Changes to the regional measures for the municipalities in Viken

Kindergartens, schools, universities, university colleges, and vocational schools

• Yellow level measures in line with the traffic light model for schools and kindergartens as in the rest of the country. Local assessments must be carried out in accordance with the infection situation.
  
  This means that the municipality acting in its capacity as the local infection control authority may decide that red level measures are necessary following an assessment of the infection situation. Nevertheless, the Norwegian Government may issue a national recommendation to move to red level measures should the situation call for this.
  
  
• The premises at universities, university colleges, and vocational schools are closed to all students, and teaching must take place digitally. Employees must follow the general rules applicable to the workplace.
  
  
• Universities, university colleges, and vocational schools may make exemptions from the requirement to close their premises if access to them is essential for students who need to carry out experiments or receive skills training that cannot be completed digitally, this is necessary to ensure progress in their programme of study, and students are tested regularly for COVID-19 in accordance with the advice from the municipal infection control authority. Also, libraries and reading rooms may open to students who are tested regularly for COVD-19.

Events

• All events outside the home are prohibited, both indoors and outdoors, with the exception of funerals, burial services, weddings, and christenings. A maximum of 30 people may attend funerals and burial services when all of the participants have designated seating. Weddings may be attended by the couple, the officiant, and two witnesses. Christenings may be attended by the child, the parents, the priest, and up to two godparents.
  
  
• Digital events with a maximum of five people present, in addition to performers and other necessary production personnel, are permitted.

Sports and leisure activities

• The organisation of sporting activities for adults and young people is prohibited (but with two exemptions – see below). The same applies to leisure activities such as organised rehearsals, training, and auditions for choirs, marching bands, and theatre groups.
  
  
• Organised outdoor sporting and leisure activities are permitted for children and young people under the age of 20, provided that this takes place in groups of no more than 10 people and that all participants come from the same municipality. It is recommended that the activities are organised in a way that ensures that participants are able to keep a distance of 2 metres from each other.
  
  
• Organised outdoor sporting and leisure activities are permitted for people with drug or alcohol problems or serious mental illness, provided that this takes place in groups of no more than 5 people and that all participants come from the same municipality.

Workplaces

• Everybody who can do so should work from home. Employers must ensure that employees work from home insofar as this is practically feasible. Employers must document that they have provided employees with instructions on such arrangements within the enterprise. Travel to the workplace may only take place if deemed strictly necessary. The requirement to work from home will nonetheless apply to everyone who is able to do so. 

Shops and services

All shops and department stores must be closed, with the following exceptions:

• Grocery stores, including convenience stores, health food shops and other retailers that primarily sell food
• Retailers that primarily sell animal feed and other essential items for pets and domestic animals
• Pharmacies
• Medical supplies shops
• Opticians
• Vinmonopolet
• One-to-one services such as hairdressers, skin care professionals, tattooists, etc.
• Healthcare providers such as physiotherapists, chiropractors, podiatrists, etc.
• Petrol stations
• Florist shops with a permanent retail outlet that has been registered in the Central Coordinating Register for Legal Entities as a shop that sells flowers and plants, a sales area that does not exceed 250 sq.m., sales that mainly consist of sale of flowers that are highly perishable, and where these types of flowers constitute the main product sold.
• Retailers for the agricultural and livestock sectors
• Storage facilities and wholesalers in building material businesses that sell to the trades

Shops and department stores may open for collection of pre-purchased goods provided that infection prevention measures are in place for the collection of goods.

Restaurants, cafés, bars, and hotels

• All catering outlets are closed, but takeaway services are permitted.
• No alcohol may be served.
• Catering outlets within hotels may serve food to residents.

The following venues and locations must be closed

• Fitness centres
• Swimming pools, water parks, spa facilities, hotel pools, etc.
• Religious and secular venues, with the exception of funerals, burial services, weddings, christenings, as well as consultations between a representative of the religious or secular organisation and individuals
• Libraries
• Amusement parks, bingo halls, amusement arcades, play centres, bowling alleys, etc.
• Museums
• Cinemas, theatres, concert venues, and similar cultural and entertainment venues
• Other public venues and facilities for cultural, entertainment or leisure activities that gather people indoors

 Recommendations:

• No one should have visitors or get-togethers at their own home. Exemptions apply to:
• Necessary home-based services and visits to people in the final phase of life.
  
  
• People who live alone may visit or receive visits from one or two regular friends or one regular household.
  
  
• Children may visit or receive visits from their kindergarten or primary school cohort, in addition to visits from one or two regular friends. Adolescents may visit or receive visits from one or two regular friends.
  
  
• When meeting other people, you should keep a distance of at least 2 metres. Exceptions to this are people in your own household and other people with whom you have an equally close relationship. It is especially important to follow the distance advice indoors.
  
  
• Non-essential travel should be avoided. Travel to the workplace may only take place if deemed necessary. The requirement to work from home will nonetheless apply to most people.
  
  
• Residents of the municipality are advised not to travel to shops, shopping centres or department stores that are open in neighbouring municipalities.
  
  
• Residents of the municipality may travel to a recreational property, but only with people from their own household. All purchases must be made in your own municipality prior to departure. Do not visit shops, catering outlets or other places where many people may congregate in the municipality that you visit. Keep a good distance from other people on ski trails, ski lifts, and when hiking. Check the advice and guidelines that apply to the municipality you are visiting and follow it. Do not receive visitors.
  See the advice relating to ski resorts from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
  
  
• Municipalities and county authorities should introduce enhanced measures on public transport. This may include only using up to 50 per cent of the capacity on the means of transport.
  
  
• People at high risk of serious illness or death if they become infected with COVID-19 should shield.
  
  
• One-to-one businesses, such as hairdressers, should put in place enhanced measures such as the use of face coverings in situations where it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre. Alternatively, they should reduce or temporarily suspend services that involve close face-to-face contact.
  
  
• Testing and contact tracing of close contacts and household members:
• people who are in transmission quarantine should take a test on day 7–10 of their quarantine period.
  
  
• close contacts who are linked to an outbreak of a mutated variant of COVID-19 must take a PCR test both when they begin their quarantine period (immediately after being defined as a close contact) and at the end of their quarantine period (no sooner than day 7).
  
  
• members of the same household as close contacts should quarantine until the close contact has taken their first PCR test and received a result. This applies to outbreaks associated with the English strain of COVID-19.

Duty to wear a face covering

• A face covering must be worn when it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre, with the exception of briefly passing people outside your household. This applies in shops, common areas in shopping centres, catering outlets, religious and secular venues, on public transport and in indoor station areas, as well as in venues for cultural, sporting and leisure activities.
  
  
• Passengers must wear a face covering in taxis. The passenger must put on the face covering before entering the taxi and must not remove it until the journey has ended and they have exited the taxi. The duty to wear a face covering also applies to drivers when carrying passengers in the taxi.
  
  
• The duty to wear a face covering also applies to employees in locations where it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre from visitors. This does not apply to employees in locations where other infection prevention measures, such as visors, partitions, etc, have been implemented for the benefit of the employees in accordance with the recommendations of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
  
  
• The duty to wear a face covering does not apply to children under the age of 12, or to those who are unable to wear a face covering for medical or other reasons.

All municipalities may impose strict advice and rules based on the local infection situation. It is therefore important that you keep track of the rules which apply in your own municipality.

Kindergartens, schools, universities, university colleges and vocational schools

• Yellow level measures in line with the traffic light model for schools and kindergartens as in the rest of the country. Local assessments must be carried out in accordance with the infection situation.
  
  This means that the municipality acting in its capacity as the local infection control authority may decide that red level measures are necessary following an assessment of the infection situation. Nevertheless, the Norwegian Government may issue a national recommendation to move to red level measures should the situation call for this.
  
  
• The following facilities are closed to all students: universities, university colleges, vocational schools, and facilities providing primary-level education for adults, upper secondary-level education for adults, and adult education pursuant to the Introduction Act and the Integration Act. This also encompasses courses delivered by adult education associations and Skills Norway. Libraries and reading rooms in these premises may nevertheless open. Employees must follow the general rules applicable to the workplace. Teaching must take place digitally.
  
  
• Universities, university colleges, and vocational schools may make exemptions from the requirement to close their premises if access to them is essential for students who need to carry out experiments or skills training that cannot be completed digitally and this is necessary to ensure progress in their programme of study.
  
  
• The premises of schools that have been approved under Chapter 6A of the Independent Schools Act may open. Schools offering boarding must follow the rules and recommendations that govern folk university colleges, while schools without boarding must follow the rules and recommendations issued for upper secondary education.
  
  
• Such institutions may keep their premises open if access to them is essential for students who need to carry out experiments or skills training that cannot be completed digitally and this is necessary to maintain the progress in their programme of study.

Events

• All indoor and outdoor events outside the home are prohibited, with the exception of religious and secular events and ceremonies in religious and secular venues, including weddings, funerals, burial services, christenings and confirmations.
  
  
• A maximum of 20 people may attend events held in religious and secular venues when all of the participants have designated seating. National guidelines govern the maximum number of people who may attend funerals and burial services.
  
  
• Digital events with a maximum of five people present, in addition to performers and other necessary production personnel, are permitted.

Sports and leisure activities

• Cultural, sporting, and leisure activities are permitted for children and young people under the age of 20. The organisation of indoor sporting events for people aged 20 or older is prohibited. The same applies to leisure activities such as organised rehearsals, training, and auditions for choirs, marching bands, and theatre groups. Organised indoor training for elite athletes is nonetheless permitted.
  
  
• Indoor swimming pools, water parks, spa facilities, hotel pools, etc. may open to allow school swimming sessions, organised swimming lessons, and organised swimming training for people under the age of 20, as well as elite athletes. They may also open for the purposes of physical rehabilitation, retraining, and individual treatment.

Workplaces

• Everybody who can do so should work from home. Employers must ensure that employees work from home insofar as this is practically feasible. Employers must document that they have provided employees with instructions on such arrangements within the enterprise. Travel to the workplace may only take place if deemed strictly necessary. The requirement to work from home will nonetheless apply to everyone who is able to do so. 

Shops and services

• Shops may open.
• One-to-one services, such as hairdressers, etc. may open.

Restaurants, cafés, bars, and hotels

• No alcohol may be served.

The following venues and locations must be closed

• Fitness centres, although the following activities may continue:
• rehabilitation and retraining offered on an individual basis or to small groups on an organised basis
  
  
• individual training and treatment for which an appointment can be booked
  
  
• Indoor swimming pools, water parks, spa facilities, hotel pools, etc. must be closed, although the following activities are permitted:
• school swimming sessions, organised swimming lessons and organised swimming training for people under the age of 20, as well as elite athletes
  
  
• rehabilitation and retraining offered on an individual basis or to small groups on an organised basis
  
  
• other individual treatment for which an appointment can be booked and where swimming constitutes part of the treatment
  
  
• Amusement parks, bingo halls, amusement arcades, play centres, bowling alleys, etc.
  
  
• Museums
  
  
• Cinemas, theatres, concert venues and similar cultural and entertainment venues
  
  
• Other public venues and facilities for cultural, entertainment or leisure activities that gather people indoors
  
  
• Public venues and enterprises where organised cultural, sporting, and leisure activities take place may open for children and young people under the age of 20. Likewise, outdoor activities for adults and organised indoor and outdoor training for elite athletes are permitted, provided that leisure activities for others do not take place at such locations.

Recommendations:

• People should have a maximum of five guests in their home. People are encouraged to meet others outdoors.
  
  
• The total number of contacts over the course of one week should not exceed 10 people beyond necessary contacts in the line of work, household members and kindergarten/school cohorts.
  
  
• A distance of 2 metres should be kept from people who are in risk groups, and in situations where the risk of infection is assumed to be greater (e.g. during high-intensity physical activity, singing or shouting).
  
  
• Non-essential travel should be avoided. Travel to the workplace may only take place if deemed necessary. The requirement to work from home will nonetheless apply to most people.
  
  
• Residents of the municipality are advised to use local shops, shopping centres, and department stores.
  
  
• Residents of the municipality may travel to a recreational property, but only with people from their own household. All purchases must be made in your own municipality prior to departure. Do not visit shops, catering outlets or other places where many people may congregate in the municipality that you visit. Keep a good distance from other people on ski trails, ski lifts, and when hiking. Check the advice and guidelines that apply to the municipality you are visiting and follow them. Do not receive visitors. 
  See the advice relating to ski resorts from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
  
  
• Municipalities and county authorities should introduce enhanced measures on public transport. This may include only using up to 50 per cent of the capacity on the means of transport.
  
  
• People at high risk of serious illness or death if they become infected with COVID-19 should shield.
  
  
• One-to-one businesses, such as hairdressers, should put in place enhanced measures such as the use of face coverings in situations where it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre. Alternatively, they should reduce or temporarily suspend services that involve close face-to-face contact.
  
  
• Testing and contact tracing of close contact and household members:
• people who are in transmission quarantine should take a test on day 7–10 of their quarantine period.
• close contacts who are linked to an outbreak of a mutated variant of COVID-19 must take a PCR test both when they begin their quarantine period (immediately after being defined as a close contact) and at the end of their quarantine period (no sooner than day 7).
  
  
• members of the same household as close contacts should quarantine until the close contact has taken their first PCR test and received a result. This applies to outbreaks associated with the English strain of COVID-19.

Duty to wear a face covering

• A face covering must be worn when it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre, with the exception of briefly passing people outside your household. This applies in shops, common areas shopping centres, catering outlets, religious and secular venues, on public transport and in indoor station areas, as well as in venues for cultural, sporting, and leisure activities.
  
  
• Passengers must wear a face covering in taxis. The passenger should put on the face covering before entering the taxi and must not remove it until the journey has ended and they have exited the taxi. The requirement to wear a face covering also applies to drivers when carrying passengers in the taxi.
  
  
• The duty to wear a face covering also applies to employees in locations where it is not possible to keep a distance of at least 1 metre from visitors. This does not apply to employees in locations where other infection prevention measures, such as visors, partitions, etc., have been implemented for the benefit of the employees in accordance with the recommendations of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
  
  
• The duty to wear a face covering does not apply to children under the age of 12, or to those who are unable to wear a face covering for medical or other reasons.

All municipalities may introduce strict advice and rules based on the local infection rate. It is therefore important that you keep track of the rules which apply in your own municipality.