Schools reopened in Victoria again on Wednesday morning for the first time in 12 days, as did gyms, cafes and restaurants.

As 12 days of lockdown ended, eight new cases were confirmed for the state of Victoria.

The new cases are all linked to known outbreaks and were in isolation during their infectious period.

On Tuesday, more than 35,800 people turned out to get tested on Tuesday.

Despite the lifting of some restrictions, authorities have warned that the remaining restrictions could be in place for “months” until most people have been vaccinated with figures currently showing that 40.48 per cent of Victorians aged 16 or more have had one COVID-19 shot and 16.98 per cent have had two.

Premier Daniel Andrews said on Tuesday that “some of these restrictions are going to be with us and the risk of further lockdowns will be with us” until “the vast majority” of Victorians had ­been vaccinated.

READ MORE: NSW records 172 new COVID-19 cases

At the moment masks are mandatory both indoors and out, and visitors are banned from homes though up to 10 people can meet outdoors.

There will be no crowds at AFL matches or theatre events for at least two weeks.

According to the new rules, people can travel beyond the 5km bubble – and, no sooner, was this announced that petrol prices were bumped up in the past 24 hours.

South Australia

In South Australia, there are level three restrictions in place from today. This means that there can be groups of 10 visiting homes, and dining out is permitted provided that it is in seated areas.

Mask-wearing is still mandatory in indoor places, and there is also a shisha ban currently in place.

READ MORE: Lockdown restrictions expected to ease in Victoria from Wednesday

New South Wales

Sydney’s lockdown will likely be extended by four more weeks, following today’s announcement by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

It is not expected that a curfew will be introduced despite NSW having reported 172 local cases on Tuesday, of which a third were infectious while in the community.

The NSW government is exploring the introduction of rapid antigen testing for year 12 students to allow them to head back to school before HSC exams, however other years will continue to remain home over the next four-week period.