Following the renewal of the State of Emergency decreed by the President of the Republic, the Council of Ministers approved the decree that regulates the measures to be adopted, throughout the continental territory, in the period between 00:00 on December 9, 2020 and 23:59 on December 23, as well as the applicable measures considering the possible renewal of the same.
The decree essentially maintains the rules currently in force and establishes special measures for the Christmas and New Year period.
Which are as follows:
Maintain the current measures in force, as well as scaling their application according to the risk of transmission of Covid-19 in each municipality - moderate, high, very high and extreme he following stand out: it is not permitted to circulate in public roads on the weekends of December 12-13 and December 19-20, starting at 1:00 pm in municipalities with very high and extreme risk.
Update the list of risky municipalities and their distribution by different levels. You can see the full list here.
On December 18, the government will reassess and update the measures, map and situation of each municipality, proceeding, if necessary, to tighten the measures.
For the Christmas period:
Circulation between municipalities is allowed!
Circulation on public roads:
Night of 23 to 24: allowed only for those who are traveling;
Days 24 and 25: allowed until 02h00 of the following day;
Day 26: allowed until 23h00.
Working hours:
On the nights of the 24th and 25th- restaurant operation is allowed until 1 am.
On the 26th, restaurant operation is allowed until 3:30 pm in municipalities with very high and extreme risk.
On the 24th and 25th, closing hours do not apply to cultural establishments.
For the New Year period:
Circulation between municipalities is prohibited between 00:00 on 12/31 and 05:00 on 4/01.
Circulation on public roads:
New Year's Eve 30th: allowed until 2:00 am;
Day 1/01: allowed until 23h00.
Working Hours:
On the night of 31, restaurant may be open until 1 am.
On the 1st of January, restaurant operation is allowed until 3:30 pm in municipalities with very high and extreme risk.
Public parties are strictly prohibited and may not open to public.
Gatherings of more than 6 people on public roads is prohibited!
The Government recommend that the following should be avoided:
Gathering with various people;
Not wearing a mask for a long time;
Closed, small and poorly ventilated spaces.
The mandatory use of masks in public paths remains effective.
The Vaccination plan has also been announced and goes as follows:
Portugal will count with a three-stage vaccination next year.
Three stages are planned for the implementation of the Covid-19 vaccination plan in 2021 which will keep up with the pace of vaccine availability, and it is expected that in the first months there will still be some shortages.
Therefore, in the first phase, which should take place between January and March, or April in the worst-case scenario, 950 thousand people will have access in this first phase.
For the second phase, from March or April to June or July, the document foresees a broadening of the criteria for defining these priority groups and, therefore, the vaccine could reach an additional 2.7 million people.
Only in a third phase will the entire population have access to the vaccine, but the task force coordinator noted during the presentation of the document that this will only be possible if the pace of vaccine supply is confirmed, otherwise other groups may be created.
Who gets the vaccine first?
The first priority groups are people over 50 with associated pathologies, residents and workers in nursing and care homes, and health and essential services professionals (armed forces, security forces and critical services), representing 950,000 people in total.
By group, there are 250,000 in homes and continuous care units, 400,000 over 50 years old with associated comorbidities and 300,000 professionals.
In the second phase, that is, 1.8 million people over 65 years of age and about 900,000 with associated pathologies and over 50 years of age will be vaccinated.
And finally during the third phase, in which the rest of the population will have access to the vaccine and should be administrated until the end of the year 2021.
To know more about daily cases and information concerning the COVID-19 in Portugal, visit https://covid19estamoson.gov.pt/ .
