Taiwan) who did not return under the Return2hk Scheme. The compulsory quarantine period for relevant fully vaccinated persons, whether arriving at Hong Kong via land boundary control points or the airport, will also be shortened from 14 days to seven days, with a subsequent seven-day self-monitoring period and compulsory testing on the 12th day of arrival at Hong Kong.

Fully vaccinated means persons who have received the necessary doses as stipulated in guidelines of a COVID-19 vaccination course 14 days prior to their arrival at Hong Kong.

Details on the grouping of specified places and their respective boarding and compulsory quarantine requirements can be found at www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/high-risk-places.html.

Updated Quarantine Requirements for Vaccinated Close Contacts

The Government today (7 May) announced updated quarantine requirements for vaccinated close contacts of locally acquired COVID-19 cases.

Close Contacts of Locally Acquired Cases Who Do NOT Have a Mutant Strain

The duration of compulsory quarantine is shortened to seven days of quarantine in a Quarantine Centre, counting from the last day of exposure to the confirmed case (the day of last exposure is regarded as Day 0), provided the following three criteria have been satisfied:

(a) documented proof of completion of two doses of CoronaVac or BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines, and that 14 days have passed from the date of receiving the second dose#; and

(b) results of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of the respiratory specimens taken on Day 0 or Day 1 after admission to a QC being negative; and

(c) positive immunoglobulin G (IgG) or total antibody against SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, or positive surrogate neutralising antibody, taken after admission to a QC.

After completing the seven-day quarantine, the close contact will be subject to seven days of self-monitoring, and to compulsory testing at a community testing centre (CTC) on Day 12.

Close Contacts of Locally Acquired N501Y Mutant Strain

The duration of quarantine in a QC is shortened from 21 days to 14 days, counting from the last day of exposure to the confirmed case, provided the following three criteria have been satisfied:

(a) documented proof of completion of two doses of CoronaVac or BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines, and that 14 days have passed from the date of receiving the second dose#; and

(b) results of PCR testing of the respiratory specimens taken on Day 0 or Day 1 after admission to a QC, and those taken on Day 7 and Day 12 after last exposure to the confirmed case, being all negative; and

(c) positive IgG or total antibody against SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, or positive surrogate neutralising antibody, taken after admission to a QC.

After completing the fourteen-day quarantine, the close contact will be subject to seven days of self-monitoring, and to compulsory testing at a community testing centre (CTC) on Day 19.

# Persons Regarded as Satisfying Criteria (a):

1) close contacts who had documented past infection of COVID-19 within nine months after discharge; or

2) close contacts who had documented past infection of COVID-19 more than nine months after discharge plus one dose of CoronaVac or BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, and for whom 14 days have passed from the date of receiving the dose.

Updated Boarding and Quarantine Arrangements for Persons Arriving at Hong Kong

The HK Government announced today (May 4) the continued suspension of passenger flights from India, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines, and the continued restriction on persons who have stayed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Brazil, and South Africa from boarding flights for Hong Kong.

The lifting of the ban on 7 May for persons who have stayed in Ireland and the United Kingdom on boarding for Hong Kong, to allow flights to resume, subject to the compulsory quarantine and testing arrangements upon arrival at Hong Kong.

The full press release can be read here

Details on the grouping of specified places and their respective boarding and compulsory quarantine requirements can be found at www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/high-risk-places.html.

Compulsory Test – 1 May, 2021

The Government announced, on 1 May, that under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Compulsory Testing for Certain Persons) Regulation (Cap. 599J) it has gazetted the following compulsory testing notice and specifications, which require any person who has been present at 26 specified premises during the specified period and foreign domestic helpers (persons subject to compulsory testing) to undergo a COVID-19 nucleic acid test before 14 May, 2021.

A spokesman for the Food and Health Bureau said, “As N501Y mutant strain is with high transmissibility, for prudence’s sake, the relevant persons who had been to the places patronised by the local cases with unknown sources of infection involving N501Y mutant strain are required to undergo three tests and all foreign domestic helpers are required to undergo testing to completely cut any possible transmission chain.”

In addition, since there were outbreaks of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) in 11 schools, and the symptoms of URTI are similar to those of COVID-19, for prudence’s sake, these 11 schools are also covered in the compulsory testing notice.

The list is massive, download from the HK Government website here

100% Personal Loan Guarantee Scheme

The 100% Personal Loan Guarantee Scheme (PLGS) introduced in the 2021-22 Budget, will start receiving applications from 28 April, 2021 for six months.

The PLGS offers a source of financing to unemployed individuals who are suffering hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic by providing low-interest loans.

The initial participating banks are Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, The Bank of East Asia, Limited, China CITIC Bank International Limited, China Construction Bank (Asia) Corporation Limited, Dah Sing Bank, Limited, Hang Seng Bank, Limited, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Limited, Shanghai Commercial Bank Limited, and Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited. Chiyu Banking Corporation Limited and ZA Bank Limited will start receiving applications in May.

Eligibility

Applicants have to be Hong Kong permanent residents aged 18 or above, who have been unemployed for at least two months at the time of loan application, and who can demonstrate cessation of main recurrent incomes from employment in Hong Kong.

Loan applicants need to provide proof of their previous employment and main recurrent incomes for at least three months during the period from January 2020 to February 2021 (“specified period”).

The maximum amount of the loan per applicant is six times the average monthly income within the specified period (Note 1), or HK$80,000, whichever is the lower.

The maximum repayment period is six years, with an option of principal moratorium for the first 12 months to alleviate the immediate repayment burden.

The effective interest rate is fixed at 1 per cent per annum. A borrower will receive a full refund of the interest paid after the loan is fully repaid at or by the end of the repayment period.

More information: PLGS Hotline at 2536 0392 or www.hkmc.com.hk/eng/our_business/plgs.html