Getting married in times of Corona.

The ever-changing developments in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic make wedding planning a difficult undertaking. Numerous wedding guests and service providers have to be accommodated and short-term changes in the law can turn wedding planning upside down again.

On this page we would like to introduce you to a new concept for your wedding so that you too can look forward to your big day again.

Initial situation:

Currently (as of October 1, 2020) in Austria, events may be held indoors and outdoors with a maximum of 10 people.

However, the development of new rapid Covid-19 tests would technically allow Covid disease to be diagnosed within a few minutes. And that within 15 minutes and at a moderate price. This makes the new rapid antigen-based tests (see the "Useful information" section below) a very good solution for making events with larger wedding parties permissible again. Basic requirement: A negative rapid corona test for all wedding guests and service providers carried out on the day of the wedding.

The concept:

Currently, only PCR tests (polymerase chain reaction) are accepted. These are unusable for a wedding party due to their high costs (80 - 120 euros) and long evaluation times (2-3 working days). However, it can be assumed that in the next few days the antigen test will be raised to the same quality level as the PCR test.
In order to obtain valid test results even with rapid tests, it will probably be the case for some time that the test must be administered and evaluated by medically trained personnel (doctor, nurse, etc.).

What does this mean for you?
We assume that the federal government in Austria AND Germany will soon allow wedding celebrations with more than 10 people. The prerequisite is a negative corona test for all wedding guests and service providers. This means that weddings will most likely soon be able to take place in the usual way. However, the following administrative effort must be taken into account:

Before the wedding, a list of all wedding guests and service providers must be sent to the responsible medical professional. The medical professional will then create appropriate labels so that there is no confusion with the test results.
On the day of the wedding, all guests are asked to arrive by car. This is ideal as a "mobile waiting room" and makes it easier to exclude small groups. To minimize the risk of infection, guests with corona-like symptoms are asked not to travel at all.
On arrival, all cars are lined up in a large "wedding convoy". The medical staff then goes through each car and carries out the tests through the open windows. After a 15-minute wait, the test results are available and the celebration can begin.
If a passenger tests positive, the entire car must return home.
After all tests have been carried out, the medical staff signs the guest list and confirms a 100% negative test. The medical staff can then leave the party. If you already know that some guests will only be joining the party later, the medical staff must be booked for a longer period. Otherwise, 100% testing will not be carried out and this could lead to corresponding penalties. And corona-related penalties are known to be very costly.

Important: It is important to ensure that no strangers mingle with the group after the test.
Tip: If a bus ride from the church to the location is planned, the Corona test must be carried out before boarding the bus.

FACTS:

There are different manufacturers for rapid tests. The procedures also differ. From nasal swabs to gargle solutions, there are a wide variety of tests. We will continually present you with new test results and comparisons on this page. But in general, the following things are crucial for you, regardless of the test procedure and manufacturer.

It must be an antigen test and not an antibody test (see antigens vs. antibodies).
Rapid tests usually provide a result after 15 minutes.
Quality is important (how high is the hit rate of the test). The higher the better. There are currently rapid tests with 98.4% accuracy.
The cost of rapid tests is between 15 and 25 euros per test.

Cost:

The costs for the test vary greatly. The longer the pandemic lasts, the more companies will bring corresponding tests onto the market and the more opaque the price will become. At the moment, you can expect to pay 15 to 25 euros per rapid test .
For medical staff, you can calculate 80 to 150 euros per hour/tester .
The costs cannot currently be claimed from the regional health insurance fund because it is a voluntary test. This will probably remain the case in the future. This means that the tests must be paid for by the bride and groom or the guests. It could be that the costs for the test are partially covered by a kind of "wedding bonus" (= in the form of a reduction in income tax in the annual tax return). Corresponding concepts are currently being developed.
Whether the tests are provided by the bride and groom, the location or the medical staff must be agreed in advance.

Time required for testing:

To avoid long waiting times for your "wedding convoy", we recommend ordering sufficient medical staff (see also FAQ: Where can I get the medical staff from). You can expect about 2 minutes per swab. For 100 guests, this corresponds to a waiting time of 3.5 hours. We therefore recommend booking one medical person for every 30 guests . We also recommend staggering the arrival times for larger wedding parties so that, for example, older wedding guests do not have to wait outside for hours for the celebrations to begin. Seating and refreshments should also be considered. The wedding locations are also on hand to offer you advice and assistance with this.

