Tag: quarantine requirements

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

‘Vaccine Bubble’ Quarantine Arrangements

The Government today, 15, April, announced plans to shorten the quarantine period for fully vaccinated persons arriving from non-very high-risk overseas places on the basis of the “vaccine bubble”.

“As the global epidemic situation remains severe with the new virus variants still ravaging many parts of the world, the Government needs to maintain the 21-day compulsory quarantine requirement for persons who have stayed in high-risk places outside China. ”

“However, considering that the epidemic situations in certain places have stabilised and pose lower public health risks, with reference to the ‘vaccine bubble’ concept, the Government will adjust the quarantine arrangements for persons who have stayed in overseas places other than extremely high-risk and very high-risk places under the Compulsory Quarantine of Certain Persons Arriving at Hong Kong Regulation (Cap. 599C), the Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation (Cap. 599E) and Cap. 599H,” said the spokesman.

“The basic boarding and quarantine requirements will remain unchanged for high-risk and medium-risk places (i.e. Group B and Group C specified places), but the Government will supplement in due course new arrangements applicable to fully vaccinated persons and shorten the compulsory quarantine period for the relevant persons from 21 days to 14 days under the “vaccine bubble” concept.

As for low-risk Group D specified places (i.e. Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore), the compulsory quarantine period for fully vaccinated persons will also be correspondingly shortened from 14 days to seven days in due course.

Persons that have completed quarantine under the adjusted Group B, Group C and Group D requirements will be required to self-monitor for seven days and undergo compulsory testing after their shortened quarantine.”

The Government plans to gazette and effect the new arrangements within about two weeks.