Australian Retailers Association

COVID-19 restrictions: State-by-state breakdown

Wednesday 30 June 2021

News

A snapshot of restrictions relevant to retailers. The ARA will keep this post continuously updated. The following information is current as of 14 April 2022.

An overview of business support for Disaster Flood Relief and Covid-19 related business support can be accessed here

Quick links to the latest restrictions affecting retail, food retail and hospitality, and hair and beauty members:

New South Wales
Victoria
Queensland
Western Australia
Northern Territory
Australian Capital Territory
South Australia
Tasmania

Encourage safe and respectful shopping with the ARA's COVID-19 poster range

The Australian Retailers Association has developed a series of printable posters in response to the ongoing COVID-19 situation across the country, to promote a safe shopping environment for both customers and staff. Click here for more information.

Shop Respectfully posters

In response to the increased reports of customer aggression towards front-line retail staff at this time, we have developed a #ShopRespectfully campaign.

DOWNLOAD NOW

Stay safe, stay respectful poster

A reminder to customers to stay safe and stay respectful while in your store. To be used in conjunction with any state or territory restrictions in place for retail settings.

DOWNLOAD NOW

Australian Government Department of Health posters

The Australian Government Department of Health have translated COVID SAFE posters in the top 10 languages spoken by multicultural communities in South West Sydney.

DOWNLOAD NOW

New South Wales

NSW Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Not required	Not required
Density Quotas	No density limits	No density limits	No density limits
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Requirement	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Not required	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours.

FAQs for New South Wales

How a business will find out that a worker tests positive for COVID-19

The following guidance is provided by NSW Health to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19.

A business owner or employer might be notified that a worker who has attended the workplace has tested positive for COVID-19 by:

the worker who has tested positive
an employer of a worker who visits the workplace
public health authorities.

The privacy and confidentiality of the person who tested positive for COVID-19 must always be maintained.

The actions described below apply to situations where a worker has attended the workplace. Business owners or employers are not required to notify that a customer with COVID-19 has visited the workplace.

What to do if a worker who tests positive for COVID-19 has been in the workplace

The following guidance is provided by NSW Health to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19.

1. Tell the worker who has tested positive for COVID-19 to return home directly and follow the advice from NSW Health.

2. Ensure the safety of the workplace and workers, for example by cleaning and disinfecting all areas used by the person who tested positive for COVID-19. See further information on cleaning the workplace.

3. Businesses should assess how much contact other workers had with the person who tested positive for COVID-19, while that person was infectious in the workplace. Use the COVID contact classification tool (XLS, 918.5 KB) the Managing COVID-19 contacts in the workplace factsheet (PDF, 193 KB) and any industry-specific guidance to help with this assessment. If you need assistance with this process, call SafeWork NSW on 131 050.

4. Your assessment of workplace risk, guided by the NSW Health contact risk assessment matrix, may indicate there are workers who have had high risk exposures or moderate risk exposures. In this situation, direct the workers to the NSW Health advice in the Managing COVID-19 contacts in the workplace factsheet (PDF, 193 KB) and the information for people exposed to COVID-19. 

5. Advise workers and contractors of the situation in your workplace. Consult with workers about the identification and management of any remaining health and safety risks.

How will NSW Health be involved  

NSW Health will not be involved in most instances where there is a positive worker in the workplace. NSW Health may become involved if there are multiple cases associated with a business or workplace, or in other specific circumstances. Based on further assessment, NSW Health may recommend further actions to reduce the risk of spread of COVID-19.  

Business responsibilities for informing workers

Businesses are only expected to notify SafeWork NSW if a worker is hospitalised and/or dies as a result of contracting COVID-19 at work.

Businesses are no longer required to notify SafeWork NSW if a worker tests positive for COVID-19.

If an employee contracts Covid-19, employers are required to advise workers and contractors of the general situation, noting that the privacy and confidentiality of the person who tested positive for COVID-19 must always be maintained. Information provided should include:

Symptoms of COVID-19 that staff and contractors should monitor themselves for
Where to seek public health advice and help
Reminders to staff, contractors, visitors and customers to not enter the premises if they are unwell
Advice on physical distancing and personal hygiene measures (e.g. hand hygiene and cough etiquette)
What infection control measures the business operator has put in place, including cleaning.

If a worker has tested positive, do I need to close the premises?

Businesses do not necessarily have to close if a worker has tested positive to COVID-19. The decision to close a business depends on:

Ongoing transmission. Evidence of ongoing spread of infection (transmission) from person to person in the workplace might mean the business has to close temporarily to stop transmission between workers.
Cleaning requirements. Premises must be appropriately cleaned following attendance of a positive case. This can be done overnight so as not to disrupt normal business hours. If premises are told during business hours, they may need to close to undertake cleaning.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

While retailers are no longer required to have a Covid-19 business safety plan, sample templates for retailers can be found on this link: https://www.nsw.gov.au/Covid-19/business/safety-plans

For further information, please refer to the NSW Public Health Orders or any of the following resources:

Victoria

VIC Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	QR check-in is no longer required	QR check-in is no longer required	QR check-in is no longer required
Density Quotas	No density limits	No density limits	No density limits
Masks (>8 years of age)	Masks no longer required.	Masks no longer required.	Masks no longer required.
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Workers: Must be fully vaccinated, unless a valid medical exemption applies. Customers: Not required	Workers: Must be fully vaccinated, unless a valid medical exemption applies. Customers: Not required	Workers: Must be fully vaccinated, unless a valid medical exemption applies. Customers: Not required.

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours.

FAQs for Victoria

What happens if a staff member, who has been at work, tests positive for Covid-19?

If a worker who has tested positive for COVID-19 and worked indoors in the workplace during their infectious period, they must inform their workplace as soon as possible.

The infectious period is defined as 48 hours before the person started to develop symptoms (or if they did not have symptoms, 48 hours before their positive test). The workplace must take reasonable steps to identify and inform other workers who may have been exposed to a case and advise them of their testing obligations.

Determining if someone is a workplace contact

A worker is a workplace contact if they were:

face-to-face (<1.5m) for more than 15 minutes (total in one day) with a case, or
in a small indoor space (<100m²) for more than 2 hours (total in one day) with a case
you can also use this tool to determine workplace contacts. (COVID workplace contact form - openforms.com)

Actions for workplace contacts

If they have symptoms, they must use a rapid antigen test, or a PCR test if they cannot access a rapid antigen test
If they don't have symptoms, they are strongly recommended to take a daily rapid antigen test for five days
If they test positive on any rapid antigen tests, they must report their result, isolate for seven days and follow their checklist.

Outbreak in the workplace

Please use the COVID-19 outbreak notification form to let the Department of Health know about a suspected outbreak of COVID-19. Five or more cases within 7 days is considered a potential outbreak.

Exemption from quarantine for close contacts

Some critical workers who are close contacts may be exempt from quarantine requirements to attend work if certain conditions are met. Guidance is available to understand the eligibility requirements.

Vaccination requirement updates

The following workers (including contractors, volunteers, and students on placement) are required to show evidence to their employer of receiving 2 vaccination doses in order to continue working outside their home.

Third dose vaccination requirements may also apply, depending on your work.

Note: food distribution workers (excluding retail) will be required to have three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine (or be medically exempt) in order to continue working on site. See Third Dose Requirements above for more information.

A retail worker is someone who works at or in connection with a retail facility, including a:

market, but only to obtain groceries or fresh food
retail shopping centre
supermarket, grocery store, bakery, butcher, fruit and vegetable store or fishmonger
food and drink facility (e.g. a cafe; a restaurant; licensed premises; a fast-food store; a cafeteria; a canteen; a winery; a food court; food trucks)
post office
news agent
petrol station (including a petrol station that sells groceries)
bottle shop
pet store
a facility providing 'click and collect' services
a wholesale or distribution facility.

Further details on the new restrictions coming into place will be published online at coronavirus.vic.gov.au

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

Yes, it is mandatory for every Victorian business to have a Covid-19 Safe Plan. Templates are available through the coronavirus.vic.gov.au website but it is not mandatory to use these templates. To ensure compliance, random spot checks are occurring throughout Victoria.

For further information, please refer to the Checklist for Covid Contacts or any of the following resources:

Queensland

QLD Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not Required	Not Required	Not Required
Density Quotas	No density limits	No density limits and no vaccination requirements from customers or staff	No density limits
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Not required	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours

FAQs for Queensland

Dealing with COVID-19 in the workplace

It’s a good idea to plan and prepare for scenarios where people with COVID-19 enter your workplace – both staff and patrons.

Think about if, and how, your business will continue to operate if staff get COVID-19 and need to isolate, or if they need to quarantine as close contacts.

Consider safety measures such as:

screening staff, contractors, customers and other visitors to the workplace for COVID-19 symptoms
keeping accurate and up-to-date employee timesheets and records of attendance at the workplace, such as through a virtual or physical sign-in
making sure customers, contractors and other visitors use the Check In Qld app
maintaining up-to-date contact details for employees to help with contact tracing.

Staff diagnosed with COVID-19

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 must isolate for 7 days from the date they tested positive.

A staff member who has completed their isolation and no longer has symptoms can return to work. You do not need to ask them to produce a negative test before they can return to work.

No other staff must isolate unless they are considered a close contact. Close contact means a person who is a household member or a household-like contact of a diagnosed person.

If several staff are in isolation, you may not be able to operate your business. Consider the following alternatives to temporarily closing your business:

look into temporary staff solutions, such as labour hire or agency staffing
consider the cost impacts on bookings and orders versus the cost of finding alternative temporary staff.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan? 

Yes, every workplace in Queensland must have a Covid-19 Safe management plan to help protect its staff, customers and visitors and to prepare for a suspected or confirmed case of Covid-19 in your workplace. This plan is your Work Health and Safety plan that all businesses are required to have and maintain. 

This plan must demonstrate how you will meet all requirements set out by the Chief Health Officer. It does not need to be submitted to the Chief Health Officer for approval but should be made available when requested. 

Guidance for employers and staff to help keep workplaces Covid-19 safe is available at WorkSafe and a Covid Safe Management Plan template can be found here.

Western Australia

WA Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Not required	Not required
Density Quotas	Not required	Density limits 2sqm in hospitality	Required 2sqm rule 150 patron limits (not including staff)
Masks (>12 years or age)  Mask wearing requirements expanded to children in Years 3-6 in all public indoor settings (usual exemptions apply)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Customers: Not required   Staff: staff in critical retail need to be fully vaccinated	Customers: Proof of vaccination required  Staff: staff in critical hospitality need to be fully vaccinated	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours.

Further restrictions apply to anyone who wishes to enter remote indigenous communities, and their movements while in community.

FAQs for Western Australia

Do my customers and staff need to be vaccinated? 

Based on the latest health advice from WA Health, the Booster Vaccination (Restrictions on Access) Directions are now in effect, and require all workers who fall within a mandated cohort to receive a third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

Workers in critical retail settings were required to be double dose vaccinated by 1 February 2022. Workers in critical retail and critical hospitality include: 

Restaurant, pub, bar, café or fast food 
Post office 
Department stores 
Hardware store 
Critical infrastructure and services necessary for the health, safety or welfare of the community, any person, animal or premises 
Petrol station, truck stops and roadhouses 
Staff working in or entering remote Aboriginal communities

A useful infographic describing the WA mandatory Covid-19 Vaccinations is located here. Further information and updated industries can be found here. 

Customers wishing to enter a food retail and hospitality business are required to be vaccinated, and must show their vaccination certificate upon entry.

What proof of vaccination is required?  

It is a requirement all staff and patrons are required to show proof of their Covid-19 vaccination or medical exemption, either in a digital or paper-based form, along with other approved identification to enter certain retail businesses in WA.   

These retail venues include pubs, taverns, hotels (hospitality) and Special Facility Licences with a capacity of more than 500 people or these specific licensed venues that trade after midnight.   

Both venues and patrons will have a shared responsibility when it comes to proof of vaccination, with venues required to take reasonable steps to ensure all patrons are double dose vaccinated or exempt.  

Further information on retailer’s requirements can be found at the WA Government’s Covid-19 webpage.  

The quickest way to get proof is using your Medicare online account through myGov, or through the Express plus Medicare mobile app.  

If you’re not eligible for Medicare or don’t have a myGov account, you can still get proof of your vaccination.  

Please note, employees at workplaces who fall under the WA Government’s mandatory vaccination policy should speak to their employer about showing proof of their vaccination status.  

What happens in the event of a lockdown? 

In addition, the following retail workers will need to be fully vaccinated to attend work in the event of a lockdown or similar restrictions. This includes occupations working in the following retail sites: 

Other click and collect retail 
Bottle shop or liquor store 
Newsagent 
Pet store

What happens if a staff member, who has been at work, tests positive for Covid-19? 

The following guidance is provided to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19. If you or your staff: 

are identified by WA Public Health as close contacts, you must quarantine and get tested. You will be contacted by WA Public Health with more information.  
self-identify as close contacts, you must quarantine and get tested. You must contact 13 COVID on 13 268 43 and you will be provided with further advice. Further information is here.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan? 

