The Macau government announced yesterday that from Monday next week all families who need a domestic helper to look after any of their members, irrespective of age and health condition, can submit an application for its pilot programme of granting Philippine domestic helpers an exemption from the government’s current entry ban on foreign nationals without a Macau ID card.

The new measure was announced by the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre in a short statement, which said that the third phase of the pilot programme will start on Monday.

“There will be no longer be any restrictions on those who are looked after by a domestic helper, but all other application requirements will remain unchanged,” the statement said.

The Macau government launched the pilot programme on April 25 which once again allows Philippine nationals who have been hired by families in Macau as domestic helpers to enter the city.

Currently, i.e., the pilot programme’s second phase which started on Monday last week, the programme only covers Philippine domestic helpers who have been hired to look after senior citizens aged 65 or over, children aged below 12, those with chronic diseases, or those with disabilities.

The pilot programme’s first phase, which had been implemented until Monday last week, only covered Philippine domestic helpers who had been hired to look after senior citizens aged 65 or over, children aged below three, or those with chronic diseases.

The respective employers or employment agencies can submit their applications at: https://www.ssm.gov.mo/faen/ph-houseworker

Under the pilot programme, those who are looked after by Philippine domestic helpers, and those living with them – except those aged below three, must have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, or they must hold a doctor’s certificate confirming their unsuitability for COVID-19 vaccinations.

Currently, those aged below three are not covered by the Macau government’s COVID-19 vaccination programme.

Normally those vaccinated against COVID-19 require two jabs to develop basic full immunity, i.e., if they receive a two-dose vaccine.

Many of the COVID-19 vaccines that are being used worldwide are two-dose vaccines. Some COVID-19 vaccines are single or three-dose vaccines.

Like all other arrivals from foreign countries, the Philippine domestic helpers must have been fully inoculated against COVID-19 at least 14 days prior, i.e., having developed basic full immunity. Those who received the last required shot of their basic-full-immunity COVID-19 vaccinations over seven months ago will also have to present a certificate confirming that they have received at least one COVID-19 booster jab, when boarding their Macau-bound flight.

The same as all other arrivals from foreign countries, the Philippine domestic helpers who have been granted permission to enter Macau will also be subject to the Macau government’s current requirement of 14 days in hotel quarantine plus seven days of “self-health management” upon their arrival here.

Zhuhai Macau Cross-border Industrial Zone checkpoint to only open to those working in the zone

Meanwhile, from Saturday the Zhuhai Macau Cross-border Industrial Zone checkpoint will only be open to those working in the cross-border industrial zone between 7 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. daily.

The new measure was announced yesterday by the Zhuhai health authorities in a statement quoted by the Macau Government Information Bureau.

The statement merely said that the new measure has been decided in response to COVID-19 prevention and control needs.

The Zhuhai Macau Cross-border Industrial Zone checkpoint is not open to visitors. Currently, it is open 24/7 to those working in the cross-border industrial zone, which is located in Ilha Verde on the Macau side, and open between 12 a.m. and 7 a.m. to Macau residents, mainland non-resident workers and mainland students enrolled in Macau.

Yesterday’s statement said that from Saturday Zhuhai Macau Cross-border Industrial Zone checkpoint will close between 12 a.m. and 7 a.m. every day. During the checkpoint’s opening hours from 7 a.m. to 11:59 p.m., the statement said, it will only be open to those working in the cross-border industrial zone, and all others will be barred from using it to cross the Macau-Zhuhai border.

Affected travellers can choose to use the nearby 24/7 Qingmao checkpoint, which opened in September last year. 

A senior citizen receives his COVID-19 vaccine at Manila Zoo early this year. – Courtesy of PNA