Government to Lift Quarantine Pass at Department Stores and Marts Nationwide... "Minimizing Inconvenience and Confusion"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Tae-min] The government is reportedly set to lift the quarantine pass (vaccination certificate/negative test confirmation) requirement recently applied to stores, marts, and department stores nationwide amid controversy.

On the afternoon of the 16th, the government held a quarantine strategy meeting and, after discussing adjustments to the quarantine pass, reportedly reached this conclusion.

During the meeting, it was concluded to withdraw the quarantine pass requirement for these facilities, considering the significant public inconvenience caused by the application of the pass to stores, marts, and department stores, the somewhat stabilized quarantine situation, and the low risk of droplet transmission due to mask-wearing.

A government official stated, "The injunction's approval took immediate effect, causing confusion. To resolve this, it was decided to lift the quarantine pass requirement for the relevant facilities. However, we will also proceed with an appeal against the court's decision." Another attendee said, "Since court rulings are conflicting, we discussed ways to reduce confusion."

Earlier, on the 14th, the Administrative Division 4 of the Seoul Administrative Court ruled, "Considering the usage patterns of stores, marts, and department stores, the risk level can be seen as relatively low. Imposing disadvantages by completely restricting unvaccinated individuals' access is an excessive limitation," and issued an injunction suspending the quarantine pass enforcement for stores, marts, and department stores located in Seoul.

However, on the same day, the Administrative Division 13 of the Seoul Administrative Court dismissed the injunction application, stating, "Since alternative measures such as negative test certificates have been prepared, there is no need to suspend the quarantine pass's effectiveness."

As a result, the most populous areas now allow access to marts and department stores without a quarantine pass, while other regions do not.

Moreover, with the grace period for quarantine pass enforcement at marts and department stores ending on the 17th and administrative penalties such as fines for violations expected, confusion intensified, prompting the government to reach a swift conclusion.

During the meeting, opinions were divided between maintaining the quarantine pass application considering facility characteristics such as density and the spread of the Omicron variant, and lifting it due to improved quarantine conditions and public confusion compared to when the pass was initially applied to these facilities.

Accordingly, even if the quarantine pass requirement for stores, marts, and department stores is withdrawn, other quarantine measures such as occupancy limits based on area are likely to be applied. The government plans to appeal the court's decision separately from lifting the pass requirement to obtain a clear conclusion on the quarantine pass and prevent future confusion.

Furthermore, the government maintains that this adjustment is not due to the court's decision. Son Young-rae, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Welfare, appeared on the radio on the 14th, the day the court ruling was issued, and said, "Compared to December last year, when the expansion of the quarantine pass was decided, the current outbreak has stabilized, so the option to lift the pass starting with low-risk facilities was under discussion."

The government will announce this plan at a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) chaired by Health and Welfare Minister Kwon Deok-cheol on the morning of the 17th.