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Hong Kong has exempted senior financial executives and executives from some listed companies from its harsh border quarantine rules, prompting the call for business groups to extend the measures to other sectors.
Banks, insurers and asset managers licensed by Hong Kong financial regulators can request visits from two senior employees and two to return to the city each month without having to quarantine if they are vaccinated and travel “with commercial purposes ”.
Managers of large companies in the major indexes of the Hong Kong stock exchange can also apply for the quarantine exemption if their travel plans are “essential to the operation” of the business. The new rules, some of which were posted on the Hong Kong government’s website on Friday, are effective immediately.
The decision followed concerns that Hong Kong would open more slowly than other malls due to the strict quarantine policy and much lower vaccination rates than London, New York and Singapore. The financial services sector represents more than 21% of the territory’s gross domestic product.
Tara Joseph, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said: “It is a welcome development and we believe it should be extended to all sectors.”
But several banks warned that they were still seeking clarification on the details of the application process, including what defines a “senior executive,” and are studying how they would protect staff from travelers who do not return to quarantine.
“Hong Kong has been isolated from the rest of the financial world and now we are not,” said a Wall Street bank executive.
An executive at a second U.S. bank said the exemption appeared to be a “special treatment for 1%,” but that it would allow Hong Kong to maintain its status as an international financial center.
But Frederik Gollob, chairman of the Hong Kong European Chamber of Commerce, said the government needed to “go beyond” this step, as it appeared the city’s quarantine requirements contributed to the outflow of talent.
“There is a growing frustration over this de facto blockade,” Gollob said, adding that companies wanted a wider relaxation of restrictions for vaccinated travelers. “The government has not connected vaccination campaign to a clear reopening strategy “.
HSBC said the exemption for bankers “would stimulate more economic activity in a wide range of sectors. Safeguarding public health and allowing business travel to return to normal can coexist.”
Travelers of eight “high-risk” countries including the United Kingdom, India and Brazil – and almost all unvaccinated travelers – have to quarantine in a hotel for 21 days on arrival in Hong Kong. Vaccinated arrivals from other places are subject to a 14-day hotel quarantine, except for those from Australia and New Zealand, which must be quarantined for seven days.
Hong Kong world banks have held talks with Asifma, the capital market industry body in Asia, on whether to pressure the government to get exemptions from travel quarantine rules since late last year. Some expressed fear that the rules could damage the territory’s position as a global financial center.
Concerns have risen as vaccination rates have remained low in the city. Only 15% of Hong Kong’s population is fully vaccinated, compared to 28% in Singapore, 27% in London and 43% in New York City.
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