Business closure information

   Food & Drink

Restaurants, and public houses, wine bars or other drinking establishments

Exemption:

• Food delivery and takeaway can remain operational and can be a new activity for existing food businesses.  Guidance regarding planning permission must be adhered to.
• This covers the provision of hot or cold food that has been prepared for consumers for collection or delivery to be consumed, reheated or cooked by consumers off the premises.

Update 21 May 2020: Restaurants and cafés can start making preparations for a possible opening of any outdoor areas on 1 June for food-led services. This may require an adaption of existing seating to ensure social distancing. Guidance will be published in the week commencing 25 May and assistance will be provided for those needed to increase or create outside dining areas.

Draft guidance is now available to review.

See: Hospitality Sector Guidance – DRAFT

See: Checklist for Restarting a Food Business

Cafés and canteens

Exemption:

• Food delivery and takeaway can remain operational (and as above).
• Cafés and canteens at hospitals, care homes or schools; prison canteens; services providing food or drink to the homeless.
• Where there are no practical alternatives, other workplace canteens can remain open to provide food for their staff and/or provide a space for breaks. However, where possible, staff should be encouraged to bring their own food, and distributors should move to takeaway. Measures should be taken to minimise the number of people in the canteen at any one given time, for example by using a rota and social distancing should be in place.

Update 21 May 2020: Restaurants and cafés can start making preparations for a possible opening of any outdoor areas on 1 June for food-led services. This may require an adaption of existing seating to ensure social distancing. Guidance will be published in the week commencing 25 May and assistance will be provided for those needed to increase or create outside dining areas.

Draft guidance is now available to review.

See: Hospitality Sector Guidance – DRAFT

See: Checklist for Restarting a Food Business

Mobile catering

Exemption:

• Food delivery can remain operational.

Nightclubs and bars in hotels or members’ clubs

     Retail

Hairdressers, barbers, beauty and nail salons, including piercing and tattoo parlours.

Update 21 May 2020: Lifestyle businesses (beauticians, hairdressers, barbers, tattoo artists) can reopen from 1 June, provided that they carry out a risk assessment, have any necessary personal protection equipment and maintain – for 28 days – a record of all their customers for tracing purposes should the need arise.

Draft guidance is now available for hair and beauty businesses to review and put into place.

See: Hair and Beauty Sector – Returning to Business - DRAFT

Massage parlours

All retail

Essential shops and services have remained open throughout the pandemic.

Examples:

• Supermarkets and other food shops
• Health shops
• Pharmacies and chemists
• Petrol stations
• Bicycle shops
• Hardware shops
• Agricultural merchants
• Builders merchants
• Veterinary surgeries and pet shops
• Corner shops and newsagents
• Off-licenses and licensed shops selling alcohol, including those within breweries
• Laundrettes and dry cleaners
• All Post Offices
• Car rental services and car parks in towns, cities and near to takeaways may remain open, to facilitate essential activity (e.g. where they are supporting hospitals, supermarkets or takeaways)
• High street banks, building societies, short-term loan providers, credit unions and cash points.
• Storage and distribution facilities, including delivery drop off points.
• Public toilets

All other shops and retail businesses may open from Monday 18 May as long as they following social distancing measures.

Examples:

• Electronic shops
• Book shops
• Jewellers
• Gift shops
• Stationary/home office equipment suppliers
• Charity shops
• Furniture and homeware shops
• Clothes shops and sporting equipment shops
• Florists 

Restarting non-essential health services is being explored and it’s hoped detailed announcements will begin to be made during the week commencing Monday 18 May. 

UPDATE: The Council of Ministers has agreed that shops and other retail businesses may open from Monday 18 May. Draft Guidelines are now available to help businesses prepare.

See:  Non-Essential Retail Guidance. 

Outdoor and indoor markets, shopping centres

Exemption:

• Outdoor market stalls which offer essential retail, such as grocery and food.

UPDATE: The Council of Ministers has agreed that shopping centres may open from Monday 18th May.  Guidelines are now available to help businesses prepare. See Non-Essential Retail Guidance. 

Auction houses

Car showrooms

Exemption:

• Car garages
• Repair shops

UPDATE: The Council of Ministers has agreed that car showrooms may open from Monday 18th May. Guidelines are now available to help businesses prepare. See Non-Essential Retail Guidance. 

     Medical Services

Opticians, dental surgeries, and other professional vocational medical services

Update 22 May 2020: An emergency dental service will expand its provision for Island patients from Monday 25 May as measures to limit the spread of coronavirus are gradually eased. Read more.

     Miscellaneous

Any cleaning business

Exemption:

The cleaning of commercial premises.

UPDATE: With effect from Wednesday 20 May, domestic cleaners can resume work as long as they can do so in a manner that is safe for them and the household where they work.

Any business of keeping livestock

Exemption:

The person carrying on the business of keeping livestock must do so in a way that is consistent with the advice for keepers of stock. 

      Hotels

Hotels, hostels, B&Bs, campsites and boarding houses for commercial use

Exemption:

• Where people live in these as interim abodes whilst their primary residence is unavailable they may continue to do so.
• Key workers, permanent residents, and non-IOM residents who are unable to travel to their country of residence during this period can continue to stay in hotels or similar where required.
• People who are unable to move into a new home due to the current restrictions can also stay at hotels.
• Where hotels, hostels, and B&Bs are providing rooms to support homeless and other vulnerable people such as those who cannot safely stay in their home, through arrangements with relevant authorities, they may remain open.

Update 21 May 2020: Self-catering accommodation may reopen from 25 May.

Draft guidance is now available to review.

See: Self-catering guidance - DRAFT

See: Camping/Glamping guidance - DRAFT

      Non-residential institutions

Schools

Exemption:

• Only open for children of key workers, vulnerable children and children of workers in the construction, trades and horticulture sectors.

Nurseries

Only open for children of key workers, vulnerable children, and from 20 May this will include children of workers in the construction, trades and horticulture sectors.

Libraries

Community centres, youth centres and similar

Exemption:

• For the purpose of hosting essential voluntary or public services, such as food banks, homeless services, and blood donation sessions.

Places of worship

Exemption:

• Funerals, where the congregation is immediate family (with provision for a carer, if required) or a friend - in the case that no family members are attending. A distance of two metres is to be maintained between every household group, as per Public Health guidelines.
• A minister of religion, to go to their place of worship, including to broadcast an act of worship to people outside the place of worship, whether over the internet or otherwise
• For the purpose of hosting essential voluntary or public service, such as food banks, homeless services.
• Cemeteries and graveyards
• To attend religious wedding ceremonies; however strict social distancing measures must be observed and the final decision will rest with the place of worship and the guidance being issued by their relevant religious bodies

      Leisure

Museums and galleries

Cinemas, theatres and concert halls

Bingo halls, casinos and betting shops

UPDATE: The Council of Ministers has agreed that betting shops may open from Monday 18th May. Guidelines are now available to help businesses prepare. See Non-Essential Retail Guidance. 

Spas

Fitness studios, gyms, swimming pools or other indoor leisure centres

Arcades, bowling alleys, soft play centres and similar

      Outdoor recreation

Enclosed spaces in parks, including playgrounds, sports courts and pitches, and outdoor gyms or similar