Government lifts Outbound Travel Alert issued due to COVID-19 on overseas countries/territories
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The Government issued the Red OTA on all overseas countries/territories on March 17, 2020, in view of the global epidemic situation at the time, and strongly urged members of the public to avoid any non-essential travel outside Hong Kong. The Red OTA has remained in effect. The Government noted that the epidemic situations in places around the world have mainly been caused by the Omicron variant, that the epidemic situations in overseas countries/territories with frequent traffic with Hong Kong have generally been on a downward trend, and that Hong Kong residents who needed to return to Hong Kong must be fully vaccinated. The risk of travelling overseas has lowered relatively. As such, the Government considers that the OTA issued due to the epidemic on all overseas countries/territories can be lifted at this juncture.
As the World Health Organization continues to declare that COVID-19 is a pandemic, and the global epidemic situation still remains, from the public health perspective, the Department of Health (DH) advises members of the public to continue to avoid non-essential travel outside Hong Kong. If travel is unavoidable, the public should pay close attention to the latest situation of COVID-19 at the destination and the travel health advice issued by DH (www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/travel-advice.html) to protect their own health.
The Government will continue to control the overall volume of inbound traffic and reduce importation risk with stringent measures guarding against the importation of cases and the number of designated quarantine hotels (DQHs). The Government will maintain the relevant boarding, quarantine and testing requirements. Overseas inbound passengers are still subject to stringent inbound control measures including compulsory quarantine in DQHs under closed-loop management arrangements.
If assistance is needed, residents outside Hong Kong may call the 24-hour hotline of the Assistance to Hong Kong Residents Unit (AHU) of the Immigration Department (ImmD) at (852) 1868 or contact the Chinese Embassy in the respective countries/territories (cs.mfa.gov.cn/zggmcg/ljmdd/, Chinese only). During travel and after returning to Hong Kong, residents should consult a doctor promptly if experiencing a fever or other symptoms, and take the initiative to inform the doctor of any recent travel history.
In addition, residents are encouraged to use the online Registration of Outbound Travel Information service (www.gov.hk/en/residents/immigration/outsidehk/roti.htm) to register their contact details and itinerary when outside Hong Kong. The information provided allows the AHU of ImmD to disseminate practical information to them through appropriate means, including SMS on mobile phones, on a timely basis when necessary.
Ends/Friday, April 29, 2022
Issued at HKT 15:50
Issued at HKT 15:50
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