Opening up China's Greater Bay Area

Ports and islands to be opened up to private vessels © SCMP Graphic

A long-awaited cross-border solo travel scheme will allow yachts from Macau and Hong Kong to easily sail to about six designated ports in the western waters off the Greater Bay Area, with the policy to be finalised as early as this summer, the South China Morning Post has learned.

A Guangdong provincial government document, seen by the SCMP, also showed several routes that were recommended for leisure, such as the waters off Castle Peak Bay, the Pearl River Delta and Fan Lau Kok of the Lantau Channel.

Under the proposal, leisure yachting tours would be allowed in the waters around the Wanshan islands, which are southwest of Hong Kong, and the smaller islands at bays such as Baicaowan, Nanwan, Luanshi Bay and Putouwan to the south of the city.

The document also suggested that yachts with local licences could obtain a temporary mainland vessel nationality certificate to operate multiple times in designated areas for 180 days.

The proposed guidelines limited applicants strictly to Hong Kong and Macau residents holding mainland travel permits in the initial stage, excluding foreigners who hold home-return permits.

A source said that the policy might be implemented as early as this summer – more than a decade after the idea first emerged.

In his latest policy address last October, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu identified the scheme as a way to develop a high-spending yacht economy.

“Hong Kong and Macau yachts should enter and exit from designated ports, and carry out water leisure activities within the delineated water areas,” the draft document said.

Under the draft proposal, vessels entering mainland waters will have to restrict their leisure activities to specific locations in archipelagos within the Pearl River Delta and Shenzhen Bay.

But authorities would retain the power to dynamically adjust these approved leisure zones.

According to the document, Guangzhou Nansha passenger port, Shenzhen Shekou cruise homeport, Shenzhen airport ferry terminal, Zhuhai Wanshan port, Zhuhai Jiuzhou port and Zhongshan port were among the six designated entry points opened up in the initial roll-out of the policy.

The government would also implement an exemption from needing a guarantee for eligible incoming vessels and offer expedited border clearance channels that allowed passengers to return directly to their yachts after inspection, the document added.

The scheme strictly prohibited yachts from transporting cargo or engaging in transfers, mortgages or alternative uses after entering the mainland.

Any participants who submitted false materials for their certificates would face immediate revocation and a three-year ban from reapplying.

The draft also stated that yachts would be required to maintain active automatic identification systems (AIS), while owners would need to sign management agreements with recognised mainland clubs to ensure safety and pollution control protocols.

AIS transponders are designed to automatically provide position, identification and other information about the ship to coastal authorities and other vessels.

Ports and islands to be opened up to private vessels - photo © SCMP Graphic

Under the proposal, leisure yachting tours would be allowed in the waters around the Wanshan islands, among other areas. Photo: SCMP

Lee Shu-kam, head of Hong Kong Shue Yan University’s economics and finance department, said that the proposed solo travel scheme’s highly restricted, one-way nature would yield minimal economic benefits for the city in the short term, with local wealth primarily flowing across the border.

The current framework could serve primarily as a controlled pilot scheme for testing cross-border monitoring mechanisms before potentially easing regulations for international participants, he added.

Lee said that to boost the policy’s economic benefit to Hong Kong, authorities could amend it by restricting it as an incentive for investment or to open a family office, so that yacht owners could return to the mainland via Hong Kong.

Opening the maritime borders to foreign-owned vessels and overseas residents in the future could act as a powerful draw to attract wealthy individuals to the city to establish family offices, the academic said.

Such an expansion would drive sustained demand for highly specialised professional services across the business sector, including legal, financial, marine insurance and yacht maintenance, Lee added.

According to the Airport Authority Hong Kong, the value of the global yachting market is projected to reach US$45 billion by 2032.

The authority said the city currently had 12,500 licensed yachts, which competed for only 4,300 berths, necessitating new infrastructure such as the statutory body’s recently launched “Skytopia” marina.