Calculation example:
90 wedding guests (the average Austrian and German wedding party)
8 service providers (4x musicians, 1x photographer, 1x videographer, 1x priest, 1x altar boy)
= 98 tests (the location staff is tested on an ongoing basis anyway and therefore does not need additional tests) x 16.00 euros per test = 1,568 euros
For these 98 tests, we would recommend 3 doctors. Each would be on duty for 1 ¼ hours. One may stay even longer for the latecomers = total effort 4 hours = approx. 400 euros
This means that the costs for a safe wedding celebration with 100 people are: 1,968.00 euros
And to ensure a punctual start, the first guests should arrive about 1.5 hours beforehand .

All in all, it's a manageable expense when you get the great added value of a safe wedding where you don't have to wear masks or keep a minimum distance. The additional costs of around 20 euros per person are probably less than the cancellation costs for the wedding location, wedding photographer, wedding band, etc. In addition, we assume that most wedding guests will add the cost of the test to their wedding gift anyway.

Interesting facts about antigens vs. antibodies:

There are different types of tests: antibodies and antigens. Antigens can be detected from the first day of the Covid illness, whereas antibody tests only work towards the end or after the illness. Second tests are therefore completely useless for early detection when attending a wedding, Christmas party, birthday party, etc.

Future vision:

As soon as the rapid tests are upgraded by the federal government to the status of PCR tests, it can be assumed that the tests will only be allowed to be carried out by medical personnel. This will give the Ministry of Health the assurance that there will be no incorrect test results due to incorrect use. We very much welcome this step. After all, incorrect tests could lead to infections and thus to another lockdown, which in turn would lead to countless postponements.

However, we very much hope that the next step will allow wedding guests to carry out the tests at home . This would save waiting time and costs for medical staff. With appropriate gargling solutions, there would already be test procedures that are almost impossible to falsify through incorrect use.
As soon as something happens in this direction, we will of course let you know.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

FAQ: What should I pay attention to when choosing a test?
Whether it is an antigen or antibody test, only the antigen test is useful for early detection. In addition, accuracy is crucial. The higher the accuracy, the better the result.

FAQ: Who provides the test?
The tests can be obtained by the location, the medical staff or the bride and groom. This must be agreed upon in advance. It is important that the tests are stored appropriately. Otherwise the test results will be worthless.

FAQ: Who can take the test?
This point is not yet 100% clear, as the tests are currently not permitted anyway. The test can be carried out by the family doctor. Other people such as Red Cross employees, nurses, paramedics, etc. are currently still being clarified. However, it can be assumed that these people will also be allowed to do so in the future.

FAQ: Are the rapid tests also valid when entering and leaving a country?
Rapid tests are currently (as of October 1, 2020) not yet approved for holidaymakers returning home. But that could soon change.

FAQ: Even if everyone has been tested, it cannot be ruled out that strangers will join in, especially in a guest house with shared sanitary facilities. What can you do?
This question depends very much on the location. Many locations have already developed concepts so that all groups stay among themselves. Appropriate cleaning concepts and cleaning intervals ensure that you can celebrate without any worries.

FAQ: Where do I get the medical staff from
Many locations already work with appropriate staff. If your location does not yet have a medical contact person, please feel free to contact us . We are currently in the process of setting up a platform for medical staff. Appropriate people can be found there at the touch of a button.

FAQ: What happens if the bride or groom is infected? Or other important people such as the witnesses, parents, siblings, ...?
If you have taken out wedding insurance, it should also cover a short-term cancellation. However, this often depends on the booking date of the insurance. If you do not have the appropriate insurance, the bride and groom will probably be left with the costs of the wedding. In any case, the infected person and any contact persons should be excluded from the wedding.

All in all it remains exciting.
We wish you a wonderful wedding celebration.
Bernhard, for the team of hochzeits-location.info

This information page is a first draft of the new Corona wedding concept. All information must be continuously evaluated and adapted. We therefore cannot accept any liability for the content. There is also no claim to completeness and, given the rapid development in this market, this is not possible. Completeness cannot be guaranteed in times of rapid legal adjustments. We therefore always recommend visiting the website of the respective federal government first. All information is provided without guarantee.