At the press conference on Tuesday, September 14, Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Health Minister Hugo de Jonge announced a handful of relaxations to the national coronavirus measures, and introduced a new coronavirus certificate system for the hospitality and cultural sectors. The new measures will come into effect on Saturday, September 25.
After a year and a half, the Dutch government has lifted the 1,5-metre distance rule. This means businesses will no longer have to enforce social distancing rules at their establishments, and will be able to welcome more customers / visitors.
The lifting of the rule, however, does come with a caveat - so-called coronavirus certificates are now mandatory in the hospitality and cultural industries:
As more restrictions are lifted, Rutte and De Jonge also announced new COVID-19 rules for events and festivals:
In addition to the relaxed rules for the events industry, nightclubs will once again be able to open their doors on September 25:
While travel within the EU opened up just in time for the summer holidays, international travel has remained tricky. On Tuesday, Rutte and De Jonge confirmed that certain restrictions would be relaxed for international travel. As of September 22, vaccinated travellers from very high-risk areas (i.e. the US and the UK) will no longer be required to quarantine upon arrival in the Netherlands.
From September 25, new rules will also apply to schools in the Netherlands. Sticking to the advice set out by the Outbreak Management Team (OMT), whole classes will no longer be sent home to isolate if one student tests positive for COVID-19. Instead, only students who have been in close contact with the infected child will have to isolate.
Face masks are also no longer mandatory in secondary education and universities, and the rule for a maximum group size of 75 people won't apply after September 25.
While many aspects of society continue to open up, certain restrictions and basic rules will remain in place until (at least) November 1:
The so-called work from home advice has been amended slightly: members of the public are now asked to work from home when possible, work from the office when necessary.
The next coronavirus press conference is scheduled to take place in November.
Thumb: Frans Blok via Shutterstock.