Masks are no longer mandatory in hospital settings.
The rule - introduced back in 2020 to protect against Covid-19 - is officially being lifted today.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre says face coverings should still be worn around patients displaying coronavirus symptoms.
Infectious disease specialist, Professor Sam McConkey is welcoming the move - but says many people are still very frightened of Covid.
"The fear and a the trauma of two and a half years of restrictions has left a significant imprint of anxiety on them
"Now over the next six months to a year we need to help those folks to re-establish their social connections, their confidence in going out.
"We had social distancing, now we should have social intimacy, and social friendships and building social networks - these are all an essential part of our lives."
