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Private Businesses

There is no workplace vaccine mandate for private businesses in New York City.

The Key to NYC vaccine mandate ended on March 7, 2022. The program required employees and customers of indoor dining, fitness, and entertainment venues to prove they were vaccinated.

The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) workplace vaccine mandate for all private businesses in New York City ended on November 1, 2022.

Businesses can still require proof of vaccination or masking indoors if they choose.

Schools and Child Care

As of February 10, 2023, COVID-19 vaccination is no longer required for staff at:

  • Public schools
  • Charter schools
  • Private schools
  • Child care and after school programs

City Workers

As of February 10, 2023, COVID-19 vaccination is no longer required for City workers, new hires, and contracted employees.

Learn more about the end of the vaccine mandate.

Healthcare Workers

In New York State, all healthcare workers, including staff at hospitals and long-term care facilities that are public or private, were required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as of September 27, 2021.

These facilities include: 

  • Adult care 
  • Hospitals
  • Nursing homes
  • Other congregate care settings

The State Department of Health requires these facilities to develop and implement a policy mandating employee vaccination, with limited exceptions for those with religious or medical reasons.

You should contact your employer’s human resources department for more information.

The following are acceptable as proof of COVID-19 vaccination:​

  • CDC Vaccination Card (or photo)
  • NYC Vaccination Record
  • Excelsior Pass App
  • NYC COVID Safe App
  • An official immunization record from outside NYC or the U.S

If you received the vaccine outside the U.S., you must have an official immunization record that includes:

  • First name and last name
  • Date of birth
  • Vaccine product name (only vaccines authorized by the WHO are acceptable)
  • Date(s) administered
  • Site where the vaccine was administered, or name of the person who administered it

To learn more about accepted forms of proof, visit the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccination Record page.

When implementing vaccine mandates, business owners:

  1. Cannot treat customers or employees differently because of any characteristic protected by the NYC Human Rights Law, including: 
    • Race 
    • National origin
    • Disability
    • Gender
    • Religion/Creed
    • Age
  2. Must provide reasonable accommodations to customers who need them because of a disability. 
     
  3. Must provide reasonable accommodations to employees who require them because of any of the following:
    • Disability
    • Pregnancy/Lactation
    • Religious belief
    • Status as a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or sex offenses

However, the business does not have to provide a reasonable accommodation if doing so would create a direct threat to other customers or employees of the business or impose an undue hardship on the business.

Learn more about implementing the rule fairly.

Learn more about customer and employee rights.

Report Discrimination

If you believe you have been a victim of discrimination or if a business has denied a reasonable accommodation, you can make a complaint:

Online

Submit an inquiry about discrimination.

By Phone

  • Agency: Commission on Human Rights
  • Division: Law Enforcement Bureau
  • Phone Number: (212) 416-0197
  • Business Hours: Monday - Friday: 9 AM - 5 PM

If you are a small business with questions about workplace vaccine mandates, the NYC Department of Small Business Services can help.

  • Agency: Small Business Services
  • Division: NYC Small Business Services Hotline
  • Phone Number: 888-SBS-4NYC (888-727-4692)
  • Business Hours: Monday - Friday: 9 AM - 5 PM

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