Yes, every workplace in Western Australia must have a Covid-19 Safety Plan to help protect its staff, customers and visitors and to prepare for a suspected or confirmed case of Covid-19 in your workplace. This plan is your Work Health and Safety plan that all businesses are required to have and maintain. 

This plan must demonstrate how you will meet all requirements set out by the Chief Health Officer. Businesses require a Covid-19 Safety Plan, sample templates for different types of retailers can be found here: 

For further information, please refer to the following resources: 

Northern Territory

NT Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Not required	Not required
Density Quotas	Not required	Not required	Not required
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Customer: Not required Staff: staff in customer facing roles must be tripled vaccinated	Customer: Not required Staff: staff in customer facing roles must be tripled vaccinated	Customer: Not required  Staff: staff in customer facing roles must be tripled vaccinated
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Vaccine certificate must be shown by customers as a condition of entry to businesses that sell food or beverages for consumption on premises.	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours

FAQs for the Northern Territory

Do my customers and staff need to be vaccinated?

All retail and hospitality staff in customer facing roles are considered to be Category 1 workers and are required to be vaccinated. Further information can be found at the Workers Requiring Vaccination Fact Sheet.

COVID-19 positive checklist

Step 1. Declare your positive Rapid Antigen Test result and register for COVID CareNT using the online registration form/ receive your positive PCR test result via text message
Step 2. Isolate for at least 7 days
Step 3. Tell your close contacts you have tested positive for COVID-19
Step 4. Follow public health measures for seven days after your isolation period: Wear a mask, apply social distancing, do not enter high risk facilities.

A person is considered a close contact if:

You reside in the same household /premises as a COVID-19 positive person
You have spent four or more continuous hours indoors with a COVID-19 positive

Fully vaccinated people

If you are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and receive a positive test result, you must immediately isolate for at least seven days.

If you have no symptoms, you can leave isolation at 12 noon on Day 7.
If you have symptoms on Day 7, you must remain in isolation until your symptoms resolve or you receive a medical certificate from your doctor stating that you are no longer infectious.

Unvaccinated people

If you are unvaccinated against COVID-19 and receive a positive test result, you must immediately isolate for 10 days.

If you have no symptoms, you can leave isolation at 12 noon on Day 10.
If you have symptoms on Day 10, you must remain in isolation until your symptoms resolve or you receive a medical certificate from your doctor stating that you are no longer infectious.

Once a COVID-positive person has completed the required isolation period, you will not be considered a close contact if another member of the household becomes COVID positive for the next 28 days.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

Yes, all businesses in the Northern Territory are required to lodge a Covid-19 Safety Plan.

A Covid-19 Safety Plan checklist must be completed and submitted online. The checklist forms the businesses Covid-19 Safety Plan.

If your six-month Covid Safety Plan has expired, it should remain in place. There is no need to submit your Covid Safety Plan after six months if there have been no changes to your plan.

Find some examples of plans here:

For further information please refer:

Australian Capital Territory

ACT Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Required Licensed bars, pubs and taverns Registered clubs	Not required
Density Quotas	Not required	Not required	Not required
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Not required	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours

FAQs for Australian Capital Territory

What happens if a staff member, who has been at work, tests positive for Covid-19?

The following guidance is provided to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19. If you or your staff:

are identified by ACT Health as close contacts, you must quarantine and get tested. You will be contacted by ACT Health with more information.
self-identify as close contacts, you must complete the ACT Contact Declaration Form and follow quarantine and testing advice as required. You will be contacted with more information.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

Yes, the development of a Covid-19 Safety Plan is an important step in ensuring that you keep your staff and the broader community safe. You should consult with your staff as you develop your Covid-19 Safety Plan to ensure they are aware of their responsibilities and are able to carry them out.

Your Covid-19 Safety Plan should consist of a document in a written or electronic form that can be produced during a compliance check.

To assist small businesses, a Covid-19 Safety Checklist (Checklist) and Guidelines for your Covid Safety Plan have been developed. Your Covid-19 Safety Plan should include your policies in relation to matters including:

Ensuring physical distancing;
Cleaning, sanitising and hygiene activities;
Managing staff or patrons presenting with illness
Additional requirements for restricted businesses and organisations to ensure patrons aged 16 years or older check in using the Check In CBR app; and
Compliance and enforcement.

