The Victorian Government has announced the lockdown in metropolitan Melbourne will be extended for seven days and cross-border communities will require a permit to travel between Victoria and NSW.

For metropolitan Melbourne, this means:

• Restrictions will remain in place until 11:59pm, Thursday 19 August.
• There are only five reasons to leave home: getting the food and the supplies you need, exercising for up to two hours, care or caregiving, authorised work or education if you can’t do it from home, or to get vaccinated at the nearest possible location.
• Face masks will remain mandatory indoors (not at home) and outdoors, including all workplaces, unless an exception applies.
• If you can work from home, you must work from home.
• Shopping and exercise must be done within 5km of your home or the nearest location.

For Victoria and NSW cross-border communities, this means:

• All residents of the cross-border community local government areas will now be required to obtain a permit to cross between Victoria and NSW from 6pm, Friday 13 August.
• Residents will be able to apply for a permit from Thursday afternoon at the Service Victoria website and via the Service Victoria app.

The permitted reasons cross-border community residents can cross the Victorian-NSW border include:

• Necessary goods and services, including medical care
• Care or other compassionate reasons
• Work (whether paid or voluntary, including for charitable or religious purposes)
• Education (including childcare or early childhood services) 
• Receiving a COVID-19 vaccination
• Organised/community sport and exercise connected to or organised by a club or facility (excluding alpine resorts).

More information about the current restrictions is available on the coronavirus website:

• Metropolitan Melbourne
• Regional Victoria
• Enter your details to confirm whether metropolitan Melbourne or regional Victoria restrictions apply to your address. 

Encourage your workers/colleagues to get tested immediately if they are ill and stay up to date with the latest exposure sites.

Organisations are also urged to support workers to get vaccinated. Appointments can be booked on the Department of Health website.

Support for sporting organisations

The Sporting Club Grants Program will provide grants to assist active recreation and sporting clubs that incurred financial loss during the recent lockdowns in Victoria.

Victorian sport and active recreation organisations that were impacted by the recent lockdowns in Victoria can now apply for a funding lifeline courtesy of the Victorian Government’s Sporting Club Grants Program.

Grants of $2,000 for Victorian sport and active recreation organisations with a payroll of up to $3 million, to compensate for irrecoverable costs greater than $2,000 arising directly from the cancellation or postponement of events during lockdowns from 11:59pm on Thursday 15 July to 27 July 2021 and 8pm on Thursday 5 August to 19 August 2021.

This funding is only available to organisations that are not eligible to seek funding from the Business Costs Assistance Program. Please check your eligibility.