You are reading

NYC will Require Vaccination Proof for Indoor Dining, Gyms Starting Tuesday

Excelsior pass app (NY State via Flickr)

Aug. 16, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Business owners who operate a bar, restaurant, gym or similar establishment must require their customers and workers to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination in order to gain entry starting Tuesday, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced today.

The businesses that fail to comply with the vaccine mandate will face fines starting at $1,000 when enforcement begins on Sept. 13. Repeat offenders will be fined up to $5,000 per violation.

The city requires business owners to check that their customers and employees have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in order to be permitted inside under the new mandate, which the city has dubbed “Key to NYC.”

Businesses are only permitted to allow customers and workers inside who can show proof of vaccination either through the NYC COVID Safe app; the New York State Excelsior Pass; the CDC vaccination card — which all Americans receive when vaccinated; or a photo of their vaccine record.

New Yorkers can download the NYC COVID Safe app for Android or IOS and upload a photo of their vaccine card in order to use it, or they can get the state Excelsior Pass on the state website by answering questions about their vaccination.

Residents can also request vaccine records from the NYC Dept. of Health.

The city also requires business owners to train their staff as to what is considered acceptable proof and have a written plan for the implementation of the policy.

The business operators are only permitted to allow an unvaccinated person inside if it is to use the restroom, pick up or place an order, or any other reason that takes a short amount of time. Unvaccinated customers are permitted to sit or dine outside.

Children 12 and under are also not subject to vaccine restrictions.

Businesses must also post signage, available on the city’s website, to inform customers of the vaccine requirement.

The city has provided a list of business types where proof of the vaccine is required to gain entry. They include restaurants, bars, nightclubs, catering halls, coffee shops, hotel banquet rooms, grocery stores with indoor dining, movie and performing arts theaters, concert venues, museums and galleries, aquariums and zoos, professional sports arenas, indoor stadiums, exhibition halls, bowling alleys, arcades, indoor play areas, gyms and fitness centers, indoor pools and dance studios.

De Blasio said the mandate is part of the city’s strategy to make sure that more residents get vaccinated amid the spread of the highly-contagious delta variant. About 63 percent of all New York City residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

In Queens, 69 percent of residents have had at least one shot.

“The Key to NYC is an approach that makes clear the power of vaccination,” he said during a morning press conference. “It is the ultimate encouragement to get people vaccinated, to say, there are so many amazing things in this city that you can participate in if you’re vaccinated.”

De Blasio added that the mandate specifically is a way to get more young people, in their 20s and 30s, vaccinated.

The mandate doesn’t apply to residential and office buildings, childcare programs and schools, senior centers, community centers, soup kitchens and food pantries.

The city is launching an aggressive outreach campaign, including a $10 million multi-platform paid media campaign, to inform business owners about the new mandate ahead of enforcement.

Business owners with questions are advised to call the NYC Department of Small Business Services hotline at 888-SBS-4NYC (888-727-4692), 311, or go online to nyc.gov/keytonyc.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Op-Ed: Empowering survivors by investing in the communities that know them best

Jul. 8, 2025 By Speaker Adrienne Adams and Council Member Sandra Ung

For many immigrant survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, language barriers can often be difficult to overcome, adding to the litany of overwhelming challenges they face. Many are financially dependent on their partners, while others are isolated from their family and community. Some may fear that seeking help could jeopardize their immigration status.

Bay Shore man killed in single-car crash on Cross Island Parkway: NYPD

A Long Island man was killed in a single-vehicle collision on the Cross Island Parkway in Bay Terrace on the night of Wednesday, July 2.

Police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing responded to a 911 call of a motor vehicle collision near Bell Boulevard and Fort Totten, where they found the victim in the wreckage. EMS transported him to North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. The motorist was later identified as Vincent Argiro, 51, of Bay Shore.

2025 Guide to NYC Neighborhoods: Queens

Jul. 8, 2025 By Adrienne Farr

Queens is one of the city’s most family-friendly boroughs, offering diverse neighborhoods, green spaces, and cultural experiences. Families can enjoy sprawling parks like Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, the Queens Zoo, and kid-focused museums like the New York Hall of Science.

Neighbors scare off burglary suspects at Bayside home: NYPD

Police from the 111th Precinct in Bayside are looking for a pair of befuddled burglars who tried to break into the home of a senior a few blocks west of the Clearview Expressway late last month, before they were scared off by the victim’s neighbors.

The masked couple targeted a home near the intersection of 202nd Street and 36th Avenue in Bayside on the evening of Saturday, June 28. The man and woman entered the yard of a 65-year-old man at around 6:45 p.m. and went to work on a sliding glass door at the rear of the home, but they were unable to enter the residence, police said Friday.