Yahoo Movies Covid restrictions are easing in Victoria today. What changes, and what are your new freedoms on Friday night?
Victoria will hit its 80% vaccination milestone on Friday, with a significant easing of restrictions across the state from 6pm.
Students will return to class full-time, masks will no longer be required outside, and non-essential retail will reopen.
Most indoor settings, including gyms and restaurants, will be open and travel will be allowed between Melbourne and regional Victoria.
Here is exactly what is allowed from Friday.
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You can have people in your home
Private gatherings will still be limited to 10 people, including dependants until the state hits a 90% vaccination rate.
Groups of up to 30 people can gather outside.
The premier, Daniel Andrews, has strongly recommended that visitors be vaccinated but acknowledged it was not easy to enforce.
The indoor limit is increased to 30 once 80% of the 12+ population is reached, currently set for Christmas Day.
You can travel across the state
All Victorians will now be on the same restrictions settings, which means those in Melbourne can leave the city for the first time in months.
Travel between regional Victoria and Melbourne will be allowed, with no constraints.
Masks are no longer needed outdoors
Masks will no longer be required outdoors, but are recommended when you cannot socially distance.
Masks are still mandatory inside.
Related: Victorian government urged to drop deep clean mandates as businesses fork out thousands
Retail will open
From 6pm on Friday “non-essential” retail will reopen.
Some retail giants will extend their trading hours on Friday night in the hope of luring in late-night shoppers.
Myer, Chadstone, Kmart and Westfield will all be open between 6pm and midnight while Bunnings and JB Hi-Fi will stay open until 10 pm and David Jones and Emporium will stay open until 9pm.
Pubs, restaurants, gyms and hairdressers
Most indoor settings, including restaurants, pubs, gyms and hairdressers will open with no caps subject to a density limit of one person every 4sqm, as long as all staff and patrons are fully vaccinated.
Most outdoor settings will remain at one person per every 2sqm – with a cap of 500 people.
Funerals and weddings
Weddings, funerals and religious services will return for fully vaccinated Victorians, subject to indoor/outdoor density quotas.
Caps of 30 people will apply for weddings, funerals and religious gatherings if vaccination status is unknown.
Large events
Entertainment venues will reopen.
For indoor seated venues including cinemas and theatres, there will be a 75% capacity limit or a maximum of one person per 4sqm up to 1,000 people.
For non-seated indoor entertainment venues, there will be a maximum of one person per 4sqm, with no patron cap.
Outdoor seated and non-seated entertainment venues including stadiums, zoos and tourism attractions, will be open with a maximum of one person per 2sqm, with a cap of 5,000.
Events – such as music festivals – will be able to host up to 5,000 attendees, subject to any restrictions related to the venue.
The Chief Health Officer may also grant approval for larger crowds for significant events and venues under the Public Events Framework.
School return
All students return to face-to-face learning in classrooms, with additional safety measures in place.
Adult education also returns to on-site learning for fully vaccinated students.
Early childhood education and care is open.
But events with significant numbers of children may not be able to operate at full capacity while vaccines remain unavailable for children.
Work
People will still work from home if they can, but can go into offices and workplaces if fully vaccinated.
Masks will still be required inside at work.
Real Estate
Inspections are set to return to Melbourne’s real estate market from 6pm, ahead of on-site auctions on Saturday.
