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COVID-19 RULES

Reader question: What are Vienna’s new Covid measures?

As the federal government announces new rules, especially on masks and quarantine, Austria's capital has also put forth stricter regulations.

Published: 25 March 2022 14:38 CET
Reader question: What are Vienna's new Covid measures?

After a day’s delay, Austria’s new government regulations on the coronavirus pandemic have been in force since Thursday, March 26th, but the capital Vienna has once again decided on stricter restrictions.

Here’s an overview of what the rules are regarding the pandemic in Vienna.

Stricter rules than the federal government

Vienna has kept a 2G rule (access for vaccinated or recovered people) for sports facilities and gastronomy, which has not been the case for the federal government, where no ‘G’ rules are obligatory.

Besides that, an FFP2 mask is still required in all indoor places, including in gastronomy, except at the seat, and in sports facilities, except while practising sports.

The rest of Austria has brought back the mask mandate but made it an option for night gastronomy and events with more than 100 people to have a 3G (vaccinate, recovered, or tested) rule instead.

READ MORE: Seven ways the Covid-19 pandemic has changed Austria

The quarantine rules are also very different in Vienna. In the rest of Austria, people who have tested positive will be able to end their quarantine on the fifth day without a test.

They will need to not have had any symptoms for 48 hours and should go into a transition phase of five days during which a mask must be worn at all times when in contact with other people, and they won’t be able to go to places such as gastronomy, sports facilities, and large events.

Vienna has not adopted these less strict measures. In the capital, those who tested positive can only end their quarantine on the fifth day if they don’t show any symptoms for at least 48 hours and test negative (or test positive with a CT value above 30).

READ MORE: How Covid absences are disrupting Austrian hospitals, schools and transport

Tests and workplaces

In Vienna, PCR test results must not be older than 48 hours, and antigen tests are valid for 24 hours, but only those made by authorised institutions, such as pharmacies and test roads.

There is no longer the need to prove vaccination status or show a workplace test result. However, there are separate rules for hospitals and nursing homes.

Trade, gastronomy, and hotels

In trade, an FFP2 mask requirement is still valid for all customers. For employees, the requirement only applies when in direct client contact. For body-related services, there is a mask mandate for customers and staff.

In Vienna, there is a 2G rule for gastronomy and a mask mandate for guests (when not seated) and staff. There is no longer a curfew, so night gastronomy is allowed to reopen with a 2G rule and a mask mandate for staff.

In the tourism sector, hotel guests no longer need to show any G proof. Still, there is a mask requirement in public areas and the 2G rule for the bars and restaurants within the hotel.

Events and leisure

There is no longer a limit of participants in events in Vienna. However, masks must still be worn when the event is indoors – regardless of any 3G rule of entry. In addition, for more than 50 attendees, the event must have a “prevention concept” presented to municipal authorities.

In theatres, cinemas, concert halls, museums, exhibitions, libraries and libraries, an FFP2 mask requirement applies indoors, but no G-rules.

The 2G rule continues to apply to indoor sports in Vienna, so for gym visits. People need to wear an FFP2 mask except for when they are exercising. There are no more restrictions on outdoor sports.

READ MORE: Covid-19: No change for mask rules in schools

Rules for children and minors

Children under the age of five are exempt from any G-rules.

When they are six to 12 years old, they must comply with a 3G rule wherever they exist for adults. In that case, PCR tests are valid for 48 hours and antigen for 24 hours. A valid “ninja passport”, with tests carried out in schools over the week, is also valid on weekends.

For children between 12 and 15 years old, there is a 2.5G rule (vaccinated, recovered, or PCR-tested). The ninja passport cannot be used as an entrance test for this age, and the last PCR is valid for 48 hours.

After the end of compulsory schooling, the same rules apply to adolescents as to adults.

Hospitals and nursing homes

Here the rules are also stricter in the capital than those in the rest of the country.

In hospitals, only one visitor per day per patient is allowed, and there is a 2G+ rule for visitors. For nursing homes, two visitors per day per resident are allowed, and they must also show 2G+ proof.

Additionally, an FFP2 mask must be worn for the entire duration of the visit.

Reminder: 2G+ means that the person must prove that they are fully vaccinated against Covid or have recently recovered from the disease. In addition to that, they must provide a negative test result.

