Covid-19: Current alert Level 3 (Restrict): What Level 3 means for everyone?

New Zealand is now at Level 3 to stop and eradicate COVID-19.

Eradicating the disease is vital to protect people’s health and ensure our health system can cope and look after New Zealanders who become sick.

What is level 3:

• Travel in areas with clusters or community transmission limited
• Affected educational facilities closed
• Gatherings cancelled
• Public venues closed (eg. libraries, museums, cinemas, food courts, gyms, pools, amusement parks)
• Alternative ways of working required and non-essential businesses should close
• Non face-to-face primary care consultations
• Non acute (elective) services and procedures in hospitals deferred and healthcare staff reprioritised

Stay at home

Everyone should work at home.

Vulnerable people in particular should stay at home and self-isolate.

Only the children of essential workers should be at school or early childhood facilities. This will be communicated directly to parents and will change.

You may go for a walk or exercise and enjoy nature, but keep a 2 metre distance from people at all times.

Access to everything you need

Food will always be available – production will continue, distribution will continue, supermarkets will continue. You will always have access to food.

Medicines will always be available.

Healthcare for those that need it will be available.

Your usual financial support, like benefits, will continue as normal.

We must all participate

We have a plan. We need your support to protect New Zealand and eradicate COVID-19. Enforcement measures may be used to ensure everyone acts together, now.

Where can I go for more information?

Download the Level 3 factsheet [PDF, 1.5 MB].

We will continue to update COVID19.govt.nz.

At risk people

People over 70 years of age, people who have compromised immunity or people who have underlying respiratory conditions should stay at home as much as they can.

At risk people include:

• Those over 70: Older people often have underlying health issues, including respiratory issues that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19.

• People with medical conditions: Underlying medical conditions can make you more vulnerable to COVID-19. In particular, people with respiratory conditions, such as COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), heart conditions, high blood pressure, kidney problems and diabetes.

• People undergoing a treatment for cancer and blood conditions: As treatments for cancer and blood conditions affect people’s immune systems, this makes them more vulnerable to COVID-19.

• Pregnant women: Health experts do not yet know if pregnant women are impacted by COVID-19 in the same way as other people. However, pregnant women experience changes in their bodies that may increase their risk from some infections. 

• People without easy access to healthcare