Online booking for departure special nucleic acid testing service at Shenzhen Bay Control Point to be available starting tomorrow
***************************************************************
The Government announced today (July 13) that, starting from July 15, outbound travellers crossing the boundary via the Shenzhen Bay Port are required to present proof of booking confirmation for undergoing the special nucleic acid test. The Government will launch an online booking system for the special nucleic acid test service at the Shenzhen Bay Port at 0.00am tomorrow (July 14), i.e. midnight tonight, so as to facilitate planning of journeys by travellers choosing to cross the boundary through the control point.
Travellers planning to travel to the Mainland via the Shenzhen Bay Control Point on or after July 15 must first obtain a reservation at a Shenzhen quarantine hotel, and then reserve a time slot through the online booking system for receiving the special nucleic acid test on the day of departure. They are required to input their name, identification document number and reservation number of the Shenzhen quarantine hotel when making the booking online. Travellers can reserve time slots for undergoing the special nucleic acid test in the coming seven days through the booking system.
On the day of crossing the boundary, travellers should arrive at the Shenzhen Bay Control Point during the time slot as reserved. They can only undergo the special nucleic acid test upon presentation of the SMS or a screen capture of the booking confirmation to the staff on-site. Those who fail to present the booking confirmation of the special nucleic acid test or fail to arrive at the control point during the reserved time slot will not be able to continue with their journey across the boundary should they eventually not be able to undergo the test at the control point. Details are available on the webpage on the outbound special nucleic acid test.
A Government spokesman said, "The relevant arrangement will help ensure that the special nucleic acid testing service can be provided in an orderly manner at the Shenzhen Bay Control Point so as to alleviate the prolonged waiting of travellers at the control point and refine the crowd control arrangement for the cross-boundary passenger flow. Planning the journeys according to the reserved time slots will save the travellers from unnecessary waiting."
The current operating hours of the Shenzhen Bay Control Point for passenger clearance are 9am to 8pm daily. To further assist travellers, the provision of the free special nucleic acid testing service will be advanced to start half an hour earlier from July 15, meaning travellers can undergo testing from 7.30am to 6.30pm.
The Government spokesman also reminded travellers that the result of the special nucleic acid testing arrangement cannot replace the proof of a negative result of any self-paid nucleic acid test currently required by relevant authorities of the Mainland or Macao. Relevant travellers are still subject to the quarantine and testing arrangements of their destinations. They should take note of the latest requirements of the Mainland and Macao authorities, and make necessary preparations to ensure compliance with the relevant requirements (such as holding negative nucleic acid test result proof issued within 24 hours by a testing institution recognised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government), in order to avoid running into difficulties when entering the Mainland or Macao. The relevant persons can choose to make a booking for undergoing the self-paid nucleic acid test at Hong Kong's Community Testing Centres through the same online testing booking system at the same time, so that they can secure the required negative result proof of a self-paid nucleic acid test before they head to the control point. In other words, travellers who opt to undergo a self-paid test at a Community Testing Centre can reserve both the self-paid nucleic acid test at a Community Testing Centre and the free special rapid nucleic acid test at the Shenzhen Bay Control Point through the same booking system.
The Government will keep closely monitoring the passenger flow at the Shenzhen Bay Control Point in order to minimise the inconvenience to the travellers as far as possible, while ensuring that the exportation of cases can continue to be prevented.
To prevent the exportation of local cases and support the Mainland's anti-epidemic efforts, the Government implemented a special testing arrangement starting from March this year, requiring travellers departing for the Mainland to undergo an additional free rapid nucleic acid test prior to their departure to the Mainland via land boundary control points. Only those who have received a negative result can continue their journeys.
Ends/Wednesday, July 13, 2022
Issued at HKT 15:08
NNNN