Elementary, middle and high schools across the nation began their new academic year on Thursday with entrance ceremonies held without the indoor mask mandate for the first time since 2019.

The beginning of the new school year comes after the education ministry disclosed new quarantine rules for schools last month.

Under the new rules, entering information on the “Self-Diagnosis App” and the standard temperature checks conducted on all students and faculty are no longer mandatory, while plastic dividers are not required in cafeterias.

The last time the nation’s schools held in-person entrance ceremonies without mask mandates was in March 2019.

In 2020, shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, the beginning of the school year was repeatedly postponed before the ceremonies were held online in mid-April, with the following two years featuring offline ceremonies in compliance with social distancing rules, including mask-wearing.