One-stop boundary control
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On Wednesday, the National People's Congress Standing Committee, China's top legislature, decided to approve the one-stop boundary control cooperation arrangement that was signed by Guangdong province and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Dec 18.
Under the arrangement, a “port” will be established at the railway terminus in West Kowloon in Hong Kong, where all customs, immigration and quarantine procedures will be carried out for the Guangzhou-ShenzhenHong Kong Express Rail Link.
The mainland and the HKSAR will respectively carry out exit and entry supervision at the port, including immigration inspection, customs clearance, and inspection and quarantine measures for people crossing the boundary, as well as their belongings.
The Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link is scheduled to open in the third quarter of next year.
The NPC Standing Committee said the co-location arrangement is fully consistent with the "one country, two systems" policy and does not change the administrative area of the Hong Kong SAR.
After the top legislature's approval, Guangdong province and the Hong Kong SAR should begin their legislative processes to implement the arrangement.
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