Due to the rise in COVID-19 cases in certain neighborhoods, the City is implementing restrictions for businesses, schools, and gatherings in three zones identified by the State—red, orange, yellow. Red zones are the areas of the most concern and the greatest restrictions.

Citywide Restrictions

• All public school buildings closed on Thursday, November 19 and will reopen in phases. To learn more, visit the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Schools page.
   
• As of Friday, November 13, all gyms and fitness centers must close from 10 PM to 5 AM daily.
   
• As of Friday, February 26, all restaurants, bars, catering halls, clubs, manufacturers with tasting rooms, and other food service establishments in New York City may reopen indoor dining at 35% capacity. Outdoor dining, takeout and delivery are still allowed. Restaurants and bars are required to close indoor and outdoor dining from 11 PM to 5 AM daily. Takeout and delivery are still allowed after 11 PM, except for alcoholic beverages. 

Manhattan COVID Zones

• As of January 27, a yellow zone, which covers a large portion of upper Manhattan, remains in effect.

Bronx COVID Zones

• As of January 27, two yellow zones, which cover large portions of the Bronx, remain in effect.

Queens COVID Zones

• As of January 27, the Queens yellow zone remains in effect.

* High-risk non-essential businesses:

• Gyms, fitness centers and classes must operate at 25% capacity. 
• Barber shops, hair salons, and other personal care services can provide services so long as employees performing services are tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis. Other personal care services include spas, tattoo or piercing parlors, nail technicians and nail salons, cosmetologists, estheticians, laser hair removal, and electrolysis.

The City has created a zone look-up tool to help New Yorkers check which zone they are located in.

New York City businesses are reopening in phases.

The City is currently in Phase 4 of the State’s New York Forward Plan for reopening.

Within each phase, non-essential businesses may reopen if they belong to certain industries. 

Essential businesses and business activities that are open may remain open, but they must follow health and safety rules.

Movie Theaters

Movie theaters in New York City can begin opening on March 5 with the following restrictions:

• Venues are restricted to 25% capacity, with no more than 50 people per screen at a time
• Masks will be required at all times except when seated and eating or drinking
• Assigned seating will be required in all theaters
• Social distancing between parties will be required at all times
• Additional staffing will be required to control occupancy, traffic and seating to ensure compliance
• Enhanced air filtration, ventilation, and purification standards must be met by theaters

Billiard and Pool Halls

Billiard and pool halls in New York City can begin opening on March 5 with the following restrictions:

• Halls are restricted to 35% capacity in New York City
• Masks will be required at all times except when seated and eating or drinking
• Mandatory social distancing must be enforced, or physical barriers between parties of customers must be installed
• Each party must be assigned to a table to avoid contact with other parties
• Staff must rigorously clean and disinfect any rented or shared equipment between use

Weddings and Catered Events

Weddings and catered events in New York City can begin opening on March 15 with the following restrictions:

• Venues are restricted to 50% capacity, with no more than 150 people per event
• All patrons must be tested prior to the event
• Sign-in with contact information is required, to assist with potential contact tracing
• Venues must notify local health departments of large events above the social gathering limit, in advance.
• Masks will be required at all times except when seated and eating or drinking
• Ceremonial and socially-distanced dancing allowed under strict guidelines

Event, Arts and Entertainment Venues

Event, arts and entertainment venues with a capacity of 10,000 people or less in New York City can begin opening on April 2 with the following restrictions:

• Venues are restricted to 33% capacity, up to 100 people indoors and up to 200 people outdoors
• If all attendees present proof of negative test prior to entry, capacity can increase up to 150 people indoors and up to 500 people outdoors
• Masks and social distancing will be required by all attendees
• Strict adherence to all applicable Department of Health guidance

The City is currently in Phase 4 of the State’s New York Forward Plan for reopening.

Essential businesses and business activities that are open may remain open, but they must follow health and safety rules.

Essential businesses include:

• Banks and related financial institutions
• Bike repair shops
• Child care centers
• Dentists
• Grocery and food production
• Healthcare providers
• Laundromats
• Media
• Restaurants, bars, and cafes
• Pharmacies
• Shipping
• Taxis and car services
• Utilities
• Warehousing

Get information and guidance on essential services under the State Executive Order.

To report an essential business that is open but is not complying with necessary restrictions, visit the Business Reopening Complaint page.

To keep New Yorkers healthy and safe during the pandemic, the State and City have issued guidelines and are enforcing rules related to social distancing.

