Nearly all locations can be open until 22:00

As of Wednesday 26 January, most locations in our country can once again be open, under certain conditions. This means that restaurants and bars, cinemas, theatres, music venues, museums, zoos and amusement parks can reopen tomorrow. Shops, educational institutions, and contact-based services such as hair salons have already opened, and participating in indoor and outdoor sports activities and artistic and cultural activities has already been permitted. In addition, sports competitions and matches between different clubs will again be permitted as of tomorrow, as will spectators at all sports competitions and matches. The advice on self-quarantining for children under 18 will be relaxed.

The number of new cases is high, and many people are self-isolating or self-quarantining at home. The easing of restrictions will probably cause the number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals to increase. But despite the risks and uncertainties, the government believes it is responsible to take this big step. Because prolonging the measures that so restrict our daily lives is also harmful to people’s health and to society as a whole.
On Tuesday 8 March the government will decide if more restrictions can be eased.

General measures and guidance

  • In general, all locations may be open from 05:00 to 22:00.
  • Always stay 1.5 metres apart.
  • Receive no more than 4 visitors aged 13 and over a day. Visit no more than 1 household a day.
  • Do a self-test before visiting others or receiving visitors, and before going to a location where there are a lot of people.
  • Face masks are mandatory for everyone aged 13 and over on public transport, at stations, on platforms and at bus and tram stops. You must also wear a face mask when walking around in public indoor spaces such as shops, museums, cinemas and hospitality venues. You can take your face mask off when seated in cinemas, theatres and hospitality venues.
  • Wearing a face mask is advised wherever it is not possible to stay 1.5 metres apart, such as busy shopping streets.
  • Assigned seats are mandatory in public indoor spaces such as restaurants, bars, theatres and cinemas.
  • Everyone aged 13 and over must show a coronavirus entry pass at locations where this is mandatory, such as restaurants, bars, theatres and music venues, museums, cinemas, zoos, amusement parks, saunas and casinos. At sports facilities, a coronavirus entry pass is required for people aged 18 and over.
  • At locations where there is a continuous flow of people, such as museums, capacity is limited to 1 visitor per 5 square metres, up to a maximum of 1,250 in each space.
  • Maximum capacity at locations with assigned seating is equal to the number of visitors that can be accommodated 1.5 metres apart. (This is around 1/3 of normal capacity.)
  • No more than 1,250 visitors are allowed at indoor locations for sports, events, culture and the arts.
  • Events without assigned seating, such as festivals, are not yet permitted.
  • Large events (with more than 1,250 visitors) with assigned seating may only take place outdoors.
  • Work from home. If that is not possible, always stay 1.5 metres apart at work.

See the brief overview of basic rules, measures, conditions and exceptions on government.nl.

Quarantine

The advice on self-quarantining is changing.
If you have had contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus, you do not have to self-quarantine if you:

  • have no symptoms

AND

  • are a pupil at primary school or secondary school, or a child that goes to daycare; OR
  • are a student younger than 18 at an institution for secondary vocational education (MBO) or higher education (HBO or university); OR
  • have established together with your employer that your role concerns an essential operational process and you satisfy the conditions set out on Rijksoverheid.nl (‘Quarantine and workers in essential operational processes’, in Dutch); OR
  • received your booster vaccination at least one week ago; OR
  • tested positive for coronavirus less than 8 weeks ago.
  • If you have symptoms of COVID-19:
  • stay at home and do a self-test immediately;
  • if the result of the self-test is positive, get tested by the municipal health service (GGD) as soon as possible;
  • if you get a positive test result, self-isolate at home.

In all cases, avoid contact with older people and people in at-risk groups for 10 days after your last contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus.
For the most up-to-date information on the quarantine rules, go to the Quarantine Check. Keep in mind that the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) and the GGD need to update their policy and procedures. This takes a little time, so their information might not yet be up-to-date right away.

Moving forward together

We have been fighting the coronavirus pandemic for nearly two years. Not only have we learned how difficult it can be to cope with measures that restrict us in our daily lives, but also how difficult it can be to ease those restrictions. We all want to avoid a reversal of the steps to reopen society. This means we need to stay vigilant, and help each other follow the general rules and guidance that still apply. Only together can we move forward.

Health minister uses visual aids during presentation

During the press conference health minister Ernst Kuipers used various visual aids to explain:

  • the impact on society when a high number of people are self-isolating;
  • that fewer people need to be hospitalised if they have been vaccinated, especially after getting a booster jab.