INITIAL CONTACTS

Nuno Sardinha da Mata (Partner)

Zhao Lu (Partner)

Building Opportunities

Macau is quickly establishing a strong reputation as a regional entertainment, exhibition and conference centre led by the gaming industry. It combines excellent resort facilities and entertainment, a unique Chinese and Portuguese heritage, a large variety of cruisine and an outstanding location at the mouth of the Pearl River. Number of visitors is growing in leaps and bounds, achieving new historical highs every year. Its property market is vigorous and exciting, and construction in Macau has been the mainstay of business for many Hong Kong construction companies in the past few years. Macau has recently been considered the most promising destination in Asia and one of the world's top tourism destinations by the WTO.

These investment opportunities are not devoid of challenges, and most businesses are faced with land and labour shortages. In Macau, only 5% of land is freehold, with the remaining 95% being held by the Macau SAR Government. There is a complex system for leasing government-owned land and companies are subject to labour quotas. Contracts are also much shorter than the ones drafted under common law systems and a local legal opinion is therefore advisable.

We provide advice and legal support for a broad range of matters relating to real estate, construction and tourism industries, including: