Austria tightened corona rules: masks also outside - new measures will take effect from today

Created: 01/11/2022Updated: 01/11/2022, 11:29 AM

From: Martina Lippl

The corona numbers are exploding in Austria.

Opponents protested against the new corona rules in Vienna last weekend.

© Lisa Leutner / AP / dpa

In Austria, new corona rules will apply from Tuesday due to Omikron.

Retailers need tighter controls and a mask requirement applies outdoors.

The news ticker.

• Due to Omikron, new corona rules will apply in Austria from January 11th (update from January 11th, 10:20 am).

• In Austria, the corona numbers continue to rise.

  The Omikron wave hit Tyrol and Salzburg (update from January 10th, 4:50 p.m.).

• Austria's interior minister announces “Action sharp against the“ unteachable ”(initial report).

• This news ticker on the subject of Corona in Austria is updated regularly.

Update from January 11, 10:20 a.m

.: In Austria, new corona measures come into effect on Tuesday due to Omikron: retailers now have to check the 2G certificates, an FFP2 mask is now mandatory outdoors and there are new quarantine rules.

• The

  controls of the 2G rules

  will be tightened in Austria from January 11th: In retail, there is an obligation to control the 2G proof.

  Customers (vaccinated or recovered) should be checked at the entrance or at the latest at the till.

  Supermarkets, drug stores, banks and petrol stations are exempt from the stricter controls and the 2G rule.

• 2G

  continues to apply to cable cars and cog railways, bus trips and excursion boats.

• FFP2 mask requirement outdoors

  : An FFP2 mask must be worn outdoors if a minimum distance of two meters is not possible, for example in the pedestrian zone, queues and when groups are standing together.

  Federal states can order a mask requirement in heavily frequented places.

  An FFP2 mask must still be worn in all closed rooms, as in all public transport.

• The “

  Green Pass

  ” for the second vaccination should only be valid for six months from February 1st.

  The validity for people who have been vaccinated three times remains at nine months.

• Quarantine

  : For contact persons, free testing is possible from the fifth day with a PCR test.

  If the corona test is positive, a quarantine of ten days applies, and a free test is also

  possible after five days

  .

  No distinction is made between virus variants.

Corona: Ski areas in Austria report record values

Update from January 10, 4:50 p.m

.: The incidence in Austria is now 695 (previous day: 617.2).

The Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) announced on Monday afternoon.

In the federal state of Salzburg, the incidence increased to 1,445.7 (previous day: 1,290), Tyrol has a value of 1,215.0 (previous day: 1,130.9).

The districts of St. Johann im Pongau (Salzburg) and Kitzbühel (Tyrol) have already cracked the 3,000 mark. In Tyrol, 1,512 positive corona cases were recorded within 24 hours. The Kitzbühel district remains particularly hard hit. There are currently 2,752 active corona cases in Kitzbühel, the state of Tyrol announced on Monday. According to the State of Tyrol, it is not yet possible to say whether the infections are related to the Coronavirus variant Omikron. Incomplete data are still available. These would be submitted on Tuesday.

In the past 24 hours, 1,222 new corona infections were reported in Salzburg.

“The current Omikron wave exceeds the fourth wave of infections in autumn.

According to forecasts, the numbers will continue to rise ”, announced the State of Salzburg in a press release on Monday (January 10th).

To date there have been 4,736 confirmed Omikron cases in the state of Salzburg.

Winter sports resorts Kitzbühel and St. Johann report record incidences in Austria

• St. Johann im Pongau (Salzburg) - 3,290.2

• Kitzbühel (Tyrol) - 3,233.0

"We will continue to increase the control pressure" - Austria is now taking action against "unteachable" people

First report from January 10, 2022

Vienna - Austria is fighting the Omikron wave with new corona measures.

The controls of the new corona rules are to be strengthened.

In gastronomy, retail and tourist hotspots, focus controls are planned from Tuesday (January 11th).

"Aktion Scharf" - Corona controls in Austria

"We will continue to increase the control pressure and intensify it in all areas," said the Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) at a press conference on Monday (January 10) in Vienna.

In the “Aktion Scharf” action is to be taken against those “less unteachable” who do not adhere to the rules.

Police officers in uniform and in civilian clothes are used for Covid checks in retail or to check whether the mask is required outdoors.

For the retail sector, there will be recommendations for action on "how controls can be safely implemented".

According to Karner, retailers are challenged accordingly, for example when detecting forgeries of evidence or when dealing with "in some cases unruly customers".

There has been a lockdown for unvaccinated people in Austria since mid-November.

Those who have not been vaccinated or have recovered may only leave their own home or accommodation for a valid reason.

The most important corona rules in Austria

• FFP2 mask requirement applies from January 11th outdoors if a two-meter distance cannot be maintained, such as in pedestrian zones and queues.

• 2G: All shops that do not serve daily needs are only open to vaccinated and convalescent people.

  The trade is obliged to carry out controls so that the 2G rule - i.e. admission only for vaccinated and convalescent - is complied with.

• 2G in gastronomy: restaurants and cafés are only open to vaccinated and convalescent people.

  There is a general curfew from 10 p.m.

  Après-ski is prohibited.

• Skiing: Cable cars and ski lifts are only open to vaccinated and convalescent people.

• The “Green Pass” as proof of vaccination will only be valid for six months from February 1st.

  For those who have been boosted, the validity remains at 270 days.

• Violations are dealt with with fines from 500 euros.

We will continue to increase the control pressure ”, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) announced on Monday in Vienna.

© Martin Juen / imago

Austria: New coronavirus infections again over 10,000 per day

The Alpine republic recorded 10,804 new corona infections and seven other deaths on Monday.

On Sunday there were 10,291 positive corona tests.

The seven-day incidence in Austria is 617.2 (as of January 9, 2:30 p.m.).

The value is highest in Salzburg (1,290) and Tyrol (1,130.9) and Vienna (805).

The incidence is lowest in Styria (331.3) and Carinthia (397.8).

Corona hotspots in Austria: winter sports resorts Kitzbühel and Sankt Johann particularly affected

The corona numbers are exploding in some Austrian ski areas.

Corona hotspots currently include Kitzbühel (3,073.8) in Tyrol and Sankt Johann im Pongau (2,931.5) in Salzburg.

In the winter sports resort of Flauchau (Land Salzburg), the incidence has reached dizzying levels in the past few days *.