Travellers eager to try Hong Kong’s new joint-clearance channels at Huanggang will have to clear one administrative hurdle first: registering with immigration authorities on both sides of the border. Speaking to media on 6 October, Assistant Director of Immigration Jacky Wong Ki confirmed that dual registration is mandatory for anyone wishing to use the fully automated gates when the crossing reopens on 12 October. The ‘collaborative inspection’ model merges Hong Kong exit and Mainland entry (and vice-versa) into a single walk-through, using shared biometrics and back-end data exchange. While Hong Kong residents can now enrol through the HK e-Channel app, they must separately ensure that their Home Visit Permit is e-Channel-enabled in Shenzhen’s system. Mainland travellers face the mirror requirement. Immigration teams on both sides will deploy staff at Huanggang to guide passengers through on-site registration kiosks in the early days of operation. Authorities expect about 100,000 passenger movements per day through the modernised port – roughly double its pre-renovation capacity. They hope the dual-registration rule will safeguard data integrity while maintaining a smooth flow through the three-gate biometric channels. Travel--management companies have welcomed the announcement but urged clients to circulate step-by-step registration instructions now to avoid first-day congestion. Companies that run daily shuttle services for staff between Hong Kong’s finance clusters and Shenzhen’s tech parks should build in extra time next week as workers complete the two-step process. Longer term, Hong Kong planners view the Huanggang blueprint as a prototype for future co-located border points across the Pearl River Delta. Successful uptake would bolster the city’s aim to become the ‘super-connector’ for the Greater Bay Area’s 86-million-strong talent pool.
Source: South China Morning Post
