We are One in Promoting Excellence in Marine Services

Vessel Traffic Centre

Marine Department, G.P.O. Box 4155, Hong Kong

From: Director of Marine To:

Tel No.: 2233 7801 Attention

Fax No. 2858 6646 Your Fax no.:

E-mail: hkvtc@mardep.gov.hk Your e-mail:

Ref. No: L/M No. 3/2020 in MD/VTC 7-103/18 Your ref. No.:

Date: 31 Dec 2020 Total Pages: 6 (1+5)

To whom it may concern,

Vessels Visited South Africa/United Kingdom within 21days When Arriving Hong Kong

Your attention is drawn to the attached self-explanatory letter from

Department of Health dated 31 December 2020 regarding Vessels Visited South Africa/ United Kingdom within 21 days When Arriving Hong Kong.

Please bring the press releases to the attention of ship owners, ship masters

and other relevant parties. Should you require further information on the new

requirement, please contact Department of Health direct.

Yours faithfully,

(K.T. Poon)

for Director of Marine

Encl.

1. Letter from Department of Health (Eng) 2. Press Releases - Government tightens restrictions and compulsory quarantine requirements for

persons arriving at Hong Kong who have stayed in places outside China (Eng) 3. 新聞公告 - 政府加強對由中國以外地區抵港人士的限制及強制檢疫要求 (Chi)

傳 染 病 處

本署檔號 Our Ref. : DH/PHD/P6/3002 港口衞生科 來函檔號 Your Ref. : Port Health Division 電 話 Tel. : (852) 2543 1702 傳 真 Fax. : (852) 2543 2557

香港九龍觀塘巧明街100號Landmark East友邦九龍大廈11樓1101室 Suite 1101, 11/F, AIA Kowloon Tower, Landmark East,

100 How Ming Street, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong

衞生防護中心乃衞生署轄下執行疾病預防

及控制的專業架構 The Centre for Health

Protection is a professional arm of the

Department of Health for disease prevention and

control

Communicable Disease Branch

31 Dec 2020

To all shipping agents in Hong Kong

Vessels Visited South Africa/United Kingdom within 21days When Arriving Hong Kong

Please find the attached press release.

Please contact the undersigned by 2543 1702 if your vessels will arrive Hong Kong and visited UK/ South Africa within 21 days.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

(Dr LAU MING HO)

for Director of Health

Government tightens restrictions and compulsory quarantine requirements for

persons arriving at Hong Kong who have stayed in places outside China

*********************************************************************

The Government has gazetted the specifications 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 the Prevention and Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary

Conveyances and Travellers) Regulation (Cap. 599H), and published the latest

compulsory testing notice under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Compulsory

Testing for Certain Persons) Regulation (Cap. 599J), to tighten the compulsory

quarantine requirements for persons arriving at Hong Kong who have stayed in places

outside China, and restrict the boarding of persons who have stayed in South Africa for

Hong Kong.

A Government spokesman said, "According to the guidelines of the World Health

Organization, the incubation period of the virus could be as long as 14 days. While

there is currently no evidence showing that the incubation period of the new virus

variant is longer, in view of the expert advice that the incubation period of virus carried

by very few infected persons may be longer than the quarantine period of 14 days, and

noting the drastic change of the global pandemic situation with the new virus variant

found in more countries, there is a need for the Government to introduce resolute

measures immediately to tighten the compulsory quarantine requirements for persons

arriving at Hong Kong who have stayed in places outside China, so as to ensure that no

case would slip through the net even under very exceptional cases where the incubation

period of the virus is longer than 14 days.

"Furthermore, taking into account the discovery of the new virus variant with high

transmissibility in South Africa, it is necessary for the Government to adopt stringent

measures to restrict the boarding of persons who have stayed in South Africa for Hong

Kong."

