Portugal to start to ease lockdown restrictions this monday
Prime Minister António Costa presented on Thursday the plan to deconfinement to the country, after the meeting of the Council of Ministers.
António Costa began by hailing the “extraordinary effort of the Portuguese”, which allows to communicate the plan of desconfinement “gradual, cautious and the dropper”.
“The data is clear: we are below the number of new cases per 100,000 inhabitants of the risk line,” the prime minister said.”
The general duty of confinement will continue until Easter. António Costa said that the general duty of confinement, like the one that has been in force, is one of the “general rules” that must be uphold.
March 15, April 5, April 19 and May 3: the four phases of confinement in Portugal, sector by sector.
What reopens on March 15
- Day care centers, preschool, 1st cycle (and ATL for the same ages);
- Masses return from Monday. Paschal compass and processions are suspended;
- Hairdressers, manicures and the like;
- Bookstores, libraries and archives;
- Automotive trade and real estate mediation.
What reopens on April 5
- 2nd and 3rd cycles (and ATLs for these ages);
- Social equipment in the area of disability;
- Museums, monuments, palaces, art galleries and the like;
- Shops up to 200m2 with door to the street;
- Fairs and non-food markets (by municipal decision);
- Terraces (maximum 4 people);
- Low-risk sports;
- Outdoor physical activity up to 4 people and gyms without group classes.
What reopens on April 19
- Secondary and higher education;
- Cinemas, theaters, auditoriums and concert halls;
- Citizen stores with face-to-face service by appointment;
- All shops and shopping centers;
- Restaurants, cafes and pastries (maximum 4 people or 6 on terraces) until 22:00 or 13:00 on weekends and public holidays;
- Medium-risk sports;
- Outdoor physical activity up to six people;
- Outdoor events with decreased capacity;
- Weddings and baptisms with 25% capacity.
What reopens on May 3
- Restaurants, cafes and pastries (maximum of 6 people or 10 on terraces) without time limit;
- All sports;
- Outdoor physical activity and gyms;
- Large outdoor events and indoor events with decreased capacity;
- Weddings and baptisms with 50% of capacity.
Telework should be maintain whenever possible.
Shops closing times are at 21:00 on weekdays and 13:00 on weekends and public holidays (except for food retail, which can run until 19:00).
Reopening will be revised if transmissibility index exceeds 1 (R)
The Prime Minister warned that the reopening measures will be reviewed whenever Portugal exceeds the “120 new cases per day per 100,000 inhabitants to 14 days” or whenever the transmissibility rate (R) exceeds 1.
António Costa stressed that this reopening process will be “gradual and is always subject to a biweekly reassessment according to the risk assessment” adopted.