Following is a question by Dr the Hon Pierre Chan and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr John Lee, in the Legislative Council today (October 21):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council of the following immigration figures since May this year:
(1) the respective monthly numbers of inbound and outbound passenger trips made by (i) Hong Kong residents, (ii) Mainland visitors and (iii) visitors from other countries/places at each boundary control point;
(2) the monthly numbers of Mainland residents coming to Hong Kong on Permits for Proceeding to Hong Kong and Macao (commonly known as "One-way Permits") for settlement, with a breakdown by the original places of their household registration;
(3) the monthly numbers of persons arriving at each boundary control point who were exempted from compulsory quarantine under the relevant regulations (including the Compulsory Quarantine of Certain Persons Arriving at Hong Kong Regulation (Cap. 599C) and Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation (Cap. 599E) but were issued with a Notification of Medical Surveillance; and
(4) the respective monthly numbers of person-times of Mainland, Macao and Taiwan residents who were exempted from compulsory quarantine upon arrival, with a breakdown by reason?
Reply:
President,
In consultation with the Food and Health Bureau (FHB), our reply to the question raised by Dr the Hon Pierre Chan is as follows:
(1) The respective monthly numbers of inbound and outbound passenger trips made by Hong Kong residents, Mainland visitors and visitors from other countries or places at various immigration control points from May to September 2020 are set out at the Annex 1.
(2) Between May and September 2020, a total of 3 907 persons entered Hong Kong on the strength of One-way Permits (OWPs) (i.e. Permits for Proceeding to Hong Kong and Macao). According to the information that they provided voluntarily upon entry into Hong Kong, the monthly numbers of these OWP holders by reference to their provinces of origin are set out at the Annex 2.
(3) and (4) According to information provided by FHB, pursuant to the Compulsory Quarantine of Certain Persons Arriving at Hong Kong Regulation (Cap. 599C) and Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation (Cap. 599E), with the exception of persons exempted by the Chief Secretary for Administration according to the relevant regulation, all persons having stayed in any places outside Hong Kong for any period during the 14 days preceding arrival in Hong Kong are subject to compulsory quarantine for 14 days, regardless of their nationalities and travel documents used.
The Government has implemented relevant quarantine and testing measures based on prevention and control risk assessments. Currently, all persons arriving at Hong Kong via the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), including persons exempted from compulsory quarantine, have to be tested upon entry into Hong Kong. With effect from July 29, 2020, the Government has tightened the testing arrangement to the exempted persons arriving Hong Kong at HKIA. The testing arrangement concerned is adjusted in accordance with the risk level of respective exemption categories (i.e. exempted persons with higher risk level are required to conduct repeated pre-departure and post-arrival tests), supplemented with other measures (i.e. self-isolation at designated location, point-to-point transportation, etc.) with a view to minimising the health risk arising from exempted persons and reducing the risk of virus entering the community. As for land boundary control points, regular arrivals will be subject to compulsory quarantine for 14 days at home or other accommodation, while exempted persons entering Hong Kong via land boundary control points are subject to tests.
Apart from the testing arrangement, the Department of Health (DH) arranges 14-day medical surveillance for persons exempted under the above regulation during their stay in Hong Kong. Persons under medical surveillance are required to wear masks and check their body temperature twice daily, and they should report to DH if feeling unwell. In addition, exempted persons are also subject to body temperature check and health declaration procedures performed by DH at boundary control points during arrival clearance.
The number of Notification of Medical Surveillance issued to exempted persons (including those exempted under Cap. 599C and 599E) at various boundary control points from May to September 2020 are as follows:
| Month | Number of Notification of Medical Surveillance issued to exempted persons at various boundary control points in service |
| May 2020 | 40 220 |
| June 2020 | 45 943 |
| July 2020 | 53 405 |
| August 2020 | 41 155 |
| September 2020 | 45 689 |
Note 1: Boundary control points in service include HKIA, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port, Shenzhen Bay, Man Kam To, Lok Ma Chau, Sha Tau Kok and Heung Yuen Wai (opened on August 26, 2020).
Note 2: Exempted persons are issued with new Notification of Medical Surveillance every time they enter Hong Kong (except in cases set out in note 3 below).
Note 3: Currently, "cross-boundary goods vehicle drivers and necessary accompanying personnel" with valid Notification of Medical Surveillance issued in the past 14 days are not issued with new Notification of Medical Surveillance afresh every time they enter Hong Kong.
DH does not maintain the breakdown figures of Notification of Medical Surveillance issued to the exempted persons by countries/places.
Follow this news feed: East Asia