The Secretary for Food and Health has exercised the power under the relevant

Regulations to make specifications and notice, which took effect from 0.00am on

December 25. Details are as below:

1. The requirements under Cap. 599C and Cap. 599E have been tightened so that all

persons arriving at Hong Kong (either via the airport or land boundary control points)

who have stayed in places outside China on the day of arrival at Hong Kong or during

the 21 days before that day have to undergo compulsory quarantine for 21 days in

designated quarantine hotels;

2. The requirements under Cap. 599H have been tightened so that all persons who

have stayed in South Africa, apart from the United Kingdom (UK) as announced

earlier, for more than two hours in the past 21 days will not be allowed to board

for Hong Kong; and

3. An updated compulsory testing notice has been made under Cap. 599J, which

imposes compulsory testing requirements to persons subject to compulsory quarantine

who arrived at Hong Kong during the period of December 2 to December 23, 2020 and

have stayed in the UK, as well as persons subject to compulsory quarantine who arrived

at Hong Kong during the period of December 2 to December 24, 2020 and have stayed

in the remaining places outside China. Apart from the requirement to undergo testing

at the community testing centres or the designated quarantine hotels on the 19th or 20th

day following their arrival at Hong Kong, the relevant persons have to stay at their place

of residence, private premises or the place of quarantine specified on the quarantine

order until the test result is available.

The spokesman said, "The Government will continue to monitor closely the situation,

including the developments of the epidemic situation both globally and locally and

changes in the volume of cross-boundary passenger traffic, and will tighten the

compulsory quarantine requirements for persons arriving at Hong Kong from other

high-risk places when necessary."

Ends/Friday, December 25, 2020

Issued at HKT 0:40

政府加強對由中國以外地區抵港人士的限制及強制檢疫要求

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

政府就《若干到港人士強制檢疫規例》（第 599C 章）、《外國地區到港人士強制

檢疫規例》（第 599E章）及《預防及控制疾病（規管跨境交通工具及到港者）規例》

（第 599H章）下的指明刊憲，以及在《預防及控制疾病（對若干人士強制檢測）規

例》（第 599J章）下作出最新強制檢測公告，以加強對曾在中國以外地區逗留的抵港

人士的強制檢疫要求，以及限制曾逗留南非的人士登機來港。

政府發言人表示：「根據世界衞生組織的指引，病毒潛伏期可長達 14天，而目前

並沒有證據顯示新變種病毒的潛伏期會較長。然而，考慮到有專家認為極小部分受病

毒感染人士的潛伏期可能超過 14天檢疫期，加上全球疫情正出現急劇變化，愈來愈

多國家發現新變種病毒，政府有需要果斷採取措施，以加強對曾在中國以外地區逗留

的抵港人士的強制檢疫要求，以確保即使在非常罕有情況下有個案的病毒潛伏期超

過 14天也不會成為漏網之魚。」

「此外，考慮到南非發現傳播力強的新變種病毒，政府有需要採取嚴厲措施，限

制曾逗留南非的人士登機來港。」

食物及衞生局局長將引用相關規例作出指明及公告，由明天（十二月二十五日）

凌晨零時起生效。詳情如下：

（一）收緊第 599C章及第 599E章下的規定，所有於到達香港當天或之前 21天曾在

中國以外地區逗留的抵港人士（不論經機場或陸路口岸抵港），需要在指定檢疫酒店

強制檢疫 21天；

（二）收緊第 599H章下的規定，除早前已宣布的英國外，所有於登機當天或之前 21

天曾逗留南非超過兩小時的人士，亦將不會獲准登機前來香港；及

（三）於第 599J章下作出最新強制檢測公告，對於在二○二○年十二月二日至十二月

二十三日期間到達香港而曾在英國逗留並須接受強制檢疫的人士，以及在二○二○年

十二月二日至十二月二十四日期間由中國以外其餘地區到達香港並須接受強制檢疫

的人士施加強制檢測要求。有關人士除了須在到港後第 19 天或第 20 天到社區檢測

中心或在指定檢疫酒店接受檢測外，亦必須在確定檢測結果前留在該人的居住地點、

私人處所或在檢疫令上指明的檢疫地點。

發言人表示：「政府會繼續密切監察情況，包括全球及本地疫情的發展和出入境

人數的變化，有需要時會加強對從其他高風險地區到港人士的強制檢疫要求。」

完

2020年 12月 24日（星期四）

香港時間 22時 51分