COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease)

What is COVID-19?

COVID-19 is the disease caused by a new coronavirus. It was first reported in December 2019 in Wuhan City in China. All coronaviruses are from a family of viruses that cause respiratory infections. Such infections can range from the common cold to more serious diseases.

COVID-19 can spread from person to person, but good hygiene and social distancing can help to prevent infection.

Who can I call if I have a question about COVID-19?

There are a number of services that can assist in relation to COVID-19 related questions. These include:

• Service NSW, for all non-health related COVID-19 enquires, for example, general information about social distancing, relief packages for food and personal care, counselling and support. For more information, see Health and care, Covid-19 support on the Service NSW website.
• Centrelink, for financial assistance for people affected by COVID-19. For more information, see Jobseeker Payments on the Services Australia website.
  
• Legal Aid NSW and LawAccess NSW, for legal related COVID-19 enquires, for example, legal questions about civil, family and crime matters, quarantine laws, fines and court processes.

What is the COVID-19 vaccine?

The Australian Government entered into agreements for the supply of  the following COVID-19 vaccines:

• Pfizer
  
• AstraZeneca
  
• Novavax
  
• Moderna.
  

For more information, see COVID-19 vaccine advice and recommendations on the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care website.

Do I have to have the COVID-19 vaccine and/or booster?

COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for all people aged 18 years and older. It is also recommended for children aged 6 months to less than 18 years with medical conditions that may increase their risk of severe disease or death from COVID-19.

Some employers or operators of some services may require vaccination. 

For more information, see Australian Immunisation Handbook on the Department of Health and Aged Care website. 

Do I have to pay for the COVID-19 vaccine?

No, the COVID-19 vaccine is free.

Do I have to be an Australian resident or citizen to get the COVID-19 vaccine?

No, the COVID-19 vaccine is available to everyone in Australia regardless of your citizenship or visa status.

If you don’t have a Medicare card, or are not eligible for Medicare, you can get your free vaccination at:

• a Commonwealth vaccination clinic
• a state or territory vaccination clinic.

How can I get a copy of my vaccination record?

If you need or would like a copy of your vaccination record, you can get it through:

• your Medicare online account
• the Express Plus Medicare app
• the Australian Immunisation Register
• My Health Record.

You can also ask your doctor or immunisation provider for a copy.

For more information and instructions on how to get a copy, see Get proof of COVID-19 vaccination on the NSW Government website.

Can I link my vaccination certificate to my Service NSW account?

Yes, you can integrate your vaccination certificate to your Service NSW account. This means that when you check in, your vaccination status will also be displayed.

To integrate, you will need to:

• make sure your MyGov account is linked to Medicare
• download the Express Plus Medicare app and sign in with your MyGov account details
• select ‘Proof of vaccinations’
• select ‘View history’
• select ‘Share with check in app’ and then ‘Service NSW’.

Integrating your vaccination certificate with Service NSW is voluntary.

What happens if I have a negative reaction to the vaccine?

If you have a negative reaction to the vaccine, you should get medical advice immediately. 

What was the COVID-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme?

The COVID-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme was implemented for people who suffered a moderate to severe impact following an adverse reaction to a TGA-approved COVID-19 vaccine.

The scheme covered losses or expenses of $1,000 and above.

You could claim for:

• lost earnings
• out of pocket expenses
• paid attendant care services
• gratuitous attendant care
• loss of capacity to provide domestic services
• pain and suffering costs
• deceased COVID-19 vaccine recipient payments and funeral costs.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Claims Scheme closed on 30 September 2024. New claims are not being accepted.

For more information about the scheme, see COVID-19 vaccine claims scheme on the Services Australia website.

You may have other legal options for compensation. If you have suffered a vaccine injury, you should get legal advice.

Do I have to self-isolate or COVID-19 test when entering NSW from overseas?

Self-isolation and COVID-19 testing upon arrival is no longer required for any travellers.

NSW Health recommends monitoring closely for symptoms after arrival.

