According to Premier Daniel Andrews, when Victorians wake up on Saturday there'll be "essentially no COVID rules" at all.
Mr Andrews said that was because the state was "down the other side" of the Omicron peak, hospitalisations were falling and thousands of workers were no longer out of action due to the virus.
Mask mandates will be scrapped for most indoor settings and the recommendation that people work from home will be dropped, when the changes kick in at 11:59pm Friday.
But some rules will remain in place, as the state works to get boosters and vaccinations to more Victorians.
A maskless return to the office will be possible next week
In welcome news for traders in Melbourne's CBD, the recommendation that people work from home if they can will disappear.
While private businesses will be able to manage their own workforces, Mr Andrews said he expected the public sector would move towards having workers on-site three days a week.
"That's what it was previously and we think that's a good thing to aim for and we want to get back to that level as quickly as we can," he said.
For those in the office, masks will no longer be mandatory, and will disappear from most settings.
But they'll remain mandatory in the following places:
- Students in year three or above at primary school and workers at early childhood centres and primary schools
- Public transport, taxis and rideshare vehicles, planes and indoors at the airport
- People working in or visiting hospitals, indoor areas at care facilities
- Workers in hospitality, retail, courts and prisons
- People working indoors at an event with more than 30,000 people attending
- In special circumstances, such as if you have COVID-19 or are a close contact and are leaving home
Masks also remain recommended for workers serving the public face-to-face.
When asked why masks would no longer be mandatory in secondary school but remain for primary school workers and students in grade three and above, the Premier noted the lagging vaccination rate among children.
"Kids' vaccines have come later than adults, now we've just got to push through and get as many kids vaccinated as possible," he said.
Around 54 per cent of Victorians aged five to 11 have received one vaccine dose, compared to roughly 94 per cent of those aged 12 and above.
There'll be no cap on elective surgeries
Public hospitals will be able to resume all surgery and private hospitals can also get back to 100 per cent of pre-COVID activity.
During the recent elective surgery restrictions, a backlog of operations worsened, with more than 80,000 patients on the waitlist at the start of the month.
The Premier said Victoria was working with New South Wales on possible strategies to drive down the "very significant catch-up" on surgeries that had been deferred.
What's happening with the vaccination mandates?
Some minor tweaks have also been announced to the vaccination deadline for workers in education settings, who have until March 25 to be "up to date" with their vaccinations — meaning three doses of the vaccines which have been widely used in Australia.
So far, the third dose is only mandated in specific industries and is not required to dine at restaurants or enjoy other parts of the vaccinated economy.
But the evidence clearly demonstrates the benefit of a third dose for recommended age groups.
You can find more on the vaccinated economy rules on the government's website.
Isolation rules might be a bit looser by the time winter arrives
In confirming the changes, the Premier has also hinted at the possibility of eased isolation requirements for household contacts of COVID-19 cases before cases climb in winter.
Mr Andrews said discussions about reducing the isolation period were being had with New South Wales and might end up being offered to those protected by three vaccine doses.
"Although that'd be more of an honesty thing, you wouldn't be able to prove it, it'd just be another way of trying to encourage people to go and get a third dose," he said.
Mr Andrews said a change there might allow those in households with COVID-19 cases to leave home provided they had taken a rapid antigen test (RAT) and returned a negative result.
Such an exemption already applies to a limited group of essential workers.
"It's a big shift though and it could well mean there'll be more cases. So you've just got to do that carefully, but that's something that our health team is working on," he said.
