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COVID-19

‘Quite brave’: Switzerland goes further than expected in new easing of Covid rules

Switzerland announced on Wednesday it would relax a range of coronavirus measures which could mean summer in the country feels like something approaching normal. Here’s what you need to know.

Published: 23 June 2021 17:07 CEST
'Quite brave': Switzerland goes further than expected in new easing of Covid rules
Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset. Photo: Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP

Switzerland on Wednesday cited a positive epidemiological development as a reason why its planned loosening of Covid measures will be more extensive than previously thought.  

Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset said the changes were “quite brave”, although he called upon members of the public to continue to be responsible. 

Berset also told those who had not been vaccinated yet to do so, with half of the population expected to be vaccinated by the end of June. 

What measures have been relaxed? 

A major change is that the relaxations will come into effect on Saturday, June 26th – rather than the June 28th date previously given by the government. 

The changes to the travel rules are still set to come into effect on the 28th. 

People will no longer be required to work from home, with the obligation replaced by a recommendation to do so, while mandatory testing no longer needs to be carried out in the workplace. 

Limits on the number of people who can sit at a table indoors will be lifted completely, with the government previously indicating they would rise from four to six. The limits will also be lifted outdoors. 

The maximum number of people at events will also be lifted, with events of up to 1,000 people now allowed without approval and events of up to 10,000 people requiring approval. 

There will be no requirement to wear masks or keep a distance during cultural and sporting activities – and the rules will no longer differentiate between professional and amateur sportspeople and artists. 

Face-to-face teaching is again allowed to take place in universities and vocational schools. 

A summary of the measures which are set to apply is available at the following link. 

IN DETAIL: What are Switzerland’s new relaxed coronavirus measures?

Immunity passport needed to visit nightclubs and take part in large events

Central to the plan is ensuring people use Switzerland’s Covid immunity certificate. More information is available below. 

READ MORE: What will Switzerland’s Covid-19 pass allow you to do?

Member comments

  1. Reading the FOPH announcement today, it seems to say that visits from the UK will be possible from the 28th, providing you have had both jabs. Is that correct?

    1. That’s the way I read it too. But if you then have to travel back to the UK, you will still end up in quarantine on their side due to the UK immigration rules. Switzerland is still ‘Amber’ and they still insist on PCR tests even for vaccinated travellers.

      1. Yes, thanks for your reply. Perhaps the return quarantine requirement may be lifted soon for the double vaccinated – but at least travel is possible which is good news.

  2. “Entry from a country with a variant of the virus of concern

    The current list of high-risk countries issued by the Federal Office of Public Health is to be revised and will only contain countries or regions where virus variants of concern to Switzerland are in circulation. Persons who have been vaccinated or who have recovered from the disease will be permitted to enter Switzerland from these countries or regions without having to be tested or to quarantine as long as it is certain that the vaccination offers good protection. Those who have neither been vaccinated nor have recovered must present a negative PCR test or rapid antigen test and go into quarantine on entry.

    In practice, this means that persons who have been vaccinated or who have recovered do not have to produce a negative test even when travelling from countries where the Delta variant is widespread (such as India or the United Kingdom) and do not have to quarantine on entry. The vaccines used in Switzerland are only slightly less effective against the Delta variant and thus still offer a very high level of protection.”

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COVID-19

What does the increase in the number of Covid cases in Switzerland mean?

Coronavirus infections are on the rise again, with Swiss health officials and epidemiologists expressing concern over the possible evolution of the disease.

Published: 15 November 2023 15:32 CET
What does the increase in the number of Covid cases in Switzerland mean?

While the worst of the Covid pandemic is long over, and experts don’t expect it to re-emerge with the same strength and health consequences as it had in 2020, new cases have been reported in the past weeks.

Wastewater analysis, one of the means employed by health officials to measure the presence of coronavirus, indicates a viral load that is at least five times higher than usual, with values “now almost as high as in some previous Omicron-related waves,” Christoph Ort, spokesperson for Eawag Institute, which traces Covid viruses in 14 wastewater treatment plants in Switzerland, told the media.

What does this mean?

According to Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), the most common sub-variant in Switzerland right now is the highly transmissible XBB, also known as ‘Kraken.’

The Eris and Pirola variants, which circulated in the summer and early fall are also still present.

While none is nearly as dangerous (at least for most people) as the early Alpha and Delta viruses, which claimed hundreds of thousands of lives in the early stages of the pandemic, there is a reason for concern nevertheless.

“It’s a start of a small wave,” said Rudolf Hauri, head of the Cantonal Doctors’ Association.

“More people are being admitted to hospitals again with, or because of, coronavirus. There are also new cases in intensive care units, but these are generally people with a medical history.”

Should you be worried?
 
While the number of people with serious Covid-related complications is not expected to be as high as previously, the rise in the number of infections should not be trivialised either, infectious disease specialists say.
 
This is especially important for people in the high-risk category — those over 65 or suffering from chronic illnesses — who can get quite sick if infected with the new variants, according to FOPH.
 
This is all the more important as the flu season is about to begin in Switzerland as well, and the confluence of both illnesses, plus other respiratory viruses that typically circulate during the winter, can be very risky.
 
What can you do to protect yourself?
 
Other than adopting the same protective measures as those during the pandemic — that is, washing hands, avoiding close contacts and crowded spaces, and wearing masks where needed — health officials also recommend top-up shots, for both Covid and flu.

READ ALSO: Who should get top-up Covid and flu jabs in Switzerland?

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