Stay home except for:

• Essential needs and tasks, such as getting groceries
• Getting medical care
• Solitary exercise
• Work

If you must leave your home:

• Keep at least 6 feet of distance between yourself and others.
• Wear a mask or a face covering when social distancing is not possible, including on public transportation, in stores, and on crowded sidewalks.
• Bike or walk if possible. Don’t take public transportation unless you need to.
• Stagger working hours, if possible. For example, instead of 9 AM to 5 PM, change some work hours to 10 AM to 6 PM or 8 AM to 4 PM.

Adults 70 and Older or with Compromised Immune Systems

The State has enacted Matilda’s Law to protect New Yorkers age 70 and older and those with compromised immune systems.

If you are in one of these groups, please:

• Remain indoors
• Go outside only for solitary exercise
• Pre-screen all visitors by taking their temperature
• Wear a mask in the company of others
• Stay at least 6 feet from others
• Do not take public transportation unless urgent and absolutely necessary

Gatherings

As of Friday, November 13, indoor or outdoor gatherings of more than 10 people are not allowed in private homes.

Any gatherings of more than 50 people are not allowed. Additional restrictions apply to areas within COVID-19 zones.

Learn more about the State's rules.

You must still keep at least 6 feet of distance between yourself and others and wear a mask or a face covering when social distancing is not possible. Social distancing guidelines and cleaning and disinfection guidelines required by the Department of Health must be followed.

Learn more about cleaning and disinfecting guidelines.

Face Coverings

By the State’s Executive Order, face coverings are required for any individual over the age of two and those who do not have a medical condition that can prevent them from wearing a face covering. Employers must give employees free face coverings and proper protective equipment and provide replacements.

Business owners or building operators, or those authorized on their behalf, can deny access to individuals who fail to wear a face covering on the premises.

The City also strongly recommends that you:

• Wear a face covering indoors when you are around other people and you are not in your home, even if 6 feet of distance can be maintained.
• Wear a face covering in your home if:
  • Someone who doesn't live in the household is there.
  • You live with others who are sick, recently tested positive for COVID-19, or were recently exposed to someone with COVID-19 (unless alone in a separate room). In these instances, face coverings should also be worn around pets.

If you refuse to wear a face covering, you could be issued a fine.

Learn more about face coverings on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Health and Safety page.

Complaints

To report a lack of social distancing or face coverings, visit the Social Distancing or Face Covering Complaint page.

Public Parks

New York City parks and playgrounds are open, but some other facilities and spaces are closed. For a list of closures, visit the Parks page.

All park goers are asked to take extra precautions to stay healthy and safe. 

• Solo exercise is allowed, but team sports (such as basketball, football, softball, and soccer) are not allowed
• Keep at least 6 feet of distance between yourself and others
• Avoid gathering in groups

The City is increasing social distancing in parks that have a mix of tight spaces and large crowds.

The City will limit capacity at:

• Sheep Meadow in Central Park
• Hudson River Park Piers 45 and 46

And closely monitor:

• Domino Park
• The Rockaways
• Coney Island
• Orchard Beach

Public Beaches

New York City beaches are currently closed for swimming, sports, barbecues or large gatherings. To learn more, visit the Beaches page.

Open Restaurants

The Open Restaurants program aims to expand outdoor seating options for restaurants and bars. Bar and restaurant owners may apply to place outdoor seating in front of their food establishments on the sidewalk or roadway.

The Open Streets: Restaurants program also provides food establishments extra space by closing select streets to vehicle traffic on Friday evenings and on weekends. Only community-based organizations, Business Improvement Districts (BID), or groups of three or more food establishments can apply for Open Streets: Restaurants.

Learn more about both programs on the Open Restaurants page.

Open Streets

The Open Streets program closes streets to vehicle traffic to make it safer and easier for pedestrians and cyclists to stay active while maintaining social distancing.

Open Streets are available daily from 8 AM to 8 PM (unless otherwise noted).

Learn more about the program on the Open Streets page.

Churches, temples, mosques and other religious buildings are allowed to operate with no more than 50% of the maximum occupancy for a particular area for services occurring indoor. 

Drive-in or parking lot services are allowed.

If you attend a religious service, you must follow these health and safety guidelines:

• Keep at least 6 feet of distance between yourself and others unless you are from the same household or if for safety reasons, the core activity requires a shorter distance.
• Wear a face covering at all times unless you are seated.
• If singing is part of the service, individuals must remain at least 12 feet apart while singing and wear a face covering.
• Don't hold or shake hands with members of different households.
• If you are attending a funeral, do not touch, hug, or kiss the body of a deceased person who had been confirmed or is suspected of testing positive for COVID-19.

