New Pandemic Guidelines: Gathering Limit Raised, Masking Up Relaxed Slightly, And More

Minister of Health Svandís Svavarsdóttir has introduced some changes to Iceland’s pandemic regulations today which are due to go into effect on Tuesday, May 25th, and will be in effect until June 16th.

First, the gathering limit will be raised from 50 to 150 people. Children born in 2015 or earlier are exempted for the total head count of any given space.

The two-metre social distancing rule will remain in effect apart from in restaurants, at seated events, in schools and at public pools, where a one-metre distance will be observed.

Masks will no longer be required in shops or workplaces. However, masks will be required at seated events such as the cinema, religious services, sporting events and the like. Masks will also be required in service centres where close proximity is required, e.g. at hair salons, massage parlors, and similar places. Health service centres may still require masks.

Public pools, museums, campgrounds and ski areas can now admit up to 75% of their maximum capacity. This also applies to gyms, but no more than 150 people will be permitted.

Seated events may admit up to 300 people.

Shops will no longer require a maximum capacity for pandemic reasons.

Restaurants may remain open until 23:00, but everyone must vacate the premises no later than midnight.

As for the border, even those vaccinated must still undergo screening upon arrival in Iceland, but it is expected that the quarantine hotels and the ban on unnecessary travel from high-risk areas will be done away with on June 1st.

Much of this rests upon the success of Iceland’s vaccination drive. There were no domestic cases of the coronavirus yesterday and, as of May 21st, 80,464 people in Iceland are now fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, with 163,815 having received at least one dose of a vaccine.

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