Green Card COVID under “New Normal” in Ho Chi Minh City

In preparation for reopening the economy after the lengthy lockdown and social distancing, on 15th September 2021, the Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control of Ho Chi Minh City issued Decision No. 3328/QD-BCD on promulgating safety standards for business operations in fighting and preventing COVID-19 in Ho Chi Minh City (“Safety Standards”).

Scope of Application

Accordingly, the Safety Standards’ scope of application includes commercial business and good supply units (supermarkets, shopping malls, mini supermarkets, convenience stores, food retail stores; traditional markets, wholesale markets); enterprises/production facilities; offices of production, businesses and service provider in the city (hereinafter referred to as “unit”).

Governing Subjects

The Safety Standards’ governing subjects are employees, employers at the units; supply partners; customers who purchase, use goods and services supplied by the above-mentioned units.

Two types of “COVID Green Card

All of these subjects must have “COVID Green Card” and comply with 5K regulations of the Ministry of Health. There are 02 types of “COVID Green Card”:

  1. “COVID Green Card”: people can participate in production and social activities according to the city’s level of epidemic control; and
  2. “COVID Green Card with limited scope of activities”: people are allowed to participate in some limited activities depending on the working environment conditions, the level of infection risk and the importance of the participating activities.

According to the Safety Standards, person who has “COVID Green Card” or “COVID Green Card with limited scope of activities”, must meet all the following conditions:

  1. Being diagnosed with negative SARS-CoV-2 test (rapid test or RT-PCR) for the industries that are required for testing;
  2. Being vaccinated or infected with COVID and already recovered;
  3. Vaccination conditions: Complete at least 01 dose for 2-dose vaccine, 02 weeks after injection; for 1-dose vaccine, 02 weeks after injection. Persons who inject 01 dose (for 2-dose vaccine), the scope of activity and exposure is more limited than the persons who fully inject 02 doses (the group of people with “COVID Green Card with limited scope of activity”.
  4. Infection and recovery conditions: condition of having been infected with COVID-19 and recovered: SARS-CoV-2 infected people have recovered, have discharge paper or a completion of the quarantine period certification from the Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control of wards, communes and towns.
  5. Having no close contact with F0 within 14 days.

Each Industry or Business Sector has its own Safety Standards

Besides, there are 05 Appendixes containing the separate safety standards, in which each Appendix covers different industries or business sectors, including:

  1. Appendix 1: Safety standards on Assessing safe operations in COVID-19 prevention and control at the supermarkets, shopping malls, mini supermarkets, convenience stores, food retail stores in Ho Chi Minh City;
  2. Appendix 2: Safety standards on Assessing safe operations in COVID-19 prevention and control at the traditional markets in Ho Chi Minh City;
  3. Appendix 3: Safety standards on Assessing safe operations in COVID-19 prevention and control at the wholesale markets in Ho Chi Minh City;
  4. Appendix 4: Safety standards on Assessing safe operations in COVID-19 prevention and control at the enterprises/production facilities in Ho Chi Minh City; and
  5. Appendix 5: Safety standards on Assessing safe operations in COVID-19 prevention and control at the offices of production, businesses and service providers in Ho Chi Minh City.

Components of Safety Standards

When the enterprises operate, they must comply with the following safety criteria in COVID-19 prevention and control (as regulated in Appendix V).

  1. Criteria 1: Employees
  2. Employees who directly contact with outsiders: must have a “COVID Green Card”. The remaining departments: at least have “COVID Green Card (limited scope activities)”.
  3. Employees who return to work for the first time: at least have a “COVID Green Card (limited scope of activities)” and a negative SARS-CoV-2 test result (rapid test or RT-PCR) as prescribed by the health sector.
  4. Criteria 2: Regulations on safe distances at the workplace: The distance between the two seats in the working room, meeting room, or living room is at least 2m or there is a partition layout between the two seats; the temperature in the room is not lower than 25°C
  5. Criteria 3: Checking and supervising the implementation of epidemic prevention and control regulations at the workplace
  6. Criteria 4: Equipping physical and medical facilities for epidemic prevention and control at the workplace
  7. Criteria 5: Ensuring a hygienic epidemic prevention and control environment at the workplace
  8. Criteria 6: Provide information on epidemic prevention and control at the workplace
  9. Criteria 7: Having plans/methods for epidemic prevention and control at the workplace

Detail of the Safety Standards: DOWNLOAD