A Vietnamese woman has been discovered to have overstayed in Macau for six years, and a compatriot who provided her with accommodation for two years has been arrested, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Leong Sok Man said during a regular press conference yesterday.
The woman’s overstay came to light on Tuesday after police received a report about a suspected fraud at a casino in Zape. After PJ officers arrived at the scene, the middle-aged Vietnamese woman was unable to present a valid stay permit. Upon checking her immigration records, police confirmed that she had overstayed in Macau for six years.
She entered Macau as a visitor in 2020. Vietnamese passport holders require a visa to enter Macau, which typically allows them to stay for up to 30 days.
During her six-year overstay in Macau, the woman frequented casinos, and her living expenses were covered by regular remittances from her family back home.
The overstayer told police that she had rented a bedroom in a residential flat in the peninsula’s northern district from a compatriot since 2024.
Later on Tuesday, PJ officers went to the flat where they intercepted another Vietnamese woman, who works in Macau as a non-resident worker (NRW).
The NRW, a 41-year-old surnamed Doan, admitted that she had rented out a bedroom in the flat to the overstayer for two years at a monthly rent of 2,000 patacas, making an illicit profit of 48,000 patacas in total.
Three people lived in the flat, including Doan and the overstayer. Apart from the overstayer, Doan and the third individual are residing legally in Macau.
The spokeswoman said that Doan was fully aware that her compatriot was overstaying in Macau but still rented out a bedroom to her, driven by financial gain.
Doan has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) for further questioning and investigation, facing a charge of harbouring an overstayer.
At the time of yesterday’s press conference, police were still investigating where the overstayer had lived in Macau before moving into Doan’s flat.
The spokeswoman added that police have closed the suspected fraud case for the time being as the victim decided not to press charges.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Leong Sok Man speaks during yesterday’s regular press conference. – Photo: Tony Wong
