Abu Dhabi's new entry rules for vaccinated people come into force

The emirate is limiting access to most public places from Friday with a 'green pass' also needed on the Al Hosn smartphone app

Abu Dhabi residents are inoculated at the screening and vaccine centre on the Corniche. A nationwide testing and inoculation campaign is credited with driving down cases. All photos: Victor Besa / The National

Staff and nurses from the Abu Dhabi public hospital group Seha urged the public to protect themselves from Covid-19 by signing up to be vaccinated.

Motorists queue for PCR tests at Seha's testing and vaccination centre on Abu Dhabi's Corniche.

Mass testing and a successful vaccination campaign has helped the UAE to tackle the pandemic.

Drivers wait at a centre that provides both PCR nasal swab tests and coronavirus vaccine doses.

Shenaz Abdul Salam, 13, gives a thumbs up as he waits to receive his first vaccine dose.

A staff nurse fills in a vaccination form for a driver at the Corniche centre.

Mariam Al Badi, an Emirati nurse working at Seha's drive-through vaccine centre, has urged everyone to get inoculated against Covid-19.

Ms Al Badi goes through the vaccination process with a driver.

Cars queue at the drive-through testing and vaccination centre on Abu Dhabi's Corniche.

More than 80 per cent of the UAE population has been vaccinated and the government is urging those who have not to sign up.

An Abu Dhabi resident gives the thumbs up after signing up for vaccination.

Authorities have made the vaccines free for everyone.

A medical worker checks papers as Abu Dhabi residents sign up for the Covid-19 vaccine.

The drive-through Covid-19 testing and inoculation centre has proved popular with Abu Dhabi residents.

Related: How Abu Dhabi's new entry rules for vaccinated people will work

Rules in Abu Dhabi stipulating that only those who have been vaccinated can gain access to most public places have come into effect.

The Covid-19 safety regulations started on Friday and are designed to curb the spread of the virus and safeguard public health.

Under the measures, which apply to citizens, residents and tourists, proof of vaccination will be required to visit most venues, including malls, restaurants and cafes.

The rules also apply to gyms, sporting activities, spas, entertainment centres, and all other retail outlets, except supermarkets and pharmacies.

People must also be vaccinated to visit museums, cultural centres, universities, institutes, schools and nurseries in the emirate.

Al Hosn, the UAE's testing and vaccination app, will act as the pass to secure entry.

Abu Dhabi has deployed a range of tools to curb the virus, such as mass testing, vaccination and a nightly sterilisation drive as seen here in the city's Mussaffah industrial area. Victor Besa / The National

People must also have a green status on the app to gain access to those facilities. The green status is achieved through a negative PCR test and remains valid for 30 days.

Entry is also allowed for those exempted from vaccination with a green status on Al Hosn, which appears after a negative PCR test result and remains for seven days.

Children under 16, whose status will appear as green on the Al Hosn app without the requirement of a test, will also be allowed entry.

Unvaccinated people and those with a grey status on the Al Hosn app, which reflects an expired PCR test, are prohibited from entering these public places.

The measures came a day after Abu Dhabi announced that the nightly stay-home orders were to end.

The restrictions under the National Sterilisation Programme ran from midnight to 5am and have been in place since July.

The Abu Dhabi Emergency, Crisis and Disasters Committee said the programme had achieved its objective.

Cases have been falling across the UAE over the past few weeks.

The country recorded 1,077 cases on Wednesday, its lowest daily figure this year.

Mass testing and one of the world's fastest vaccination campaigns have helped the UAE curb the pandemic.