Nobody wants to talk about a “Freedom Day”. In fact, however, April 3 is a deep turning point in Bavaria. After more than two years of the corona pandemic, almost all regulations that were previously intended to slow down the spread of the pathogen are now being abolished. Only a test and a mask requirement in some places remain – the so-called basic protection. This is because the federal government has allowed the corresponding legal basis for the measures in the Infection Protection Act to expire, so the federal states can only issue a few restrictions. Bavaria has limited itself to “basic protection”.
That means: From Sunday, April 3rd, there will be no more access or contact restrictions, for example, and the extensive mask requirement will no longer apply. Even unvaccinated people can go anywhere and meet whoever they want. An overview of the new Corona rules in Bavaria as announced by the state government (the text of the new Corona regulation has not yet been published):
The new mask requirement
The obligation to wear a mask is reduced to a few areas: On the one hand, on local public transport (this also includes taxis) – here in Bavaria it must be an FFP2 mask. As well as on long-distance trains and airplanes – a medical mask (surgical mask) is sufficient here.
On the other hand, an FFP2 mask must be worn in many health facilities and homes. These include medical practices, hospitals and day clinics, prevention, dialysis and rehabilitation facilities, rescue and outpatient care services, full and partial inpatient care facilities and facilities for people with disabilities, homeless and refugee accommodation.
For children and young people between the ages of six and 16, a medical mask (surgical mask) is always sufficient. Children up to their sixth birthday, the deaf or hard of hearing, and people who are unable to do so for medical reasons are generally exempt from the obligation to wear a mask, which must be proven by a certificate.
where testing still needs to be done
From April 3rd, there will only be a compulsory test in hospitals, prisons, retirement and nursing homes. Here, visitors and employees need a current, negative rapid corona test; for employees, two tests per week are sufficient if they are vaccinated or have recovered.
Test evidence must be submitted in writing (printed out or on a mobile phone). A PCR test must not be older than 48 hours, a rapid test no older than 24 hours. A self-test is only sufficient if it was carried out under supervision, which is confirmed in writing (maximum 24 hours old).
School and daycare children are regularly tested (see below) – at least until the Easter holidays.
Which is also recommended
The state government recommends protecting yourself, for example by keeping your distance from other people or generally wearing a mask indoors. She advises leisure facilities or shops on hygiene concepts (e.g. disinfection). But none of this is mandatory anymore. Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has also appealed to supermarkets and shops to impose a mask requirement themselves – they are free to do so as part of the house rules. So far, however, this has not found a greater response.
No more contact and access restrictions
The core of the Corona regulations in recent months have been specifications as to the maximum number of people you can meet, as well as access restrictions to shops, restaurants, leisure facilities and much more (2 G or 3 G). All of these restrictions expire without exception on April 2nd – as do all upper limits for the number of visitors or partial alcohol sales bans. General business closures (e.g. of clubs and discotheques) are no longer possible.
What applies in the workplace
A 3G rule applied in many companies until March 20th. Only those who had been vaccinated against Corona, had recovered from it or had tested negative for the pathogen were allowed to come there. That was eliminated in mid-March – as was the obligation to allow employees to work from home and to offer free corona tests. Now the companies themselves have to define hygiene concepts in the workplace, but there are no guidelines for this.
Special rules at schools and day-care centers
To the schools there are face-to-face classes. The mask requirement, which last only applied from the seventh grade anyway, will no longer apply from next week. From the seventh grade onwards, all children and young people take a self-test three times a week under supervision, provided they do not present a negative rapid or PCR test. At elementary and special schools as well as in the fifth and sixth grades, there are so-called lollipop tests for everyone, i.e. PCR pool tests (twice a week), plus a quick test on Mondays. Pupils who have been vaccinated and who have recovered must also be tested regularly.
If there is a corona case in the class, no one will be automatically sent home except for the infected person. As a result, everyone in this class has to test themselves every morning for a week and also wear a mask in their seat. Only when there are more cases can the school order homeschooling for the whole class – the state government gives as a guideline for this: When half of the children no longer come to school. In this case, the health department can also classify all children or young people as contact persons and order a quarantine.
In the Daycare centers, i.e. crèches, kindergartens and after-school care centers, there is normal operation. Although there is no obligation to test on the premises of the day-care center, there is an obligation for the parents to provide proof: they must “credibly assure” three times a week that they have tested their child themselves at home with a negative result. This test obligation applies to all children from their first birthday. The tests, which the Free State pays for by means of a certificate of eligibility, must always be carried out on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Alternatively, the children can also be tested in pool tests, provided that the respective facility offers this.
In the event of a Corona case in a group, it will not be automatically closed – but only when at least one fifth of the children have tested positive. Then the group will be closed for five days (including weekends or public holidays) from the next day. In this case, the health department can also declare all children to be contact persons and send them to quarantine; Group closure and quarantine are independent of each other. An individual determination of contact persons does not take place in day-care centers. In the event of a group closure, only vaccinated or recovered children may continue to visit the facility; However, the Ministry of Social Affairs advises against this. If only one corona case is known in a group, the parents have to test their children every day for a week.
And what about the hotspot tightening?
So far there are none. In certain areas, the state government could, if it wanted to and if the state parliament agreed, issue stricter rules. This can be individual cities and districts or the entire country; Hygiene regulations, distance rules, a mask requirement in other areas or access restrictions such as a 2-G or 3-G rule would then be possible there. According to the law, the prerequisite for this would be either that a new, more dangerous virus variant is circulating or that “there is a risk of hospital capacity being overloaded in the respective local authority” due to the large number of new infections. The government argues that this is currently out of the question in Bavaria.
rules upon entry
When entering Bavaria, the same regulations now apply as nationwide. According to this, anyone entering from a so-called high-risk or virus variant area must register and possibly go into quarantine. Since the beginning of March there are no more such as from the Listing of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) emerges.