Passport issued to permanent residents of Macao SAR who are Chinese citizens
Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China passport
中華人民共和國澳門特別行政區護照
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The front cover of the Macao SAR
ePassport
issued since September 2009
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Type
| Passport
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Issued by
|
Macau
Identification Services Bureau
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First issued
| 1999 (first version)
September 2009 (second version)
December 2019 (third version)
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Eligibility
| Chinese citizens
who are permanent residents of
Macau
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Expiration
| 10 years after acquisition for adults aged 16 or over, 5 for children
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The
Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China
passport
(
Chinese
:
澳門特別行政區護照
;
Portuguese
:
Passaporte da Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau
) is a
passport
issued to
Chinese citizens
who are permanent residents of the Chinese
Special Administrative Region
of
Macau
.
In accordance with
Macau Basic Law
, since the
handover of Macau
on 20 December 1999, this passport has been issued by the
Identification Services Bureau
(under the
Secretariat for Administration and Justice
) of the
government of Macau
under the prerogative of the
Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China
.
The official languages of Macau are
Portuguese
and
Chinese
; consequently, all the passport's text is in
Traditional Chinese characters
and Portuguese in addition to
English
.
Historical background
[
edit
]
According to the
nationality law of the People's Republic of China
and the explanations given for some questions by the Standing Committee of the
National People's Congress
concerning the implementation of
nationality law
in Macau, any Macau permanent resident holding Chinese nationality can apply for the Macau SAR passport.
Many residents of Macau also possess
Portuguese citizenship
by virtue of being born in Macau before 3 October 1981, naturalization, or being born to parents with Portuguese citizenship in Macau. Such citizens are also eligible for, and often hold, a
Portuguese passport
, which grants more visa-free countries than the MSAR passport as well as permitting
free movement of passport holders
in the
European Union
.
[1]
Physical features
[
edit
]
The 2nd version of the passport, a
biometric passport
, was first issued by the Identification Services Bureau at the start of September 2009, replacing the previous machine-readable type.
The cover of the passport is coloured bottle green with the
National Emblem of the People's Republic of China
emblazoned centermost at the front. The passport's front cover is inscribed with the titles of the PRC and the SAR in
Chinese
:
中華人民共和國澳門特別行政區護照
;
Portuguese
:
Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau, Republica Popular da China, Passaporte
and English:
Macao Special Administrative Region, People's Republic of China, Passport
. Each passport consists of 48 numbered pages of size 125 mm × 88 mm (4.9 in × 3.5 in) emprinted with artistic designs featuring Macau's world culture heritage sites.
[2]
Besides personal data, the supplemental page of passport is printed with the picture and
fingerprint
of that holder.
Application procedure
[
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]
Macau SAR passports are only issued by the Identification Services Bureau in Macau.
[3]
An applicant must fill out an application form, possess a Macau SAR Permanent Resident Identity Card and two recent 1½-inch colour photos along with (if replacing an old passport) their prior Macau SAR Passport.
Qualified applicants can apply in Macau or overseas if necessary.
Mainland China
[
edit
]
Although MSAR passport is endorsed by
Chinese government
, the
Ministry of Public Security
(MPS) does not accept MSAR passports for traveling between the mainland and Macau, since both mainland and Macau authorities agreed that using a passport for 'domestic' travel is 'unnecessary' and 'inappropriate'. Macau residents who are eligible to hold a Macau SAR passport are also eligible to apply for a
Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents
(colloquially known as a "Home Return Permit") through the MPS, which serves as a travel document for Chinese citizen Macau residents to travel to the mainland. The issuance is entirely at the discretion of the MPS, which is represented in Macau by the
China Travel Service
, and possession of a Macau SAR passport does not necessarily guarantee the issuing of a Home Return Permit.
Macau residents who travel to the mainland from a third country without Home Return Permit may obtain a
Chinese Travel Document
from an overseas Chinese embassy or consulate prior to their departure from the third country.
Hong Kong
[
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]
Regardless of their citizenship status, Macau permanent residents do not need passports to enter Hong Kong. Instead, residents must bring their permanent ID card, which grants 180-day visa free access to Hong Kong. Non-permanent residents can use a
Visit Permit for Residents of Macao to HKSAR
to enter Hong Kong for up to 30 days visa-free.
Overseas
[
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]
According to Macau's Identity Services Bureau, as of January 2018 Macau SAR passport holders enjoy visa-free access to 136 countries and territories worldwide, including all Member States of the
European Union
,
Brazil
,
Japan
,
Malaysia
,
Russia
,
Singapore
,
South Africa
and
South Korea
.
[4]
According to the
Henley Passport Index
, in 2019 the Macau SAR passport was ranked as the 36th most powerful passport worldwide; in contrast, the Hong Kong SAR passport was ranked 19th, while the
PRC passport
was ranked 74th.
[5]
As Chinese citizens, holders of a Macau Special Administrative Region passport are entitled to full consular protection by Chinese foreign missions abroad.
Macau SAR passport holders may undertake a paid activity (i.e. work) visa-free for a maximum of 90 days within a 180-day period in the
Schengen Agreement
signatory states of
Belgium
,
Denmark
,
Iceland
,
Lithuania
,
Luxembourg
, the
Netherlands
,
Norway
,
Slovenia
and
Sweden
(though not in
Portugal
).
[6]
In
Switzerland
, another Schengen signatory state, Macao SAR passport holders can apply for a permit for "gainful occupation" of maximum 8 days in a calendar year during their visa-exempt stay without needing to apply for a work visa;
[7]
however, this 8-day exemption does not cover occupation in the primary or secondary construction industry, civil engineering, catering and hotel services, industrial and private cleaning industries, surveillance and security services, and sex industry. Alternatively, if in possession of a long term residence permit issued by any other Schengen member state, a Macau SAR passport holder may undertake gainful occupation for up to 3 months visa-free in Switzerland without any of the aforementioned industry restrictions. In
Croatia
(a
European Union member state
but not a
Schengen agreement
signatory state), Macao SAR passport holders may undertake a paid activity (i.e. work) visa-free for a maximum of 90 days within a 180-day period.
[6]
Macau SAR passport holders aged between 18 and 30 are eligible to apply under the Working Holiday Scheme by the
New Zealand Government
.
[8]
If successful, a visa is issued which permits the holder to spend up to 12 months in New Zealand for the primary purpose of travel but allowing for supplementary short-term employment or study. The scheme is highly competitive as applicants from Macau and Mainland China are subject to a quota of 1000 visas annually (there is a separate quota for Hong Kong applicants).
On 10 April 2013, the
Prime Minister of Australia
,
Julia Gillard
, announced that, starting from 2015, holders of Macao SAR
e-passports
(along with
Hong Kong SAR
and
PRC passport
holders) would be able to use
SmartGates
in
Australia
on a trial basis.
[9]
The three passports were permanently included in the list of eligible nationalities in June 2016.
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
External links
[
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]
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Issued by
Macau
| Identity documents
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Passports
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Travel documents
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Defunct documents
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Issued by
China
| Identity documents
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Travel documents
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Issued by
Portugal
| Identity documents
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Passports
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See also the identity and travel document templates for
China
and
Hong Kong
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UN member states
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A?B
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C
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D?F
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G?K
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L?M
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N?R
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T?Z
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Other entities
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UN observer states
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Other sovereign entities
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Sovereignty disputed
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No recognition
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International organizations
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Americas
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Europe
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Global
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Defunct passports
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Dissolved states
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Former organizations
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Sovereignty disputed
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Passport types
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Data formats
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