Bulgaria lifts COVID restrictions from April 1

SOFIA: Bulgaria will lift all COVID-19 restrictions from Friday, including the wearing of protective masks indoors and travel bans for foreigners from countries with serious coronavirus outbreaks, Health Minister Assena Serbezova said on Wednesday.

The changes come after the centrist coalition government decided to end a nationwide state of alert introduced two years ago when the pandemic first hit the Balkan country.

Bulgaria remains the European Union’s least-vaccinated state, with less than 30% of the population fully inoculated amid distrust in state institutions and poor vaccine education. The pandemic has killed 36,498 people in the country of 7 million.

The number of new daily coronavirus infections in Bulgaria stood at 1,698 on Wednesday, far off the record high of 12,399 hit at the end of January.

Other restrictions to be lifted include compulsory social distancing, capacity limits for restaurants, theatres and events and online studies for universities.

All foreigners would be allowed in the country if they hold a valid COVID-19 certificate, granted to people who have been vaccinated or recovered from infection or have recently tested negative for the virus.