Learn more about health and safety rules for religious gatherings. 

To report a house of worship not following social distancing or face covering rules, visit the Social Distancing or Face Covering Complaint page.

COVID-19 is currently impacting many government offices and non-emergency services. Although the City is still available for essential services, many government offices are closed or offering limited in-person assistance.

We encourage you to:

• Use an Agency’s online services
• Contact them through their website, by email, or by phone
• Check their website for the latest service updates

Visit the following pages to learn about closures or service changes for:

• Adult Protective Services
• Beaches
• Birth Certificates
• Child Support
• ​Court
• Department of Finance Business Centers
• Department of Health Clinics:
  • Adult Vaccination and Immunization
  • Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • Tuberculosis
• Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
• Department of Transportation Permits and Customer Service:
  • City Parking Permit for People with Disabilities
  • Parking Permit
• Elections and Voting
• Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Card
• Fair Fares NYC
• Family Justice Centers
• Funeral Financial Assistance
• Health Insurance for People with Disabilities
• Health Insurance for Seniors
• HIV and AIDS Services
• Home Care
• Housing Court for Tenants and Landlords
• IDNYC Municipal ID Card
• Immigration and Citizenship
• Inmate Visit
• Jury Duty
• Libraries
• Marriage License
• Medicaid
• NYC Ferry
• Parks
• Public Assistance or Welfare
• Schools
• Senior Centers
• SNAP (Food Stamp) Centers
• Social Security Offices

Visit the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Schools page for information about DOE’s plans for Return to School 2020, including:

• In-person and remote learning
• Health and safety precautions
• School schedules and programming models

Visit the School Calendar and Closures page for a list of 2020-2021 school holidays and key dates.

Visit the School Reopening Complaint page to report a school not following COVID-19 health and safety rules or to make a complaint about New York City's public school reopening policy.

Public Colleges

CUNY

Classes at CUNY college will be held in-person, online, or a combination of both for the Fall 2020 semester. CUNY schools, dorms, and libraries are open.

You can get detailed information online or by contacting your college directly.

Visit your CUNY College website to learn about reopening plans.

Get CUNY coronavirus updates.

SUNY

SUNY has developed individual campus plans to resume on-campus activities and in-person instruction for the Fall 2020 semester.

You can get detailed information online or by contacting your college directly.

Visit SUNY's website.

Learn about campus reopening plans.

Private Colleges

Contact your private college directly for any questions related to coronavirus preparation and handling, including college reopening plans.

Complaints

As part of Phase 4, institutions of higher learning in New York are allowed to reopen and offer in-person instruction, but they must follow health and safety guidelines.

To report a college or vocational/trade school that is not following health and safety guidelines, visit the Higher Education Complaint page.

Nursing homes are now allowed to have limited visitations. In order for a nursing home to have visitors, the facility must have gone 28 days without a COVID-19 case. 

Residents in these facilities will be allowed two visitors at a time and at least one visitor should be 18 years or older. 

Each visitor must:

• Have a temperature check
• Wear a face covering
• Keep at least 6 feet of distance from others

Only 10% of nursing home residents can be allowed visitors at any time.

Learn more about nursing home visitation policies.

Starting Friday, February 26 nursing home indoor visitations will have the following restrictions:

• Maximum number of visitors is 20% of the residents
• If there is less than 5% of positivity in the county, no testing is required but is encouraged
• If the county has 5% to 10% positivity, then testing must be done in 72 hours
• If the county is greater than 10%, no visitation is allowed except for companionate care
• If there has been a COVID case in the nursing home in the past 14 days, no visitation is allowed
• If a visitor has had both vaccine doses and has gone more than 14 days since getting the second dose, testing is not required

To report a problem with a nursing home, visit the Nursing Home Complaint page.

Child care centers are open and are allowed to operate in red, orange, and yellow COVID-19 hot zones.

Centers must follow strict safety guidelines including:

• No more than 15 children per room, social distancing
• Face coverings for staff and children
• Daily health screenings
• Frequent cleanings and disinfection
• Limited sharing of items including toys

The Department of Health will inspect programs to verify compliance.

Contact your child care provider for more information about reopening.

Get health and safety guidelines for child care centers.

Child Care Options

Regional Enrichment Centers (RECs) were created to provide childcare for essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic from March through the summer of 2020.

