Korea to ease restrictions on private gatherings in July

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters announced its revised social distancing plan on Sunday

An employee at a restaurant in Seoul scans a customer’s QR code for contract tracing on Sunday. (Yonhap News)

COVID-19 prevention rules, including restrictions on private gatherings and the operating hours of multi-purpose facilities, are poised to be dramatically loosened as of July 1 with the introduction of revised social distancing guidelines in South Korea.

For the greater Seoul area, private gatherings of up to six people will be permitted through July 14, followed by an increase in the limit to eight as of July 15, while restaurants and cafes will be allowed to remain open until midnight.

Outside the greater Seoul area, all restrictions on private gatherings and multi-purpose facility operating hours are to be removed, although certain regions may opt for a phased loosening approach along similar lines to the greater Seoul area based on the local government’s determination.

Level 2 for the greater Seoul and Level 1 for all other regions likely

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) announced its revised social distancing plan on Sunday. The new disease prevention rules reflect the decreased risk of COVID-19 as inoculations of senior citizens are completed through the end of June.

The revised plan simplifies the total number of social distancing levels, which are to be reduced from five to four. The key indicator used to distinguish the levels is to be revised from the average daily number of new domestic confirmed cases per week to the average daily number of new domestic confirmed cases per 100,000 people per week.

Level 1 applies when the rate of new confirmed cases is less than one in 100,000. Level 2 applies for numbers between 1 and 1.9, Level 3 for numbers between 2 and 3.9, and Level 4 for 4 or greater.

In regions where the total population is less than 100,000, the level divisions are to be based on total confirmed cases per week.

Other indicators that will also be considered include the number of hospital beds available for severe COVID-19 cases, the basic reproduction number (R0) for the virus, the percentage of cases with no identified transmission route, the number of COVID-19 patients in critical condition, and the percentage of patients with severe or critical symptoms.

Barring any major changes in the number of confirmed cases over the next 10 days, Level 2 measures are to go into effect for the greater Seoul area as of July.

Over the week from Monday to Sunday, average daily number of confirmed cases in greater Seoul was 328.4, which corresponds to Level 2 (250-499).

The region with the higher number of confirmed cases after greater Seoul has been South Gyeongsang Province, where an average of 27.9 people tested positive per day over the same week. The province is likely to be subject to Level 1 measures (0-79).

Level 1 measures also appear likely to be applied in all other regions outside of greater Seoul, barring any major changes in the situation. But local governments will be allowed to adjust the levels in consideration of factors such as local vaccination rates.

The revised plan will permit private gatherings of up to eight people in the greater Seoul area

The biggest difference in the revised plan is the introduction of levels of permissible private gathering sizes. At Level 1, all restrictions on the number of people allowed to be present are lifted.

At Level 2, which is to go into effect for greater Seoul, up to eight people will be able to meet at any one time. Level 3 allows for meetings of up to four people, while Level 4 allows for up to four people before 6 pm and no more than two people afterwards.

But with confirmed case numbers still high in greater Seoul, the adjustment to a limit of eight people per gathering is to come after a transitional two-week period from July 1 to 14, when the limit is to be six people.

Exceptions are also granted for the restrictions on private gathering sizes.

For regions subject to Level 2 measures, immediate family members will be able to meet without restrictions, and up to 16 people at a time will be allowed to attend first-birthday parties. Those exceptions disappear with an upgrade to Level 3.

Other exemptions from the gathering restrictions include those who have completed their vaccinations (all levels), family members who live together, cases where caregiving is necessary (including small children, senior citizens, and disabled person), deathbed gatherings, and cases where a minimum number of people are required for a sporting competition (although this is not allowed to exceed 1.5 the number of competition participants per event at Levels 3 and 4).

Up to 99 people will be allowed to participate in events and assemblies in greater Seoul (Level 2). Outside of greater Seoul (Level 1), the maximum number is 499.

For exhibitions and fairs, the restriction is one person per six square meters at Levels 2 to 4 and one per four square meters at Level 1. For large concerts and other performances, up to 5,000 people will be permitted at Levels 2 to 4.

“Based on an overall consideration of the vaccination situation and other factors going forward, we plan to examine removing staggered seating requirements for fully vaccinated people attending events, as well as removals of prohibitions on standing-only performances and the consumption of food in movie theaters and elsewhere,” the CDSCH said.

Restaurants, nightlife venues and cafes will no longer face operating hour restrictions

Outside the greater Seoul area, restaurants and cafes are not currently facing operating hour restrictions, but restrictions on nightlife establishments operating past 10 pm are also to be lifted.

At the revised distancing guidelines, Level 1 does not limit the operating hours of any businesses, although a restriction of up to one person per six square meters of area must be observed.

At Level 2, nightlife and karaoke establishments, restaurants, and cafes will be allowed to operate until midnight, with no other restrictions on operating hours for other establishments.

At Level 3, operating hours will be limited to 10 pm for nightlife and karaoke establishments, restaurants, cafes, public baths, swimming pools, and door-to-door sales promotion centers.

At Level 4, all multi-purpose facilities will be subject to mandatory closing by 10 pm, while gatherings at nightclubs and other nightlife establishments will be prohibited.

Over the past year or so, the repeated closing and reopening of social service facilities have created caregiving vacuums. Going forward, these facilities will be allowed to remain in operation even at Level 4 rules.

Through Level 2, they will be granted the discretion to adjust their own usage restrictions while remaining in normal operation, contingent on the observance of disease prevention guidelines. At Levels 3 and 4, they would be restricted to usage levels of 50% of capacity or less.

Religious establishments would be barred from non-regular events such as gatherings, meals, and lodging at Levels 2 to 4. At Level 1, they would be recommended to refrain from such practices.

Regular religious gatherings will be restricted to 50% of total capacity at Level 1, 30% at Level 2, and 20% at Level 3. At Level 4, only non-face-to-face services will be allowed.

For all levels, participants are prohibited from engaging in activities seen as posing a high risk of spreading droplets, including choir and hymn groups and the recitations of prayers out loud.

By Choi Ha-yan, staff reporter

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