Germany's state and federal governments agreed on January 5 to extend and expand coronavirus lockdown rules in the country for another three weeks. This time, the rules are even more stringent.
Deutsche Welle says the current lockdown regulations, including the closure of schools, will now be in place until at least January 31 and new rules have been introduced.
Hotspot travel ban: under new regulations, residents of areas deemed coronavirus hotspots will be restricted from traveling more than 15 kilometers from their town without a valid reason. Day trips are specifically ruled out.
At the time of the announcement, about one in six German districts had incident rates over the hotspot threshold of 200 cases per 100,000 residents over seven days.
Private meeting limit: additionally, contact at private meetings will be restricted to just one other person not living in the same household.
Double testing: people arriving in Germany from high-risk areas will be required to submit two negative test results. A minimum five day quarantine period will be mandated, even if the first test is negative.
Extra leave for parents: parents will receive an extra 10 days leave to look after children, while single parents will receive an extra 20 days.
