03.07.20 ... During the emergency situation, there was a surge in the number of online shoppers and the number of people who regularly shop online grew 80 percent compared with the April-May period of 2019, A study carried out by pollster Kantar Emor shows.

03.07.20 ... Over the past 24 hours, 393 tests of the SARS-CoV-2 virus were analyzed in Estonia, with one case of COVID-19 diagnosed.

03.07.20 ... Municipalities in Southern Estonia expect the WRC phase will bring a lot of benefits to the region's economy. A lot of accommodation has already fully booked for the first week of September.

03.07.20 ... The Estonian Institute of Economic Research (Eesti Konjunktuuriinstituut) predicts a recession of 8 percent for the rest of 2020, on the assumption a second wave of COVID-19 will not hit the country.

03.07.20 ... There are more than a 1,000 people in Estonia who have arrived from abroad and must spend 14 days in isolation, but following the rules depends on people's own conscience as the state no longer organizes active control on and outside the borders.

02.07.20 ... Migrant workers will not be allowed to stay in Estonia after July 31, Minister of Finance Martin Helme (EKRE) said on Thursday. Prime Minister Jüri Ratas (Center) and Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa), however, said exceptions can be made for people working in the agricultural sector.

02.07.20 ... Since the beginning of April, the Kredex foundation has concluded 67 agreements on direct loans and 120 agreements on loan guarantees within the framework of crisis measures, while Estonian companies have been financed in the total amount of €179 million.

02.07.20 ... One new case of coronavirus (COVID-19) was diagnosed in the last 24 hours, data from the Health Board shows.

02.07.20 ... Apartment prices have not dropped significantly and are almost the same as before the coronavirus crisis. More apartments were purchased in June 2020 than June 2019 and a price drop is not expected in the future.

01.07.20 ... From July 1, Wizz Air will fly between Tallinn and Kyiv, Ukraine despite government restrictions still being in place for passengers flying from high risk countries with coronavirus. Passengers may be denied entry without a permit.

01.07.20 ... The Minister of Social Affairs Tanel Kiik (Center) told ERR he would have liked to see Martin Kadai, who resigned this week, continue working at the Health Board (Terviseamet). The acting chief of the Health Board will now be Mari-Anne Härma.

01.07.20 ... The coronavirus pandemic brought a nearly 1,000 percent increase in vodka sales in Estonia, which can partly be attributed to the lack of sanitizer available at the start of the pandemic and false claims that alcohol would no longer be sold in Estonia.

01.07.20 ... Head of the Emergency Medicine Department of the Health Board (Tervisamet) Martin Kadai has told staff he will resign from his position.

01.07.20 ... This summer, five new domestic movies will be made in Estonia as the industry picks itself up after the coronavirus pandemic. These are "Kalev", "Erik Kivisüda", "Apteeker Melchior", "Tagurpidi torn" and "Eesti matus". In addition, two Finnish series will be shot in Estonia.

01.07.20 ... No new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) were diagnosed in Estonia in the last day, data from the Health Board (Terviseamet) shows. In total, 658 tests were analyzed.

01.07.20 ... The bar on flights from countries considered coronavirus high-risk has been extended to July 14, the government says. This means that direct flights from the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Belarus are still off the table, as well as from the European Union countries of Sweden and Portugal. A lift on restrictions to travelers from China is dependent on China itself lifting a ban on visitors from the European Union, the government says.

30.06.20 ... From July 1, berry farmers in Estonia can apply to the Unemployment Insurance Fund for a wage subsidy to recruit seasonal workers.

30.06.20 ... Tallinn Music Week (TMW) will take place next month in a "hybrid format" with both in-person and online activities. TMW was postponed in March due to the coronavirus crisis and will be one of the first European Festivals to relaunch.

30.06.20 ... Two cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) were diagnosed in the last 24 hours, one in Tallinn and one in Narva, the Health Board (Terviseamet) said on Tuesday. In total, 769 tests were carried out.

29.06.20 ... As of Sunday, June 28, the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund has assigned €231.5 million in extraordinary remuneration compensation related to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis for the months of March, April and May. The fund will start accepting applications for June compensation from July 1.

29.06.20 ... On Monday, an expert panel will meet to advise the government on stimulating the economy after coronavirus, with a focus on improving people's livelihoods and increasing the competitiveness of businesses.

29.06.20 ... Last week, the number of new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnosed in Estonia was six – a fall from eight the previous week. There have been no deaths in the past three weeks.

29.06.20 ... The main organization representing family doctors in Estonia rejects a social affairs ministry proposal that in the event of a new wave of coronavirus infections, it would be the family doctor's job to determine the close contacts of an infected person, saying it would put too much of a strain on doctors and give them less time for patients.

29.06.20 ... No new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) were diagnosed in Estonia during the past 24 hours, the Health Board said on Monday.

