Macao is neither China nor Hong Kong at the border. Most visitors get 30 days, Europeans 90 and British citizens six months, and almost anyone else can buy a visa at the desk.
Three borders, not one
Macao runs its own immigration control, separate from both mainland China and Hong Kong. Nothing carries over between them.
- A Chinese visa does not admit you to Macao, and a Macao entry does not admit you to the mainland.
- Hong Kong and Macao are separate from each other too. The ferry across is an international crossing with immigration at both ends.
- Crossing to Zhuhai through the Border Gate or the Hengqin port needs a Chinese visa, and coming back into Macao uses a fresh entry.
How long you get
| You hold | Authorisation to stay |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom (British citizens) | 6 months |
| Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Poland and the rest of the EU and Schengen, plus Japan, South Korea, Brazil, Mexico and around 20 more | 90 days |
| USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia and most other nationalities | 30 days |
| Hong Kong permanent residents | 1 year |
| Brunei, Kazakhstan | 14 days |
- Your passport must be valid at least 90 days beyond the stay, which is stricter than Hong Kong's one month next door - a passport that is fine for Hong Kong may not be fine here.
- No stay may run past 90 days before the passport expires, whatever band you are in.
If you are not exempt
- Almost everyone can buy a visa at the border. The visa-upon-arrival counter at the checkpoint issues it while you wait: MOP 100 for an individual, MOP 50 for a child under 12, MOP 200 on a family passport, and MOP 50 per person for an organised group of ten or more. It grants 30 days.
- Six nationalities cannot use that counter and must obtain a Macao visa in advance from a Chinese diplomatic mission: Bangladesh, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
- Mainland Chinese residents need an Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao with a valid endorsement, issued on the mainland.
- Taiwan residents are admitted on a Taiwan passport for 30 days; the Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents is also accepted.
At the desk and after it
- You get a paper arrival slip, not a passport stamp. It carries the date your permitted stay ends. Keep it with the passport - it is the only proof of your status.
- Declare cash of MOP 120,000 or more, including travellers cheques and money orders, through the red channel. Under-declaring on the way out is fined from MOP 1,000 to MOP 500,000, and in a city built on casinos this is enforced.
- There is no arrival card to fill in.
Comments
No comments yet. Share the first one.
Share a tip
Sign in to continue.