When Macau residents Amy Leong and Danniel Ng embarked on a plan to relocate for retirement, they hit an unexpected hurdle: finding affordable moving services proved challenging because of the extra charges for customs clearance.
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They had decided to move from the casino hub, where they had lived for decades, to Hengqin, a neighbouring island jointly managed by the Guangdong and Macau governments.
A residential project exclusively for Macau residents, the Macau New Neighbourhood, was rolled out last year.
The couple in their 60s bought a three-bedroom flat for about 3 million yuan (US$411,180), which they said was more expensive than other homes in Zhuhai, but still cheaper than in the casino city.
“Hiring a mover is even more expensive than buying all [the furniture] over again from the mainland,” Leong said. The couple decided to move their belongings using their own car, making multiple trips between Macau and Hengqin.
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“It was quite a headache, we had to throw away many pieces of furniture that couldn’t fit in our car,” Leong said. “Why couldn’t the two governments sit down and work out a plan to help us move easier?”