For more information about arriving in NSW from overseas, see COVID-19 information for international arrivals on the NSW Government website.

When should I self-isolate?

Self-isolation is no longer mandatory. If you are sick or have tested positive to COVID-19, NSW Health strongly recommends staying home until your symptoms have gone.

For more information, see:

• Testing and what to do if you have COVID-19 on the NSW Government website
• Advice for people exposed to COVID-19 on the NSW Government website.
  

Do I have to tell anyone if I have COVID-19?

The law no longer requires you to tell anyone if you have tested positive for COVID-19. Your employer or education provider may have a policy that requires you to notify them. You should check with your employer or education provider if you are unsure whether you are required to notify them if you have COVID-19.

You are no longer required to report a positive Rapid Antigen Test. The Service NSW portal has closed.

When can I do a Rapid Antigen Test?

You can use a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) if you:

• have any COVID-19 symptoms, even if only mild 
• are a household, social, workplace or education contact of a positive case
  
• are doing pre-event testing, such as before visiting vulnerable family members
• are a worker, resident, patient, or client in a high-risk setting where there is a current confirmed outbreak
• are going to hospital for a procedure and have been requested to test by the hospital.
  

In some cases, RATs can't replace a COVID-19 PCR test. If you are not sure which test you need to take, you should contact Service NSW on 13 77 88, Monday to Friday between 7am and 7pm (Sydney time).

What do I do if I get a Positive Rapid Antigen Test?

If you return a positive Rapid Antigen Test, NSW Health recommends that you:

• isolate until your acute symptoms have gone
• wear a mask to protect others if you have symptoms and need to leave home
• speak to your doctor as soon as possible If you are at higher risk of severe illness. Call Healthdirect on 1800 022 222 if you can’t contact your doctor
• don’t visit people at higher risk of severe illness, anyone in hospital or an aged or disability care facility for at least 7 days
• avoid gatherings and indoor crowded places
• talk to your employer about when you should return to the workplace
• tell people that you live with, or spend a lot of time with, that you have COVID-19.

These are recommendations only and not a legal requirement.

When do I need to have a rapid antigen test confirmed by a COVID-19 PCR test?

Most people can now use a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) result to confirm they are positive for COVID-19.

People who are at higher risk of severe illness should get a PCR test, including:

• people 60 years old or older
  
• pregnant women
  
• Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Pacific Islander people (over the age of 35)
  
• people with obesity, diabetes, serious cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease (including severe asthma requiring hospitalisation in the last 12 months) severe chronic liver or kidney disease, active cancer or who are immunocompromised
  
• some people with a disability including those with a disability that affects their lungs, heart or immune system
  
• residents of aged care and disability care facilities
  
• unvaccinated people aged 18 years and older.
  

For more information, see Getting tested for COVID-19 on the NSW Health website.

Do I have to wear a face mask?

It is no longer a legal requirement to wear a face mask in NSW. NSW Health recommends you wear a mask to protect others if you have symptoms or have tested positive to COVID-19.

For more information, see Guidance on wearing face masks on the NSW Government website.

Can I visit someone in an aged care facility?

NSW Health recommends that aged care facilities ask visitors if they have:

• taken a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) that day (visitors providing essential care and entering on a regular basis can do less frequent testing. It is recommended a minimum of twice weekly RAT tests are taken)
• been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19
• any symptoms of COVID-19 (unless those symptoms are from a known health condition or medication).

It is strongly recommended that visitors don't enter an aged care facility if they have:

• tested positive for COVID-19 in the last seven days
• been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19
• any symptoms of COVID-19.

NSW Health strongly encourages visitors to be vaccinated for COVID-19 and the flu. It is up to each aged care facility to decide their own COVID-19 policies.

Before you visit an aged care facility, you should contact them directly to find out the current arrangements in place for that facility. 

For more information, see the Advice to residential aged care facilities (RACFs) on the NSW Health website.

Am I required to have a flu vaccine to visit someone in an aged care facility?

