Masks Required Indoors, Cafes Takeout Only... What Changes in Level 2?

As the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection reached 330, maintaining the 300s for five consecutive days, the Sinchon area in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, showed a quiet scene on the 22nd. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] Starting from the 24th, as social distancing in the Seoul metropolitan area is raised to Level 2, facilities with a high risk of COVID-19 infection will either suspend operations or face strengthened restrictions on operating hours and the number of users. Masks must be worn in all indoor spaces and will be mandatory outdoors if the risk of infection is high. Gatherings and events such as weddings and funerals will not allow more than 100 people, and sports spectatorship will be limited to 10% of the venue's capacity.

Level 2 social distancing is activated when local outbreaks spread rapidly and are deemed to have expanded nationwide. At this level, entertainment facilities such as clubs, karaoke bars, colatecs, emotional pubs, and hunting pochas are subject to closure orders, meaning they cannot operate. Direct sales promotion centers including door-to-door sales, indoor standing concert halls, and karaoke rooms are prohibited from operating after 9 PM. Existing rules applied at Level 1.5, such as one person per 4㎡, prohibition of food consumption, disinfection after use, and a 30-minute interval before reuse, remain in effect with some additional restrictions.

Cafes are only allowed to offer takeout and delivery regardless of business hours. This applies to all cafes primarily selling beverages, excluding franchise-style beverage specialty stores. Restaurants can operate for dine-in only until 9 PM, after which only takeout and delivery are permitted. These key management facilities are uniformly required to enforce mask-wearing, maintain visitor logs, and ensure ventilation and disinfection.

Fourteen types of general management facilities also face restrictions on the number of users or are prohibited from risky activities such as eating. Wedding halls and funeral homes, which had a capacity limit of one person per 4㎡ at Level 1.5, are strictly limited to fewer than 100 people at Level 2. Movie theaters and performance halls must enforce seat spacing with one seat left empty and prohibit food consumption. PC rooms are subject to the same rules, but if partitions are installed, seat spacing is not required, and individual food consumption within partitions is allowed.

On the 22nd, the comprehensive student admission interview was held at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. On that day, examinees were maintaining social distancing as they entered the examination hall.

Arcades, multi-rooms, and bathhouses face strengthened restrictions with a ban on food consumption and a limit of one person per 8㎡. Indoor sports facilities must prohibit food consumption and cease operations after 9 PM. Academies, private tutoring centers, and vocational training institutions must choose one of two options: either limit occupancy to one person per 8㎡ or maintain two-seat spacing, or limit occupancy to one person per 4㎡ or maintain one-seat spacing, along with ceasing operations after 9 PM.

Reading rooms and study cafes must maintain one-seat spacing (except where partitions exist), limit group rooms to 50% capacity, and cease operations after 9 PM. Amusement parks and water parks, which had a capacity limit of 50% at Level 1.5, will reduce this to one-third at Level 2. Hair salons and beauty shops must limit occupancy to one person per 8㎡ or maintain two-seat spacing. Stores, marts, and department stores (general retail over 300㎡) only need to comply with mask-wearing, ventilation, and disinfection requirements at Level 2. The suspension of operations after 9 PM applies starting from Level 2.5.

Religious events such as worship services, masses, Buddhist ceremonies, and memorial services must limit attendance to 20% of seating capacity. At Level 2, masks must be worn during all indoor activities, as well as high-risk outdoor activities such as assemblies, protests, and sports event spectating. Gatherings and events with more than 100 people are prohibited. Exhibitions, fairs, and international conferences are exempt from the '100-person limit' due to their essential industrial and economic nature but are limited to one person per 4㎡. Sports event spectators are limited to 10% capacity, and food consumption is prohibited inside transportation vehicles.

School classes should maintain a density of about one-third (two-thirds for high schools), but may operate up to two-thirds capacity considering academic management. However, if metropolitan or provincial education offices adjust density, prior consultation with local quarantine authorities and the Ministry of Education is required.