January 2022
17 January First vaccinations delivered for children aged 5 to 11 years old. Booster shot for those 18 years or older are able to be booked from this day (four months after second vaccine dose).
18 January First community transmission of Omicron case is reported.
21 January Northland joins the rest of New Zealand at Covid Protection Framework orange light setting. The isolation period for a covid case is increased to 14 days, due to the infectiousness of the Omicron variant. The close contact isolation period is increased from 7 to 10 days.
23 January Eight new cases of Omicron in community. All of New Zealand moves to at Covid Protection Framework red light setting to protect against community transmission of the highly infectious Omicron variant.
28 January 105 new community cases of Covid are identified.
30 January One new death related to Covid-19 in Auckland.
February 2022
3 February New Zealand Government Announces changes to border reopening schedule from 27th February: fully vaccinated New Zealanders and other eligible travellers returning to New Zealand from Australia are able to enter New Zealand and self-isolate rather than enter MIQ. New mask rule that enforces medical mask use only for those working in a public facing role, is brought into place.
4 February Over 200 new community cases of Covid-19. The vaccination timing between second and booster vaccination is changed from four to three months.
5 February Boosters and Third Primary dose vaccinations peak at 66,864 delivered in a day.
12 February 454 new cases of Covid-19 are detected.
15 February Cases in the community reach over 1,000 (1,149).
16 February New Zealand moves to Phase Two of the Omicron response, at alert level Red the Covid Protection Framework.
20 February Cases in the community reach over 2,000 (2522)
22 February Deaths as a result of Covid-19 reach 56.
24 February Cases in the community reach over 6,000 (6137). New Zealand moves to Phase Three of the Omicron response, at Red alert of the Covid Protection Framework, changing the definition of a case contact to a household member-only, requiring RAT testing at home, self-reporting of positive cases, and individuals to contact their own contacts.
25 February Cases in the community reach over 12,000 (12,011)
28 February Fully vaccinated New Zealand citizens can self-isolate on return to New Zealand, no time in MIQ is required.
March 2022
2 March Cases in the community reach over 22,000 (22,152). RAT tests delivered as uptake continues: 3.6 million RATs arrived in NZ, with 101 million more confirmed for delivery this month.
3 March Hospitalisation numbers reach over 503, with 7 people in ICU.
10 March Seven day rolling average of cases is over 20,000, while daily count reaches over 23,000. The Ministry of Health announces it will change reporting of Covid-19-related deaths related to Covid-19 as a “clear cause:, “related cause” or “unknown cause”.
22 March Hospitalisation numbers peak at 1016, with 27 people in ICU.
23 March Changes are made to the Red Light setting: no limitations on numbers of people gathering outdoors, indoors limit increase to 2000 people. Government announces changes to mandated use of vaccine pass for the 4th April (no longer required at most businesses and venues unless the business chooses to). From that date mandated workplace vaccines are also not required except in health care (aged care and disability workers included) and for border workers.
25 March Hospitalisation numbers begin to decline, but ICU cases remain high at 30. No longer required to complete location scanning of QR codes.
26 March 20 new deaths related to Covid-19 today, with the seven day average being 13 people.
April 2022
2 April Seven day rolling average of cases is 13,804, with overall cases dropping. 678 people currently hospitalised.
3 April Globally: 489 million cases and over 6 million deaths have been reported
4 April Changes to mandated use of vaccine pass are implemented: no longer required for entry at most businesses and venues unless the business chooses to, and mandated workplace vaccines are also not required except in health care (aged care and disability workers included) and for border workers.
7 April Community and total cases continue to drop but the seven day average of deaths related to Covid-19 have been between 17 to 20 since 31 March. A total of 639 people are currently hospitalised.
13 April Fully vaccinated Australian citizens can travel to New Zealand with no isolation period but must test on arrival.
14 April Deaths caused by or related to Covid-19 reached 513. New Zealand changes to the Orange traffic light setting. Indoor venue capacity rules are removed but facemasks are still required in most indoor venues.
18 April Change to the classification of a ‘border case’ where a case is considered linked to the border if testing positive within 7 days of arrival (rather than 14).
23 April The first case of the Omicron XE variant is detected in New Zealand
30 April Hospitalisations have dropped steadily below 500 cases. Seven day rolling average of cases is 7415.
May 2022
4 May
5 May
8 May
31 May An accumulative total of 11,084,262 vaccinations were administered as of 31 May.
June 2022
14 June PCR Testing Rapid Review published, stating that delays in reporting Omicron case results
5 June
8 June
30 June An accumulative total of 11,118,852 vaccinations were administered as of 30 June.
July 2022
4 July
5 July
8 July
31 July An accumulative total of 11,478,750 vaccinations were administered as of 31 July.
August 2022
4 Aug
5 Aug
8 Aug
31 Aug An accumulative total of 11,084,262 vaccinations were administered as of 31 May.
September 2022
12 Sept The New Zealand government’s “traffic light” system ends, resulting in the removal of all Covid-19 restrictions and vaccination mandates. Masks are no longer required, except in primary healthcare settings, including hospitals and aged care settings. For travel, vaccinations are no longer required for travellers (both passengers and crew). Covid positive cases are required to isolate for 7 days but household contacts are not required to isolate at all. The seven day rolling average of cases has been decreasing, with the average sitting at 1,480 on this day.
5 Sept
8 Sept
30 Sept An accumulative total of 11,084,262 vaccinations were administered as of 31 May.
