Current Orders & Restrictions on Indoor Dining, Private Gatherings, Events, Travel, Masks, Workplaces

 

The province-wide restrictions on events and social gatherings are in effect until further notice. 

The restrictions on in-person dining, indoor group fitness and travel are in place until May 25 at midnight 

There are current provincial health orders that impact all households and businesses across the province.

These orders require reductions in social interactions, requires the use of masks in public spaces, prohibit certain business activities and events, and require businesses to redouble COVID-19 safety protocols.   This order does NOT impact home services (repairs, plumbers, etc) or personal services provided in a home (hair care, health services, etc).

Read the full order and details here, or review the highlights below.

Highlights of the current Public Health Orders:
  • RESTAURANTS AND FOOD SERVICE
    • Indoor, in-person dining is prohibited in all establishments such as restaurants, pubs and cafes until May 25 at midnight
    • In-person dining on a patio is permitted, as is all take-out and delivery services
    • Burnaby businesses interested in temporarily expanding an existing patio or adding new outdoor seating can take advantage of the City of Burnaby’s Active Sidewalks, Open Businesses program. Burnaby businesses can apply to temporarily (until October 31, 2021) add outdoor seating or otherwise expand into adjacent outdoor spaces. The extra space can be used for patios, but also retail displays, customer line-ups, etc.
  • WORKPLACE SAFETY
    • Employers must review their COVID-19 Safety Plans to ensure that they adequately protect workers from the transmission of COVID-19 in the workplace and are consistent with WorkSafeBC requirements.
    • Employers must ensure that the worker has done a daily health check for the symptoms of COVID-19, and if not completed the worker cannot work at the workplace (this explicitly does not refer to working-at-home)
    • Working from home is encouraged generally if it is feasible, and employers are asked to delay bringing workers back to the office until the new year
    • Employers must ensure that their COVID-19 Safety Plan includes measures to prevent workers from crowding together or congregating in higher risk spaces, including elevators, lobbies, stairwells, corridors, bathrooms, break rooms and kitchens.
  • EVENTS
    • All indoor community and social events are prohibited even if they’re under 50 people and even if they are held in a business or other controlled setting with safety protocols in place
      • Outdoor events are now permitted if held outdoors and not organized at a private residence or a restaurant, pub or other food-primary or liquor-primary establishment
        • These outdoor events must provide sufficient space for people to maintain a distance of two metres from one another, must not allow a person who leaves an event must not be replaced by another person; must make hand sanitation supplies available, and the event must not move into a fully enclosed structure at the place.
    • People are allowed to continue visiting restaurants, but should only be visiting restaurants with individuals from their household.   For restaurants, the party size limit remains groups of six, even if outdoors or on a patio.
  • MASKS AND FACE COVERINGS
    • Wearing masks or face-coverings will be mandated in all indoor public and retail spaces for staff and customers, except where eating or drinking. In offices and workplaces, those working at a personal desk will not need to wear a mask but in any common areas or shared worked spaces, they will be required.
  • GROUP INDOOR FITNESS ACTIVITY
    • All indoor group fitness or physical activities of any kind are prohibited until April 19, including yoga, bootcamps, or group circuit training.
    • One on one training, or personal use of fitness equipment is permitted.
    • Outdoor group fitness classes are also permitted.
  • SOCIAL GATHERINGS AT PRIVATE RESIDENCES AND VACATION ACCOMMODATION
    • You may not have anyone attend any social gatherings or visits indoors at a private residence or vacation accommodation
    • People are permitted to hold outdoor social gatherings outside a private residence or vacation accommodation provided that:
      • people are able to keep a distance of two metres from one another;
      • a person who leaves an event must not be replaced by another person;
      • hand sanitation supplies are readily available;
      • no person who is attending the event and who is not an occupant goes inside the
        private residence or vacation accommodation, except for the purpose of using the
        washroom facilities.
    • No one is to be inside a private residence that they do not reside at.
      • Despite this, if a person lives on their own they may have up to two other people present at their private residence or vacation accommodation, if the other persons are individuals with whom the resident regularly interacts.
      • This does NOT apply to people coming into a private residence for the purposes of:
        • an occupant’s work,
        • being provided with care by an occupant,
        • a visit by a minor child of an occupant with whom the minor child does not
          reside on a regular basis
        • providing assistance, care or services, including care to a child who is an
          occupant or an adult who is an occupant who requires care, health care,
          personal care or grooming services,
        • providing educational programming, religious services, tutoring or music lessons to an occupant,
        • providing legal services, financial services, housekeeping, window washing, landscaping, maintenance, repairs, moving services, or renovations to an occupant or to the residence
  • SPORTS
    • Indoor and outdoor team sports for people 22 years of age and older are prohibited.
    • All organized indoor and outdoor sports for people 21 years of age and younger can continue only with individual drills and modified training activities.  No games, competitions or tournaments.
  • PARTY BUSES AND LIMOS
    • Party buses and group limousines are banned from operating until further notice.
  • TRAVEL
    • From April 23 to May 25, travel is being restricted between three regional zones of the province:
      • Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley (Fraser Health and Coastal Health regions);
      • Vancouver Island (Island Health region); and
      • Northern/Interior (Interior Health and Northern Health regions).
    • This order restricts travel to within one’s own zone.  The government is also encouraging individuals to remain as close to their own community, even within a zone, as possible.
    • The province will be empowering law enforcement to conduct check points on certain highways and and at ferry terminals to enforce travel restrictions.
    • This order does NOT apply to travel for one of the following exception:
      • carrying out a work-related purpose, including volunteer work;
      • moving to a different principal residence or assisting a person to move for that purpose;
      • commercially transporting goods;
      • receiving health-care services or social services or assisting someone to receive those services;
      • attending court;
      • complying with a court order;
      • spending parenting time with a minor child;
      • accessing child care;
      • attending classes or receiving training at a post-secondary institution or school;
      • responding to an emergency or a critical incident, including incidents that involve search and rescue operations;
      • providing care or assistance to a person who requires care or assistance because of:
        • a psychological, behavioural or health condition; or
        • a physical, cognitive or mental impairment.
      • visiting by an essential visitor as provided in the guidance of the Ministry of Health set out in a document titled Ministry of Health – Overview of Visitors in Long-Term Care and Seniors’ Assisted Living that was in effect on April 1, 2021;
      • attending a funeral service;
      • travelling under the authority of a variance of an order issued by the provincial health officer under the Public Health Act if the variance was made before this section comes into force;
      • travelling by residents of the local health areas of Bella Coola Valley or Central Coast to Port Hardy to obtain essential goods and supplies;
      • travelling by residents of the local health area of Hope to Chilliwack to obtain essential goods and supplies;
      • travelling by residents of the Nisga’a Health Authority region into the Northern-Interior Health Authority region; and/or
      • returning to one’s own principal residence.