The Gongbei Point of Entry viewed from above.

The departure hall at Gongbei.

The Gongbei Port (Chinese: 拱北口岸; pinyin: Gǒngběi Kǒuàn) is an immigration and customs checkpoint located in Zhuhai of mainland China, on its border with Macao. It is operated by the Bureau of Exit and Entry Administration of the Ministry of Public Security, and the General Administration of Customs.

It is located in the Gongbei neighbourhood (jiedao) in the southeastern part of Zhuhai, and is one of two ports of entry on land between the mainland China and Macau (the other being the Lotus Bridge, connecting Hengqin, Zhuhai in mainland China with Cotai, Macau).

Immigration and customs for travellers exiting mainland China are to the east, while immigration and customs for those entering mainland China are to the west.

There is a large underground shopping mall under the plaza north of the port-of-entry building.

The counterpart in Macau, through which travellers must pass before or after Gongbei is the Portas do Cerco, operated by the Serviço de Migração of the Corpo de Polícia de Segurança Pública, and the Serviços de Alfândega.

Transport to the border[link]

Gongbei Bus Station, a coach station, with transport to Guangzhou and other cities in Guangdong and elsewhere in China, is located within walking distance from the border crossing.

The future Zhuhai Railway Station, currently under construction, is located beside the border crossing.

See also[link]

• Port of entry

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gongbei Port of Entry

• Gongbei Customs

v t e China – Macau border crossings Mainland China Gongbei Port • Hengqin Port • Wanzai Port • Zhuhai-Macau Cross Border Industrial Zone Port Macau Border Gate Checkpoint • Cotai Checkpoint • Inner Harbor Checkpoint • Zhuhai-Macau Cross-border Industrial Zone Checkpoint See also: Portas do Cerco • Lotus Bridge

In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has a staff of people who check passports and visas and inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. International airports are usually ports of entry, as are road and rail crossings on a land border. Seaports can be used as ports of entry only if a dedicated customs presence is posted there. The choice of whether to become a port of entry is up to the civil authority controlling the port.

In the United States[link]

The formal definition of a port of entry in the United States is something entirely different. According to the Code of Federal Regulations, "the terms 'port' and 'port of entry' incorporate the geographical area under the jurisdiction of a port director." In other words, a port of entry may encompass an area that includes several border crossings, as well as some air and sea ports. This also means that not every border crossing is a port of entry. There are two reasons for this:

1. Every port of entry must have a Port Director, which is a higher pay grade than a typical border inspector. The U.S. government has determined that some small border crossings do not need their own Port Directors. As a result, border stations like Churubusco, Chateaugay and Fort Covington, New York are considered "stations" within the Trout River Port of Entry.
2. Historically, many roads entering the U.S. had no border inspection station. Before September 11, 2001, it was permissible for persons entering the U.S. to do so at any point (including back roads or closed border stations), as long as they proceeded directly to an open border inspection station. In fact, the U.S. Customs Service and U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service routinely rented property in houses, post offices, and storefronts far from the physical border, and people entering the U.S. were expected to travel to these locations without stopping so they could make their declarations. This policy has since changed, and most of the roads entering the U.S. at locations other than an open and staffed border inspection station have since been barricaded.

Variations[link]

In some countries, immigration procedures are carried out by the armed forces rather than specific immigration officers. However in most, the levying of duty on imports is still carried out by customs officers. Immigration clearance at in some ports of entry have automated sections open to the country's own residents or citizens, such as the E-Channel found in Hong Kong and Macau, and Global Entry found at some airports in the United States.

On some international borders, the concept of a port of entry does not exist. Travelers may cross the border wherever and whenever convenient, for example within the Schengen Area. In some cases this may be restricted to citizens of specific countries and to travelers who are not carrying goods over the customs limits; others may only cross the border at a designated border crossing during its opening times.

See also[link]

• Airport of entry
• Border
• Border checkpoint
• Border control
• Customs
• Schengen Agreement