The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) has officially opened on the 24th of October this year, after nine years of construction. The cost of constructing the 55 km bridge, as well as its surrounding link roads and artificial islands, is about a whopping $20 billion in total, and stretches 22.9km over the sea with a 6.7km underwater tunnel.
While the HZMB is the world’s longest sea crossing, the bridge is not served by any public transport. Instead, private shuttle buses will operate the cross-border route. If a Hong Kong private car driver needs to use this mega link, they must complete all the necessary formalities, obtain valid permits, and meet the insurance requirements by the relevant jurisdiction(s).
Basically, there are three options for a Hong Kong private car owner applying to cross the ZHMB. What can be quite tricky, however, is that the application procedures are all different, and by no means simple and easy. To that end, Kwiksure has prepared this downloadable and printable infographic to illustrate how it works in a more easy-to-digest and concise manner.
If you are driving to Macao...
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Macao Port Park-and-Ride Scheme
Under this scheme, eligible Hong Kong non-commercial private car owners are allowed to drive to Macao via the HZMB and park their private car at the East Car Park based in the Frontier Post at Macao Port for a short period of time without any quota requirement.
After parking their cars at the Macao Carpark, drivers and passengers of private cars should complete the clearance procedures before interchanging with public transport to reach other areas of Macao.
The Governments of Hong Kong and Macao agreed to set a daily application limit at 400. Depending on the actual need, the daily limit will be adjusted upon deliberation between the two Governments.
To apply for the Macao PnR scheme, drivers have to go through the following steps:
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Apply for the Closed Road Permit (CRP), which will be valid for one year at most, and Identification Label issued by the Macao Transport Bureau via the Hong Kong Transport Department's (TD) website. This will be valid for three years. (The application will be processed by the three governments separately and takes around 14 days)
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Arrange their insurance coverage, i.e. car insurances for Hong Kong, Macao, and Mainland China (as the main bridge between Hong Kong and Macao/Zhuhai is located in Mainland waters, all drivers crossing the ZHMB must have valid Mainland China car insurance) according to the validity period of your CRP.
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Upload your Mainland vehicle insurance information via the Mainland’s online filing platform for formal approval.
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Reserve a parking space at the Macao Carpark through Macao’s designated online platform.
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Have all related copies of required documents in your car (insurance documents, permits, etc).
For even more thorough information on the eligibility and procedures of application, click here to read the application guide from the government, and here for the leaflet.
Regular Quota for Hong Kong Private Cars to Macao
Hong Kong private car drivers allocated with regular quotas will be able to access the city of Macao via the HZMB. The number of regular quotas for Hong Kong Private Cars is set at 300, of which 150 are company quotas and another 150 are individual quotas.
These quotas are valid for three years and would be re-allocated upon expiry by the Transport Department through an open application.
Below is a brief summary of the application procedure:
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Arrange insurance coverage.
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Submit the Expression of Interest Form (TD618) to the TD. If the number of applications exceeds 300, the TD will carry out balloting to determine the order of applications to be processed.
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Applicants receiving invitations from the TD can apply for CRP.
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Make appointments with the Macao Customs Service for collecting and displaying labels and permits issued by Macao government authorities before setting off to Macao for the first time.
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With HK full Driving Licence, designated drivers may stay in Macao for at most 14 days without the hassle of any other formalities. For stays in Macao exceeding 14 days, drivers will need to register with the Macao Public Security Police Force.
Once again, for a more detailed explanation on the eligibility and procedures of application, you can click here to read the application guide from the government, and here for the leaflet.
If you are driving to Mainland China…
A limit of 10,000 private cars from Hong Kong are allowed to drive to Zhuhai via the HZMB, but applicants must meet a number of strict criteria.
While the Hong Kong Transport Department website does not specify how to become one of the 10,000 lucky drivers, Hong Kong Free Press says “applications are open to local, recognized high-tech enterprises or firms who have submitted total tax payments of at least RMB100,000 (HK$115,395) in Guangdong over the past three years; Hong Kong residents who have made accumulative charitable donations of more than RMB 5 million (HK$5.77 million) in Guangdong province; or Hongkongers who are members of the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference at national, provincial, prefecture and county levels of Guangdong province.”
However, even if you are among the 10,000 car drivers granted quotas for traveling between Guangdong and Hong Kong using the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB), you will have to complete the following formalities before you can cross the border via the bridge.
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Arrange your insurance coverage.
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Apply for the Approval Notice issued by the Vehicle Administration Office of the Guangdong Public Security Bureau (Telephone No: 0018620-83111536).
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Apply in person or by post for the Closed Road Permit (CRP) for Boundary Crossing Vehicles at the Cross Boundary Unit of the Transport Department.
Click here for more info on the application process for Closed Road Permit for cross-boundary vehicles traveling between Guangdong and Hong Kong.
