The arrivals hall at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1, west of Seoul, is crowded with travelers arriving in the country, Tuesday. Yonhap

By Lee Hae-rin

Korea will mandate travelers from Hong Kong and Macau to submit negative COVID-19 test results before entering the country starting this Saturday, the government announced Tuesday. The strengthened travel restrictions are part of curbs placed on arrivals from China that have been in place since Monday.

The decision came amid the recent surge in new cases and coronavirus-led deaths in Hong Kong, the health authorities explained. Also considered to be behind the decision is the fact that more travelers arrived in Korea from Hong Kong (44,614) than from China (37,121) last month, and that many countries, such as the U.S. and Canada, have strengthened their restrictions against travelers from these two special administrative regions of China.

Thus, passengers departing from Hong Kong and Macau and arriving to Korea, like those from mainland China, need to submit negative COVID-19 test results in advance ― a negative PCR test result taken no more than 48 hours before entering the country or a rapid antigen test (RAT) result taken by professional medical personnel less than 24 hours before entry.

They should also enter their health and travel information online in the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's (KDCA) Quarantine Information Pre-entry System (Q-CODE).

However, Hong Kong and Macau travelers are not required to take a post-arrival PCR test, unlike arrivals from mainland China.

Under the principle of reciprocity, Chinese nationals who tested positive and need hospitalization must pay all their medical expenses on their own. On the other hand, Hong Kong and Macau permanent residents can receive the Korean government's support for their hospital bills, but not for food or other medical expenses, matching the benefits Korean nationals traveling to those regions.

According to the KDCA, Tuesday, a total of 1,052 travelers ― flight attendants included ― arrived at Incheon Airport from China the day before. Among them, 309 were short-term visitors subject to PCR tests and almost 20 percent ― or 61 people ― were confirmed to be infected with COVID-19, the KDCA said.

Those infected will be quarantined at a temporary residential facility arranged by the Korean government for seven days, which can house up to 100 patients. The government will secure additional quarantine facilities in Seoul and surrounding areas in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province if the number of newly infected arrivals comes out close to Tuesday's count of 61.

The KDCA underscored the importance of wearing a mask when departing and arriving in the country and said the government may introduce additional measures if the number of imported infection cases increases or if new variants are confirmed.