Revamped HK-China border crossing needs stress tests ahead of opening, lawmaker says

The revamped Huanggang Port will need stress tests and drills to ensure the border crossing with China is prepared for operation, a lawmaker and a former security minister have said as authorities signed an agreement to commission the new port.

An artist’s impression of the new Huanggang Port. Photo: IDA Design Awards.

The Hong Kong and Shenzhen governments signed the cooperation agreement on Thursday, “giving effect to the co-operation framework between Hong Kong and Shenzhen for implementing the colocation arrangement at the redeveloped Huanggang Port,” a statement read.

The agreement was signed by security chief Chris Tang and Shenzhen Vice Mayor Luo Huanghao at government headquarters.

The Hong Kong port area was officially established and fell under Hong Kong’s jurisdiction on Friday, July 31. But Hong Kong and Shenzhen authorities have yet to decide when the complex will be fully open to the public.

‘Important milestone’

Tang said in the statement: “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Central Authorities for their staunch support of the implementation of colocation arrangement at the Huanggang Port and the establishment of the Hong Kong Port Area.”

The signing of the cooperation agreement and a separate right-to-use agreement “marks an important milestone in the preparatory work for the opening of the Port,” he said in Cantonese.

The agreement was signed by security chief Chris Tang and Shenzhen Vice Mayor Luo Huanghao at the government headquarters on July 30, 2026. Photo: GovHK.

Hong Kong and Shenzhen authorities began refurbishments of the Huanggang Port, on the Chinese side of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong border, in 2019.

The arrangement is similar to the joint-clearance set-up at the West Kowloon High Speed Railway Station. However, in the case of the train station, a portion of Hong Kong territory was handed over to China for the purposes of joint clearance.

The governments position the port as “the most important 24-hour passenger land boundary control point between Hong Kong and Shenzhen,” according to the Thursday statement.

The overall clearance time at the redeveloped Huanggang Port will be significantly reduced from around 30 minutes at the existing Lok Ma Chau/Huanggang Port to approximately five minutes.

The new port will have a capacity of 200,000 passenger trips per day and could be further increased to about 300,000 once the Northern Link Spur Line is commissioned.

Lawmaker Brave Chan, also a Hong Kong deputy to the National People’s Congress, told RTHK that the new arrangement would “bring Hong Kong and Shenzhen closer together.”

An artist’s impression of the new Huanggang Port. Photo: IDA Design Awards.

He said he believed the port would attract a large influx of visitors when it opened, adding that it would be necessary to conduct systems tests and emergency drills to ensure the facility was fully prepared.

Chan also recommended taking reference from stress tests implemented for the opening of large-scale projects such as the Kai Tak Sports Park.

Former security minister Lai Tung-kwok noted that travellers only need to pass through one set of border controls under the new clearance model.

Travellers will only need to show their Home Return Permit when travelling to mainland China, and their Hong Kong ID card when returning to Hong Kong, he explained. Authorities also need to ensure that the new port is sufficiently staffed in case travellers encounter any issues, he added.

The legislative process for approving the co-location bill was reportedly the fastest round of legislative scrutiny since authorities overhauled the electoral system in 2021 to ensure only “patriots” could become lawmakers.