For further information, please refer to the following resources:

South Australia

SA Snapshot	Essential retail and General retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Not required	Not required
Density Quotas	None	None	None
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Not required	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours.

FAQs for South Australia

What happens if a staff member, who has been at work, tests positive for Covid-19?

The following guidance is provided to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19. If you or your staff: 

immediately quarantine for 7 days since they had contact with a COVID-19 positive person or were at the exposure location \ get an initial COVID-19 PCR test 
get a COVID-19 PCR test again on day 6 after exposure (a negative day 6 PCR test is required to be released from quarantine)  
get a COVID-19 PCR test again immediately if symptoms develop 
not attend high risk settings or COVID Management Plan events for 14 days after exposure 
wear a surgical mask when around others 
avoid contact with vulnerable people (young children, elderly, pregnant, people with chronic health conditions), avoid non-essential activities, avoid working across worksites and avoid shared spaces and maintain physical distancing on days 8 to 14 after exposure.

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

Yes, all South Australian businesses are required to develop and lodge a Covid-19 Safety Plan. A Covid-19 Safety Plan checklist must be completed and sent to SA Health for approval.

For further information please refer:

Tasmania

TAS Snapshot	Essential retail and general retail	Food retail and hospitality	Personal services (incl. hair and beauty)
QR Codes	Not required	Required in all pubs, bars, clubs, night clubs, and hotels	Not required
Density Quotas	1 person per 2 square metres of floor space	1 person per 2 square metres of floor space.	1 person per 2 square metres of floor space.
Masks (>12 years or age)	Not required	Not required	Not required
Covid Safety Plan	Required	Required	Required
Vaccination Requirement	Not required	Not required	Not required
Vaccination Certificates	Not required	Not required	Not required

Notes: Personal services include hairdressers, spas, nail, beauty, waxing, tanning salons, tattoo parlours and massage parlours

FAQs for Tasmania

Do my customers and staff need to be vaccinated?

In most settings no, they don’t need to be vaccinated. However, there is a Legal Direction that requires all patrons in areas where dancing and drinking standing up are undertaken to be fully vaccinated. All staff working in these areas must also be fully vaccinated. 

What happens if a staff member, who has been at work, tests positive for Covid-19?

The following guidance is provided to support your business if you have a worker test positive for Covid-19. If you or your staff:

are identified by Tasmanian Public Health as close contacts, you must quarantine and get tested. Tasmanian Public Health will contact you with further information.
self-identify as close contacts, You must contact Tasmanian Public Health on Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738

Do I still need a Covid-19 safety plan?

Yes, all businesses and organisations should have a Covid-19 Safety Plan that demonstrates compliance with the minimum Covid-19 standards and how you are keeping your customers, your workers and your community safe.

Visit the WorkSafe Tasmania website for templates and checklists to help develop and review your Covid-19 Safety Plan, including:

Fact sheet: Creating a Covid-19 Safety Plan
Template: Covid-19 Safety Plan
Fact sheet: Reviewing and updating your Covid-19 Safety Plan
Template: Additional information for your existing Covid-19 Safety Plan
Guidance note for all industries: How to conduct a Covid-19 risk assessment
Fact sheet: Prepare for Covid-19 cases in your business or organisation

Responding to a case or outbreak in your workplace or business

Positive cases will be advised to tell their workplace they have tested positive for COVID-19 so information can be provided to other staff.

A business may also find out a worker has tested positive in some instances from Public Health. If the worker is still in the workplace, they must be directed to go home. They will be required to isolate for a minimum of 7 days from the day they had the test. Workplaces should advise all other staff to monitor for symptoms and get tested if symptoms develop and isolate until they get a negative test result.

To assist in keeping all Tasmanians safe, workplaces should ensure all staff continue to practice COVID Safe behaviours including wearing masks where required, practicing hand hygiene and advising staff to avoid having meal breaks and meetings together in enclosed spaces. Employers should encourage vaccination for all staff – including a booster.

The following will apply to all businesses:

Staff will not be identified as close contacts in the workplace unless they have had household like exposures to cases being longer than 4 hours and without wearing a mask.
Businesses and workplaces will not be listed as exposure sites.
Public Health will only be in contact if several cases are linked to your premises or event

It is possible some businesses will experience staff shortages due to isolation of cases who have been exposed in the community and to quarantining of close contacts who live in the same household as a case.

For further information please refer: