Struggles in the hospitality industry continue inside the country's red-light setting that includes customer limits indoors due to the Omicron outbreak.
But as the Omicron outbreak has peaked for some and is reaching the peak for other regions, the cabinet will meet this afternoon to discuss traffic light settings and will confirm changes at 4pm from Parliament when Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern talks to the nation, with a high chance that Auckland will move into Orange.
It's also the last day for vaccine passes to be mandated for hospitality and close-proximity businesses, ending at 11:59pm tonight, though businesses may continue to use them if they wish.
But will the changes be enough to make a difference to ease the struggles for hospitality?
Restaurant Association chief executive Marissa Biddois says she hopes the traffic light changes will be a step closer to getting back to normal.
"We've already had conversations with a lot of the corporates in the CBDs who are already starting to plan their 'hybrid return to work' processes," Biddois says. "We're hoping that a lot of businesses will start encouraging their teams to get back into their businesses."
Biddois says the ending of vaccine mandates and passes, should businesses choose to keep them or not, means less admin work for businesses.
"We did a survey to members asking them about this [vaccine passes] and we had around 86% of businesses saying they're going to be pleased to see the end of mandates."
It also means that businesses can welcome back customers not seen for a long time since mandates were implemented, and Biddois says it's a positive step.