Monthly newsletter Hungary – February 2022
Corona situation in January
Omicron is now the dominant mutation of the coronavirus in Hungary. Over the course of January, the incidences increased exponentially. The 7-day average was just under 2,600 on January 4th, but the number of average daily new infections had already reached over 15,000 at the end of January. In contrast, the average number of deaths per day from or with the coronavirus has fallen in the past few weeks from around 90 deaths per day (beginning of January) to around 60 (mid-January). Almost 4,000 people infected with the coronavirus are currently being treated in hospital, including 150 with intubation.
vaccination status
To date, 65.3% of Hungarians have been vaccinated and 62.6% are fully vaccinated. More than a third of Hungarians (almost 38%) have already received the booster vaccination; 37,000 opted for the fourth vaccination.
Proof of immunity becomes a vaccination certificate
The government has decided that the immunity card will be converted into a vaccination card from February 15th. The ID card, which was previously valid even after only one vaccination or after recovering from Covid disease, loses its validity if a person does not receive the third vaccination within six months of the second vaccination. This also applies to people who have recovered. For those under 18, two vaccinations are sufficient.
Entry restrictions for traveling to Hungary
Germans can enter Hungary by land without any restrictions.
Entry by air requires the digital EU-COVID vaccination certificate or a PCR test in English or Hungarian, which must not be older than 72 hours. As before, business travelers can enter the country without being tested. For the current status of entry regulations, we always recommend taking a look at the website Foreign Office.
New measures against inflation
In the fall, the government decided to cap fuel prices at 480 forints, and further government price regulation followed in order to counteract inflation. In November this had reached 7.4% - a high in 15 years. As of February 1st, the prices for some staple foods have been frozen at the level of October 15th, 2021. The regulation is initially valid for three months.
Foreign policy
The Hungarian government has so far reacted cautiously to the recent escalation of the Ukraine conflict. In interviews, Foreign Minister Szijjártó explained that although the public rhetoric was bellicose, fair negotiations were taking place behind the scenes between Americans and Russians. It should also be noted that relations with Russia are essential for Hungary.
Viktor Orbán called for a peaceful solution to the conflict. In the talks at the end of January, Putin and Orbán discussed, among other things, energy issues and economic cooperation: The gas supply contract negotiated in 2021 for 4.5 billion cubic meters annually is to be expanded by a further billion.
Choose
Survey results
To the source:
The German-Hungarian Institute for European Cooperation is intended to provide a forum for academic, scientific and political dialogue between Germany and Hungary and to familiarize decision-makers and interested specialist audiences from both countries with topics, debates, processes, thought patterns and ideas from the other country. The aim is to achieve greater understanding, communication and constructive cooperation by objectifying the German-Hungarian discourse and thus renew our Europe together.
We would like to support this goal and publish excerpts with the kind permission of the authors. The complete issue can be found here as a PDF. The institute's website you can reach here.
