QCOSTARICA – The nighttime vehicular restriction will start at midnight (12 am) as of next Monday, December 20 and continue until January 15, 2022.
The measure will not be in effect on December 25 and January 1, that is, vehicles can circulate without restrictions starting at the stroke of midnight and until 11:59 pm on Christmas Day; the same for January 1.
In addition, as of this Friday, December 17, people vaccinated outside of Costa Rica who do not have the QR code will be able to present the physical vaccination card issued abroad to enter businesses that request it.
The Government also announced this Wednesday that, as the precautionary measure issued by the Contentious Administrative and Civil Court of Finance against the use of the QR code remains unresolved, the voluntary transition period for use is extended for up to one more month, that is the QR Code will apply starting February 7, 2022.
Before that, businesses wanting to operate at full capacity can ask patrons for the QR Code, and as has been the practice since December 1, businesses must prominently announce the modality – coding or not – at the door.
Regarding the capacity of people standing on the buses contemplated in the protocol of the Public Transport Council (CTP), the authorities also announced that by January they will be able to increase the capacity to 100% and with a maximum of 20 standing passengers in the units.
For the month of January, the Government added, public institutions remain in telework mode under the basic operating plan with the exception of essential services, customer service offices, regional offices and emergency care.
The changes are due to a noticeable drop in the numbers of COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations and deaths related to the disease.
The announcement comes at a time when Costa Rica did not report any deaths related to covid for three consecutive days, as reported by the Ministry of Health on Tuesday.
On Monday, President Carlos Alvarado stated that the Government had been evaluating the epidemiological situation to decide whether to make the measure more flexible. However, he announced that the determination of that technical team would begin to rule as of the same Wednesday during the months of December 2021 and January 2022.
