The Government today announced it will gazette new specifications to impose conditions on travellers who visited Romania within 14 days before arriving in Hong Kong to combat the epidemic more effectively.

The Food & Health Bureau said the global COVID-19 epidemic situation is becoming increasingly severe, with the daily number of new cases rising from around 70,000 to 100,000 between late March and mid-May, and further increasing to a new height of about 660,000 in mid-November.

In view of the severe global pandemic situation, Hong Kong cannot afford to drop its guard on entry prevention and control measures, the bureau added.

The Government had earlier introduced the Prevention & Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances & Travellers) Regulation (Cap 599H) to impose testing and quarantine conditions on travellers coming to Hong Kong from very high-risk places to reduce the health risk they may bring to the city.

The Secretary for Food & Health previously published in the gazette specifications on the relevant measures applicable to Bangladesh, Belgium, Ecuador, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the US.

New specifications will be gazetted to maintain the conditions imposed and include Romania as a specified place with effect from December 7.

Travellers who have stayed in the specified places 14 days before arriving in Hong Kong must provide documents showing they tested negative for COVID-19 and their reservation for a hotel in Hong Kong for not less than 14 nights.