29.06.20 ... Social affairs minister Tanel Kiik has assigned a performance-based bonus of €10,480 along with a dismissal order to Merike Jürilo, the outgoing chief of the Health Board (Terviseamet).

28.06.20 ... Over the past 24 hours, 368 initial tests of the SARS-CoV-2 virus were analyzed in Estonia, with one case of COVID-19 diagnosed.

27.06.20 ... Saaremaa rural municipality has rejected permission for a major music festival to take place on the island this summer, citing fears of a resurgence of coronavirus and the danger of breaching the remaining coronavirus restrictions as the main factors. Saaremaa was by far the worst hit region in Estonia during the peak of the pandemic, though numbers of cases flatlined from late April.

27.06.20 ... No new cases of coronavirus were detected in Estonia since Friday morning, the Health Board (Terviseamet) says. This is the third time zero cases have been reported in a 24-hour period in the past week.

27.06.20 ... The €50 limit on contactless card payments put in place during the coronavirus emergency situation in Estonia will remain in place. The previous limit had been €25.

27.06.20 ... From Monday, passengers from six European Union countries will need to quarantine upon entry to Estonia. Poland has been removed from the Ministry of Foreign Affair's list and Luxembourg added.

26.06.20 ... Martin Kadai, director of the Health Board's (Terviseamet) Infectious Disease Monitoring and Epidemic Control Department, said despite the low number of new cases of coronavirus, it is still reasonable to maintain restrictions on public events because infection rates around the world are still on the rise and an unfortunate set of factors could cause a second wave in Estonia.

26.06.20 ... Estonia is still in informal consultations with the European Commission regarding Nordica's state aid permit, said Head of the Aviation and Land Development Department of the Ministry of Economic Affairs on Friday.

26.06.20 ... Three new cases of coronavirus were reported in Estonia in the last 24 hours, the Health Board said on Friday. In total, 569 tests were analyzed.

26.06.20 ... Estonia is lucky to have Latvia and Finland as neighbors because the coronavirus infection rates in both countries are low and tourism has been able to pick up again, the head of tourism promotion at Enterprise Estonia has said.

25.06.20 ... The fourth round of the University of Tartu's (TÜ) coronavirus monitoring program did not discover any positive samples of COVID-19. This means that the relaxations of restrictions in June were not done too quickly, the university says.

25.06.20 ... Applications for extraordinary wage compensation for the month of June, under a scheme first put in place during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, can be submitted from July 1.

25.06.20 ... Only one new case of coronavirus was diagnosed in the last 24 hours, the Health Board said on Thursday. The positive test was recorded in Tartu.

24.06.20 ... One new case of COVID-19 has been detected in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) says. The case was found in Tallinn. 268 primary tests were conducted in the past 24 hours, the board says.

23.06.20 ... Only one new case of coronavirus was diagnosed in the last 24 hours, the Health Board said on Tuesday. The positive test was recorded in Tallinn.

23.06.20 ... Authorities are looking into the activities at a hospital in South Estonia during the coronavirus pandemic, after concerns that fraudulent activities may have been going on in respect of invoicing the health insurance fund for treatments at a time when the emergency situation prevented their going ahead.

22.06.20 ... The number of registered unemployed increased by 512 people or one percent last week, taking the total to 51,342 and making unemployment 7.9 percent as of Sunday, data from the Unemployment insurance Fund shows. The number of registered unemployed has increased by 3 percent in a month.

22.06.20 ... In tota, approximately 3,500 sale and purchase transactions were carried out in the Estonian real estate market in May 2020 which is a 30 percent decrease compared to May 2019, data from the Land Board (maa-amet) shows.

22.06.20 ... Last week, the number of new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnosed in Estonia was eight - a fall from 35 the previous week. There have been no deaths in the past two weeks.

22.06.20 ... No new cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) reports.

21.06.20 ... Three countries were added to Estonia's quarantine list on Friday after their rate of coronavirus infection rose to over 15 new infections per 100,000 people.

21.06.20 ... No new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) reports.

20.06.20 ... Farmers say that, over the last four months, the government has shown arrogance toward a concern involving just one request - to allow additional help into the country to harvest crops and milk cows - only empty promises have been made so far, although the problem is getting worse and now at least 900 people are needed immediately.

20.06.20 ... Next week Midsummer's Day (Jaanipäev) will be celebrated across Estonia. Although this year's gatherings will be little different than usual, safety must not be forgotten. The police will also monitor Midsummer parties more carefully than usual.

19.06.20 ... On Friday, the board of State Reform Radar (Riigireformi Radar), implemented by the Praxis Center of Policy Studies and the Estonian Employers' Confederation (Eesti Tööandjate Keskliit), presented their assessment on Estonia's handling of COVID-19. The recording is available for rewatch in Estonian.

19.06.20 ... The Ministry of Rural Affairs is adding a new support measure with a budget of €2.84 million to the list of measures available under Estonia's Rural Development Plan.