It is strongly recommended that you have the flu vaccine before visiting an aged care facility.

What can I do if I can't comply with my Parenting Order because of COVID-19?

As with any illness or sickness, there may be occasions where you may be unable to comply with your Parenting Order because of COVID-19 (for example, there are safety concerns for the child, or you are too unwell to care for your child because of COVID-19). 

You should do the following:

• communicate with the other parent, if it is safe to do so, about the ability to follow the orders and attempt to find a practical solution. You should put any new temporary agreement  in writing (for example, text message or email).
• if you are unable to reach a practical arrangement, you should contact the Family Relationship Advice Line 1800 050 321, LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529, or your lawyer for legal assistance. 

What can I do if I can't comply with my parenting arrangements or parenting plan because of COVID-19?

If you are unable to comply with your parenting arrangements because of COVID-19 (for example, there are safety concerns for the child because the other parent has been exposed to COVID-19) it is important that you keep your child safe until you have reached an agreement with the other parent.

During this period, it is important that you ensure that each parent continues to have some contact with the child consistent with the parenting arrangements, such as by videoconferencing, social media, or telephone.

For more information, see the Parenting topic.

If you or the other parent are breaching court orders, you should get legal advice. 

What can I do if I want to vaccinate my child against COVID-19 but the other parent disagrees?

Parents are expected to consult and agree on major issues such as education, religion and major medical matters. If you can't agree on a parenting matter you must try Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) first, unless an exception applies.

If you reach an agreement at FDR about arrangements for your child, the Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP) will discuss the option of putting your agreement into a parenting plan. If you want your agreement to be legally binding you will need to apply to the court for Consent Orders. 

If you try FDR, but can't reach agreement with the other parent, you will be given a certificate called a s60I certificate. The certificate will say why the FDR has failed or why FDR was not appropriate in your circumstances. You will need to have this certificate before you can make an application to court for Parenting Orders.

If you are thinking about making a court application, you should get legal advice.

Can a business refuse me entry because I am unvaccinated?

Vaccination is not required by public health orders for entry into any business.

Businesses can choose to have conditions of entry to their premises, as long as they don’t breach any anti-discrimination or privacy laws. Businesses should not refuse entry to someone with a medical condition preventing them from being vaccinated.

For more information, see:

• COVID-19 vaccinations and federal discrimination law on the Australian Human Rights Commission website
• Infectious diseases discrimination on the NSW Anti-Discrimination website.
  

Can my doctor refuse to treat me if I am unvaccinated?

There is no public health order requiring people who need to see a doctor to be vaccinated.

Doctors are required to see or treat a person if that person’s life is in danger and they need urgent emergency treatment.

In any non-emergency case, no doctor is required to see or treat a patient, but a doctor can’t refuse to see a patient on the basis of discrimination for characteristics that are protected by NSW or Australian laws.

Australian doctors must follow a code of conduct which outlines their responsibilities in relation to access of medical care. This includes doctors being required to take steps to keep themselves and other staff safe when treating patients. If reasonable steps can be taken keep staff safe, that patient should not be refused care.

If you have concerns about whether your doctor can refuse to treat you, you should get legal advice.

For more information, see:

• Does a practitioner have to see a patient? on the Health Care Complaints Commission website
• Good medical practice: a code of conduct for doctors in Australia on the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency Medical Board website.

Does my employer have to pay me if I or a family member is sick with COVID-19?

Full-time and part-time employees who can’t come to work because they are sick with COVID-19 can take paid sick leave. 

Casual employees do not have paid sick or carer’s leave entitlements under the National Employment Standards and usually are not entitled to be paid when they do not work. Under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), casual employees are entitled to two days of unpaid carer’s leave per occasion. 

If you need to look after a family member or a member of the household who is sick with COVID-19, or suffering an unexpected emergency, you are entitled to take paid carer’s leave. Full-time and part-time employees can take unpaid carer’s leave if they have no paid sick or carer’s leave left.

