2G Plus and stricter mask mandate: new Coronavirus rules in force

Berliners must once again prepare themselves for stricter Coronavirus rules.

2G Plus rule in several areas

From Saturday (Jan. 15, 2022), stricter access rules for restaurants, pubs and cafés will apply, among other things. According to a decision made by the Berlin Senate on Tuesday, the 2G-plus rule will apply in such places, meaning that only people who have received their booster vaccination and people who are doubly vaccinated or recovered and can provide a negative test result will have access. The same conditions apply for events with ten or more participants, for example in the cultural, leisure and sports sectors. Children under the age of 14 are exempt from the rule.

In implementing the 2G-plus rule, Berlin is going beyond the agreement reached by the federal and state governments a week ago on Friday, which was limited to the restaurant industry. The Senate justified its decision to expand the reach of 2g-plus regulations with a desire for unified and comprehensible measures.

FFP2 mask mandate on public transport

In addition, a stricter mask mandate for passengers on buses and trains will come into force on Saturday. On local public transport, the wearing of an FFP2 mask is now generally mandatory - the thinner surgical masks are no longer sufficient.

New quarantine rules in force since Friday

The new quarantine rules approved by the federal and state governments have been in effect in Berlin since Friday. According to these measures, quarantine is no longer required for contact persons with complete vaccination protection and an additional booster vaccination. The quarantine mandate is also waived for newly vaccinated and recovered persons if the infection or vaccination occurred less than three months ago. For all others, quarantine or isolation ends after ten days. It can be ended prematurely after seven days with a negative rapid test or PCR test.