Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JUL 2022年7月 亞博匯 24 COVER STORY management of the island to Guangdong Province and Macau. So, what are we talking about when we reference Hengqin? If we were talking pre- 2009, we may have referred to Hengqin as the completely undeveloped island that was three times the size of Macau and inhabited by around 5,000 fishermen, just across from the village of Coloane. After 2009 we would be talking about China’s third national-level new area – the Hengqin New Area. In 2015 it became the Hengqin Free- Trade Zone within the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free-Trade Zone, and in 2019 the “Hengqin International Leisure Tourism Island”. Now we talk about Hengqin as the future of Macau. This evolution of Hengqin’s status reflects how the area’s policies and positioning have gradually become clearer over the past 13 years of development. Ever since the original Hengqin Overall Development Plan was approved by the State Council in 2009, the development of Hengqin has emerged as a pathway towards Macau’s economic diversification. In the Hengqin Cooperation Zone, a two‑track administration system governs the entry and exit of goods, whereby “first-tier” goods moving between Hengqin and Macau are subject to registration- based management to simplify customs declaration procedures. Under the “second- tier”, all tax-exempted (bonded) goods moving from Hengqin to mainland territory are required to undergo customs clearance procedures, as imported goods, and tariffs and import duties will be imposed. In terms of the movement of people, Macau and Hengqin will adopt the customs clearance mechanism of “Joint Inspection and One-Time Release” aimed at ensuring a much faster border crossing experience than visitors to Macau have traditionally endured via the Gongbei Port near Zhuhai.