If Not Living Together, Direct Family Members Limited to 3 or More, No Exceptions for Vaccinated Individuals

Unprecedented Social Distancing Level 4 Applied, How Will It Change?

On the 9th, as the number of new COVID-19 cases reached 1,316, breaking records day after day, citizens lined up at the screening clinic set up at the Gangnam-gu Public Health Center in Seoul to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] With the metropolitan area’s quarantine system being raised to the new Level 4 social distancing for two weeks starting from the 12th, a de facto “stay-at-home” principle will be applied. After 6 p.m., gatherings of three or more people are prohibited, and only relatives may attend weddings and funerals. Below is a Q&A on the Level 4 quarantine rules.

- Are there any exceptions to the ban on gatherings of three or more people after 6 p.m.?

▲ If it is a family of four living in the same household, going out for dinner is allowed. Exceptions apply for cohabiting family members, caregivers for children, the elderly, or disabled persons, and for those attending a dying person. However, the current exception allowing up to eight people for immediate family gatherings is not recognized. Families of three or more who do not live together cannot go out in the evening.

For team sports, gatherings of up to 1.5 times the number of players per sport are allowed. Baseball allows up to 27 people, soccer up to 33, and futsal up to 15 participants.

The limit on private gatherings includes those who have completed vaccination. Although government vaccination incentives suggest they should be excluded from the limit, authorities have decided to withhold such incentives considering the current spread.

- What about gatherings such as weddings, funerals, first birthday parties, and matchmaking meetings?

▲ Under the current Level 2 applied in the metropolitan area, weddings and funerals can have up to 99 attendees. The same limit applies to first birthday parties held at specialized venues. Matchmaking meetings are allowed up to eight people.

However, if raised to Level 4, weddings and funerals are limited to relatives only, with up to 49 attendees. Since first birthday parties and matchmaking meetings are basically private gatherings, the limit of four people before 6 p.m. and two people after 6 p.m. applies, making such events practically impossible.

A closure order notice is posted at a club in Mapo-gu, Seoul. [Photo by Yonhap News]

- Which facilities are prohibited from gathering?

▲ Basically, upon raising to Level 4, gathering is prohibited only in three of the five types of entertainment facilities (entertainment bars, karaoke bars, colatecs, emotional bars, hunting pubs): clubs (nightclubs), emotional bars, and hunting pubs.

Entertainment and karaoke bars, colatecs and dance halls, and holdem pubs and holdem game rooms are currently banned from gathering, but in principle, Level 4 allows them to operate until 10 p.m. However, quarantine authorities plan to continue the gathering ban on these entertainment establishments through separate administrative orders.

Multi-use facilities such as singing practice rooms, restaurants and cafes, PC rooms, movie theaters and performance halls, marts, and department stores can all operate until 10 p.m. without gathering bans.

A notice related to COVID-19 prevention is posted at a gym located in Mapo-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

- Is it possible for indoor sports facilities such as gyms to operate?

▲ Indoor sports facilities can operate until 10 p.m. without gathering bans even at Level 4. However, exercise intensity is restricted. Fitness centers must keep treadmill speeds below 6 km/h. GX-type exercises must set music tempo between 100 and 120 bpm to prevent heavy breathing. Martial arts dojos prohibit contact activities such as sparring, matches, and competitions. Also, all indoor sports facilities except swimming pools are prohibited from operating shower rooms.

- What about religious activities?

▲ Currently, in-person religious activities such as worship services, masses, and Buddhist ceremonies are allowed with attendance limited to 20% of seating capacity. However, at Level 4, all in-person religious activities are completely banned, and only non-face-to-face religious activities are allowed. However, vulnerable group care activities such as free meals and study rooms operated by religious facilities may continue in-person if quarantine rules are followed.

- Will visits to nursing hospitals and facilities become impossible?

▲ Currently, contact visits are allowed if either the inpatient/resident or the visitor has completed vaccination. However, once Level 4 is raised, all contact visits as well as non-contact visits will be completely banned, and only non-face-to-face visits will be allowed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.