New Covid rules UAE: Al Hosn app green status to home quarantine

People still required to isolate at home and may be checked on by the authorities

A security guard works without a mask in the Times Square Centre after safety measures were lifted last September. Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Masks are no longer required at indoor places such as malls like Times Square Centre in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

A Covid-19 safety sign is removed from Times Square Centre after face mask rules were removed. Chris Whiteoak / The National

People have not been required to wear masks in the Emirates for 12 months. Chris Whiteoak / The National

People shop in the Times Square Centre without masks after rules are lifted in malls. Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Mandatory wearing of face masks was no longer be required in schools in the UAE as of September 28, 2022. Shruti Jain / The National

Al Hosn app was introduced to keep track of people's vaccination records and PCR test results during the pandemic. Khushnum Bhandari / The National

Until late February 2022, face masks were mandatory outside in the UAE. Khushnum Bhandari/ The National

School childre nare no longer required to wear face masks. Shruti Jain/ The National

The virtually empty Abu Dhabi-Dubai motorway on the first day of the UAE deep-cleaning campaign in 2020. Victor Besa / The National

On March 27, 2020, workers began the UAE cleaning campaign. Victor Besa / The National

The UAE will require people who catch Covid-19 to quarantine at home for five days instead of 10, as part of sweeping changes to coronavirus rules.

The decision is one of the many to take effect from Wednesday, September 28.

For much of the past two and a half years, a mandatory period of 10 days was required.

In the first few months of the pandemic, it was 14 days ― and the infected patient had to test negative before they could leave their home or a special quarantine hospital.

The authorities may still check on people who have been asked to isolate at home.

Staff from various health authorities typically phone Covid patients to check on their health and remind them to isolate at home.

To date, 1,005,266 residents in the UAE have been recorded as having had Covid-19, about 10 per cent of the population.

In other developments:

— Schools will not require teachers or pupils to wear face masks

— Airlines are to decide on whether or not masks are obligatory

— Abu Dhabi residents will be required to have tests once every 30 days to keep Al Hosn app green. It was every 14 days previously

— Only the person who tests positive for Covid-19 will be required to quarantine, not someone who has been in close contact with them

— No social distancing is required in places of worship

— The number of daily Covid cases will no longer be published by the government

— People will be able to visit malls, supermarkets, hotels, bars and restaurants without being required to wear a mask