Some employers may also provide additional sick leave or special leave. You should talk to your employer about the leave available.

You must give your employer reasonable evidence of the illness or unexpected emergency if your employer asks for it. This will also apply to situations relating to COVID-19.

Can my employer force me to get the COVID-19 vaccine?

There are three situations where an employer may be able to require their employee to be vaccinated:

• a law, such as a public health order, requires employees to be vaccinated
• your employment contract, enterprise agreement or registered agreement allows it
• it is lawful and reasonable for the employer to give you a direction to be vaccinated. Whether a direction is lawful and reasonable will depend on the specific circumstances of your job.

For more information, see:

• COVID-19 and workplace laws on the Fair Work Ombudsman website
• COVID-19 vaccinations and federal discrimination law on the Australian Human Rights Commission website
• Keeping workers safe on the NSW Government website.
  

If your employer is requiring you to be vaccinated or there is a medical reason preventing you from being vaccinated, you should get legal advice.

Which employees are required to be vaccinated under the public health orders?

As of 1 December 2022, there are no public health orders in force in NSW that mandate COVID-19 vaccination.

Some workplaces may still require mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 under their own applicable work, health and safety obligations.

You must have had three doses of a COVID-19 vaccine to attend your place of work.

Workers who have a medical contraindication don’t need to get the vaccine but must have a medical contraindication certificate.

For more information, see Keeping workers safe on the NSW Government website.

Can my employer force me to provide my vaccination status?

Generally, your employer must ask for your consent (agreement) to provide sensitive information, such as your vaccination status and it must be reasonably necessary for them to collect this.

In some circumstances, your employer may be able to require you to provide your vaccination status. This will depend on your individual circumstances including:

• where you work and what rules apply to the information that can be collected by your employer 
• whether there is a term in your employment contact, enterprise agreement or registered agreement that requires you to be vaccinated
• whether there are any laws, including public health orders, that require that your employer collect this information.

If your employer collects personal health information about you including your vaccination status, it must be:

• recorded accurately
• stored securely
• used appropriately, and
• destroyed when no longer required.

For more information, see COVID-19: Vaccinations and your privacy rights as an employee on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner website.

If you are unsure whether your employer can require to you to tell them your vaccination status, you should get legal advice about your circumstances.

What does a business have to do to create a safe workplace?

To create a safe workplace all businesses need to ensure:

• the health and safety of workers, eliminating the risk of exposure to COVID-19 if reasonably practicable
• business works or undertakings do not put the health and safety of other persons (such as customers, clients and visitors) at risk of contracting COVID-19
• the workplace environment does not put workers and others (such as customers, clients and visitors) at risk of contracting COVID-19
• workers are provided with any information or training that is necessary to protect them from the risk of exposure to COVID-19 arising from their work
• consultation with workers on health and safety matters relating to COVID-19. 

For more information, see COVID-19 Information for workplaces on the SafeWork Australia website.

Can my employer force me to take leave?

Employers can direct employees who are sick with COVID-19 not to come to work and to get medical clearance from a doctor before returning to work. Employers can do this if they’re acting reasonably and based on factual information about health and safety risks, which includes relying on the Australian Government’s health guidelines.

In some situations, an employer may be able to direct you to take annual leave if:

• you have excess leave, or 
• the company is shut down (closed temporarily). 

Whether an employer can do this will depend on the circumstances and what award or registered agreement (if any) applies to you. 

If your employer has directed you to take annual leave and you do not want to take it, you should get legal advice. 

Can my employer dismiss me or make my role redundant? 

Some employers may need to dismiss employees or make employees’ positions redundant in response to a business downturn due to COVID-19.

If your job is made redundant your employer may have to give you redundancy pay. 

For more information on redundancy, see the Redundancy Frequently Asked Questions in the Employment topic.

What can I do if my employee won’t wear a mask?

Face masks are no longer mandatory under the public health orders, but in some circumstances you may be able direct your employees to wear masks at work.

In some circumstances, you may not be able to require your employees to wear one a mask or take disciplinary action because they do not wear one. This could be in breach of anti-discrimination laws.

Employers who have further questions about whether or not they can force employees to wear face masks in the workplace should seek legal advice. 

Can I require my employee to be vaccinated?

You may be able to require employees to be vaccinated in three situations:

• if a law requires it, for example a public health order requires your employees to be vaccinated to come to work
• if your employees' contract, enterprise agreement or registered agreement allows it
• if you have given your employee a lawful and reasonable direction to be vaccinated. Whether the direction is lawful and reasonable will depend on the specific circumstances of your workplace and your employees.

If you are considering a vaccination policy for your workplace, you should get legal advice.

For more information, see:

• COVID-19 and workplace laws on the Fair Work Ombudsman website
• COVID-19 vaccinations and federal discrimination law on the Australian Human Rights Commission website.

One of my employees has COVID-19. Do I need to notify anyone?

You are no longer required to notify SafeWork NSW if an employee tests positive to COVID-19.

You should notify SafeWork NSW if your employee gets (or likely got) COVID-19 at work and:

• is hospitalised
• dies from COVID-19.

For more information, see COVID-19 (Coronavirus) on the SafeWork NSW website.

I was previously given a COVID-19 fine. Was it valid?

The NSW Commissioner of Fines together with NSW Police have decided to withdraw all COVID-19 fines.

If you have previously paid for a fine, that was not determined by a court, Revenue NSW will take steps to refund you. 

If you elected to take your fine to court, it is up to the court to determine whether you need to pay the fine or not. If the court had previously decided that you needed to pay a fine, and it had been paid, you will not be getting a refund from Revenue NSW. 

For more information, see Covid-19 fines on the NSW Government website. 

What happens if my COVID-19 fine is withdrawn? 

If you have paid by credit card within the last 12 months or by BPay at any time, you do not need to do anything.  Revenue will refund the money to you automatically. 

If you have paid in any other way, Revenue NSW will contact you about your refund. Alternatively, you may contact Revenue NSW to enquire about your refund. 

If you haven’t paid the fine and it is withdrawn, all actions Revenue NSW was taking to recover the money will be stopped. This includes if your driver licence was suspended because you didn’t pay the fine.  

You should check with Transport for NSW before driving to make sure the suspension has been lifted and that your licence hasn’t been cancelled, suspended or disqualified for any other reason.  

What happens if my COVID-19 fine was invalid but I already elected to take it to court? 

NSW Police are continuing with the prosecution of any ongoing court-elected COVID-19 fines.  This means if you have already elected to take a COVID-19 fine to court, police will not automatically withdraw the charge and your court case will continue. Any fines decided by the courts will remain unchanged. 

If your COVID-19 fine is invalid but your court case is continuing, you should get legal advice. 

What if I completed hours under a Work and Development Order for an invalid COVID-19 fine? 

You do not need to do any further hours if this was the only fine you had on a Work and Development Order. Revenue NSW will apply any WDO credits to any of your other outstanding debts. 

For more information, see COVID-19 fines on the NSW Government website.

How do I make a complaint about a police officer in a COVID-19 related incident?

If your complaint is about the NSW Police Force, you can make a complaint to the Customer Assistance Unit or the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission.

For more information, see How to lodge a complaint on the NSW Police Force website.

If your complaint is about the Australian Federal Police, you can make a complaint directly with the AFP. 

For more information, see Complaints and feedback on the AFP website.

You can also make a complaint about the AFP to the Commonwealth Ombudsman. 

For more information, see Australian Federal Police on the Commonwealth Ombudsman website.

Who can I make a complaint to about a COVID-19 related incident?

If your complaint is about a NSW public agency, for example, the Department of Health or Department of Communities & Justice, you can make a complaint to the NSW Ombudsman.

For more information, see Making a complaint on the NSW Ombudsman website.

For complaints about other organisations, see Complaints about government agencies in the Ways to get help section of our website.