Domestic Restrictions in Iceland to Be Lifted Tomorrow

All domestic COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted in Iceland, starting tomorrow, mbl.is reports. This was announced by the government of Iceland at a press conference, held at 11 am this morning. This will be the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that no domestic restrictions apply.

At the press conference, it was furthermore announced that beginning July 1, travelers who arrive in Iceland and are able to present valid certificates of prior COVID-19 infection or of COVID-19 vaccination with vaccines approved by the European Medicines Evaluation Agency and/or by the World Health Organization, will no longer be tested for the coronavirus at the border. Starting July 1, children born 2005 or later will no longer be tested for COVID-19 at the border.

Travelers who cannot present certificates of vaccination or prior infection will have to present negative results of a PCR test, be tested at the border, spend five days in quarantine, and then be tested a second time.

The new rules at the border will be in effect until August 15.

At present, about 87 percent of Icelanders, aged 16 and older, have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while 60 percent are fully vaccinated.

At the press conference, Minister of Health Svandís Svavarsdóttir stated that Iceland is the first among Nordic countries to lift domestic restrictions, and possibly the first European state to do so. “Enjoy the summer, and thank you for this joint fight,” she added.

This means there will be no more mandatory use of masks, no social distancing rule, and no limits on the number of people allowed to gather. Fitness centers, swimming pools, stores, restaurants, night clubs and bars will be able to operate without restrictions.