The move marks the end of China’s zero-Covid policy, which has had a catastrophic effect on Macau’s gambling business and has seen hordes of players flock to other destinations such as The Philippines and Singapore.
2022 saw Macau closed off for large parts of the year due to Covid-19 outbreaks and decimated the casino operators' financial intake in the province.
In recent months, all six of Macau’s current concessionaires chose to extend their licences for 10 years, displaying a large amount of faith in Macau’s future. Now, that faith appears to have paid off with the near-complete easing of all entry restrictions for foreign travellers.
However, from 8 January, China has decided to reclassify Covid as a Class B infectious disease, and the cap on incoming flights will be scrapped – while the only restriction in place for incoming people will be mandatory PCR tests.
The zero-Covid policy has ended in China following widespread demonstrations by Chinese citizens opposing lockdown measures taken by the government, as many watched other countries scrapping Covid laws and adopting a ‘living with the virus’ policy.
