No dining in, tightened Covid-19 curbs: What you can and can't do from today till Aug 18

Rei Kurohi
The Straits Times
Jul 20, 2021

From Thursday (July 22) till Aug 18, Singapore will revert to phase two (heightened alert), with tighter measures in place to curb the worsening Covid-19 situation.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Tuesday said the new measures will supersede those previously announced on July 19.

Here's what you need to know.

1. Cap on group sizes reduced to two

The limit on group sizes for social gatherings will be cut from five to two, with a cap of two distinct visitors to a household per day.

The MOH said individuals should continue to limit their overall number of social gatherings to not more than two a day, whether to another household, or meeting friends and family members in a public place.

Children being cared for daily by their grandparents will not be counted towards these caps.

The new two-person limit also applies to staycations at hotels, unless all individuals are from the same household.

In-person tuition and enrichment classes can continue with class sizes of up to 50, but groups must be capped at two.

Working from home remains the default arrangement and social gatherings at the workplace remain banned.

2. Dining in and other mask-off activities banned once more

Both indoor and outdoor food and beverage establishments will be allowed to offer only takeaway and delivery services.

These include hawker centres and foodcourts. Cinemas, too, must not serve food or drinks.

Personalised care services such as facials, saunas and make-up services must also cease.

The same goes for strenuous indoor exercise classes or sports activities involving participants removing their masks. Classes where individuals keep their masks on can continue with class sizes capped at 30 and groups capped at two.

These restrictions will not apply to medical and dental consultations that require patients to have their masks removed. Non-medical facial treatments will not be exempted.

However, wedding receptions, including those that involve dining in, will still be allowed to continue. The group size remains capped at five people per table.

3. Limits for live events cut to 100

The cap for live performances, spectator sports events, wedding solemnisations and receptions, cinema screenings, worship services, as well as events in the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (Mice) industry will be cut from 250 to 100 for events with pre-event testing.

Group sizes for these events will be capped at two, except for wedding receptions.

Events without pre-event testing remain capped at 50 attendees.

Unmasked singing and playing of wind instruments will not be allowed once again.

People attending Mice events will also not be allowed to remove their masks.

For wedding receptions, pre-event testing will be required for all attendees.

Previously, pre-event testing was required only for the main wedding party, which usually consists of the couple and their bridesmaids or groomsmen, for events with up to 50 attendees.

There is no change for funerals, which remain capped at 20 people at any point on all days.

4. Capacity caps for attractions, malls to be cut

The operating capacity of attractions will be reduced to 25 per cent, down from 50 per cent.

These include museums and public libraries, as well as cruises.

The cap for all tour groups will be cut to 20, down from 50.

Shopping malls and showrooms will also have to reduce their maximum occupancy limit from 10 sq m of gross floor area per person to 16 sq m per person.

5. Mandatory SafeEntry check-in for all markets, hawker centres

TraceTogether-only SafeEntry requirements will be enforced at all wet markets and hawker centres in Singapore.

This means that everyone entering these places must check in using the TraceTogether app or token.

The MOH said wet markets and hawker centres are places frequently visited by the public and are also where many seniors tend to congregate.

These measures are required for quicker contact tracing, so potential transmission in markets and hawker centres can be curbed, it added.

6. More support measures for affected businesses

The Government will provide a support package for affected businesses and workers, given that the tightened safe management measures will remain in place at least until Aug 18.

The MOH said this package will "take reference" from the support measures provided during the previous phase two (heightened alert) period.

It added that the Ministry of Finance will announce more details in the next few days.