READ MORE: UPDATED: Austria brings back mandatory FFP2 masks indoors as Covid cases soar

Useful vocabulary

Gültigkeit – validity

Handel und körpernahe Dienstleistungen – commerce and “body-related” services

Zusammenkünfte – meetings

Veranstaltungen – events

Nachweis – proof, certificate

Important links

City of Vienna
Federal government

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TRAVEL NEWS

What will Europe’s EES passport checks mean for dual nationals?

The EU's Entry & Exit System (EES) of enhanced passport checks will usher in big changes for travellers - here we answer readers' questions on the position for dual nationals.

Published: 22 April 2024 17:10 CEST
What will Europe's EES passport checks mean for dual nationals?

The EU is preparing, after many delays, to introduce the EES system for travel in and out of Europe.

You can find a full explanation of how it works HERE, but in essence it is an enhanced passport check – registering biometric details such as fingerprints and facial scans and introducing an automatic calculation of how long you have stayed within the EU/Schengen zone in order to detect ‘over-stayers’.

And it’s already causing stress for travellers. We asked readers of The Local to share their questions here – and one of the biggest worries was how the system will work for dual nationals ie people who have a passport for both an EU country and a non-EU country.

EES: Your questions answered

EU passports 

One of the main purposes of EES is to detect ‘over-stayers’ – people who have either stayed in the EU longer than their visa allows or non-EU nationals who have over-stayed their allowance of 90 days in every 180.

As this does not apply to EU nationals, people travelling on an EU passport are not required to do EES pre-registration and will continue to travel in the same way once EES is introduced – going to the ‘EU passports queue’ at airports, ports and stations and having their passports scanned as normal.

Non-EU 

Non-EU travellers will, once EES is up and running, be required to complete EES pre-registration.

This means that the first time they cross an EU/Schengen zone external border they will have to go to a special zone of the airport/port/terminal and supply extra passport information including fingerprints and a facial scan.

This only needs to be done once and then lasts for three years.

Non-EU residents of the EU/Schengen zone

This does not apply to non-EU citizens who are permanent residents of an EU country or who have a long-stay visa for an EU/Schengen zone country – click HERE for full details.

Schengen zone passports/Irish passports 

EES applies within the Schengen zone, so people with Swiss, Norwegian and Icelandic passports are treated in the same way as citizens of EU countries.

Ireland and Cyprus are in the EU but not the Schengen zone – these countries will not be using the EES system at their borders, but their citizens are still EU citizens so can continue to use EU passport gates at airports and will be treated the same as all other EU citizens (ie they don’t have to do EES pre-registration).

OK, so what if you have both an EU and a non-EU passport?

They key thing to remember about EES is that it doesn’t actually change any of the rules on immigration – it’s just a way of better enforcing the rules that are already in place. 

Therefore the rules for dual nationals remain as they are – for most people which passport to travel on is a matter of personal choice, although Americans should be aware that if you have a US passport and you are entering the USA, you must use your American passport. 

But it’s also important to remember that the passports of dual nationals are not ‘linked’ – therefore if you present an American passport at the Italian border, you will be treated exactly the same as every other American, there is no way for the border guard to know that you are also Italian.

Likewise if you are a UK-Germany dual national and you travel back to the UK on your German passport, you can expect to be treated the same as every other German at the border, and might be asked for proof of where you are staying in UK, how long you intend to stay etc – the system has no way of knowing that you are also British. 

Therefore whether you have to complete EES pre-registration or not is entirely a matter of which passport you are travelling on – if you use your EU passport you won’t have to do it, if you use your non-EU passport you will.

It’s also possible to use two passports for the same trip – so let’s say you’re travelling from Spain to Canada – you enter Canada on your Canadian passport, and show your Canadian passport again when you leave. However, once you re-enter Spain you show your Spanish passport in order to benefit from the unlimited length of stay.

If you’re travelling between France and the UK via the Eurostar, Channel Tunnel or cross-Channel ferry, you need to remember that the Le Touquet agreement means that French passport checks take place in the UK and vice versa. You can still use both passports, but you just need to keep your wits about you and remember to hand the French one to the French border guards and the British one to British guards.

In terms of avoiding immigration formalities using two passports is the most efficient way for dual nationals to travel, but some people prefer to stick to one passport for simplicity, or don’t want to keep both passports together in case of theft.

Basically it’s a personal choice, but you just need to remember that you will be treated according to the passport that you show – which includes completing EES pre-registration if you’re showing a non-EU passport.

It’s also worth remembering that if the changes do cause border delays (and there are fears that they might especially at the UK-France border), then these will affect all travellers – regardless of their passport. 

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