After two years, the state of emergency in Italy comes to an end. From Friday applies a more flexible corona regime in the country that was hit hard by the virus, especially in the first months of the pandemic. For example, the corona pass will expire for catering visitors who want to stay outside on the terrace. In addition, a vaccination or recovery certificate is no longer necessary for employees under the age of fifty: a negative test is sufficient.
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The government led by Prime Minister Mario Draghi wants to scale down the corona policy in two phases. The corona pass is valid until 1 May as an admission ticket to enter catering establishments, theaters and gyms. The pass is no longer necessary for shops. Visitors are still required to wear a face mask. In June, Italy will further relax and the mask obligation in public indoor spaces will also be removed.
The last day of the state of emergency also means that the Italian equivalent of the OMT will stop for the time being. When announcing the relaxation, Draghi in the Italian media warned that if the infections start to rise sharply, there will be new restrictions.
Italy was one of the first countries to deal with the corona virus and was the first European country to introduce a lockdown. In the past two years, the government has maintained a strict corona policy: Italy was the first European country to oblige the corona pass in the workplace in October. Before that, it had already been decided that many leisure activities were only possible for vaccinated people or people who had recovered from Covid-19.