All RECs closed permanently after Friday, September 11. RECs are no longer enrolling new students.

The Department of Education's Learning Bridges program will provide free childcare options for children from 3-K through 8th grade on days when they are scheduled for remote learning. To learn more, visit the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Schools page.

Building Space for Child Care Facilities

Property owners with available building space that could potentially be used for child care facilities can submit application to rent or sell space to the City.

Submit an application.

Service Status

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is operating the MTA Essential Service Plan on subways, buses, Long Island Rail Road, and Metro North Railroad until further notice.

If you're not traveling for work or for urgent personal business like a medical appointment, do not use the public transportation or Access-a-Ride paratransit in order to keep limited capacity available for people who must travel.

Online

Get the latest information about MTA service during the outbreak.

By Phone

Parking Rules

Alternate Side Parking Schedule

For information about Alternate Side Parking (street cleaning) changes or suspensions, visit the Alternate Side Parking (ASP) page.

Open Streets

When ASP is in effect on an Open Street, vehicles should leave the street and may return after ASP is over. If barriers are in place, they should be set up in a way that cars can drive around them.

While driving in and out of the street, please watch for pedestrians and travel at 5 MPH.

Parking Tickets

Any New Yorker under isolation who has received a ticket can request a hearing with the Department of Finance and should provide medical documentation or testimony, which will be taken into consideration when their case is reviewed. To learn how to dispute a parking ticket, visit the Parking Ticket or Camera Violation Dispute page.

Taxis and Car Services

Face Coverings

Protect yourself and others. All Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) drivers and passengers must wear a face covering. You can use a homemade mask, bandana, or a scarf.

Pooled Rides

For the safety of drivers and passengers, the City has temporarily banned pooled rides in TLC-licensed high volume for-hire vehicles such as Uber, Lyft, and Via.

This ban does not apply to paratransit vehicles.

Travel to New York State

Travelers, including New York State residents, are required to quarantine for 10 days upon entering New York State.

However, you can test out of the mandatory quarantine by following these guidelines:

If you were in another state or country designated as high risk by the CDC for more than 24 hours:

• You must obtain a test within 3 days of departure from that state.
• You must, upon arrival in New York, quarantine for 3 days.
• On day 4 of your quarantine, you must obtain another COVID test. If both tests come back negative, you may exit quarantine early upon receipt of the second negative diagnostic test.

If you were in another state for less than 24 hours:

• You do not need a test prior to their departure from the other state, and does not need to quarantine upon arrival in New York State.
• However, you must fill out the traveler information form upon entry into New York State, and take a COVID diagnostic test 4 days after your arrival in New York.

This does not apply to travelers arriving from New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, or Vermont.

Exceptions to the travel advisory are permitted for essential workers and are based on how long they will stay in New York.

Quarantine Checkpoints

The City has COVID-19 quarantine checkpoints at key entry points into New York City to ensure compliance with New York State quarantine orders and continue to contain COVID-19. The New York City Sheriff’s Office, working with other law enforcement agencies, will operate traveler registration checkpoints at major bridge and tunnel crossings into New York City. Checkpoint locations may change on a daily basis.

When a vehicle is stopped at a checkpoint, the driver and passengers will be asked where they are traveling from and how long they were in that location. If you are not traveling from New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts or Vermont, you will be informed of the 14-day quarantine requirements and instructed to complete an online New York State Health Department Travel Form as soon as possible. Travelers can expect to spend less than 5 minutes at the checkpoint. If you have already completed the travel form and can show the email confirmation that you have done so, you will be dismissed from the checkpoint faster.

The Mayor's Public Engagement Unit is engaging in outreach at Penn Station to educate incoming passengers from states with high COVID-19 transmission rates about New York State home-quarantine orders.

Hotels or Short-Term Rentals

Starting Friday, August 21, anyone who has visited a restricted state or territory within the last 14 days is required to complete the New York State Traveler Health Form before checking into a hotel, motel, inn, or a short-term rental in New York City. 

If you have already filled out the form, you may show proof, such as a screenshot of the certification page of a completed form.

You will not be allowed access to a room until you have completed the form electronically or on paper.

Travelers who do not complete the form may be subject to significant fines and a misdemeanor violation.

Online

Learn more about the State’s restrictions for travel.

Complete the New York State Traveler Health Form.

Learn more about mandatory traveler health form completion at hotels and short-term rentals.

By Phone

You can report people who are not complying with self-quarantine traveling guidelines by phone.