Maldives Correctional Service has decided to loft the suspension on visitation at the correctional facilities and allow visits with full COVID-19 vaccination.

The new regulation set on Friday states that family and attorneys coming to visit inmates in prisons would now requires the full two doses of the vaccine and carry the verification document.

And at least 14 days need to have passed since the second dose of the vaccine before coming in for a visit and are required to have a negative PCR test that is no longer that 72 hours old. The regulation also applies to the children under the age of 18.

As the visitation opens, the number of people that can visit an inmate at a time have been reduced as well. Now, only five family members, excluding children, are allowed per visit and the number of attorneys that can meet at an inmate have been reduced to three at a time.

The regulation states that visitors have to be three feet away if they have their mask off. Visitors would only be allowed to take in a water bottle. Correctional Services also has the authority to end any visit that violates the COVID-19 regulations set by the Health Protection Agency (HPA). And those who violate the regulations would be suspended from visitations for two months.

At the recent peak of COVID-19 cases in the country, the correctional facilities were affected as well with both officers and inmates testing positive.