Those were the latest round of restrictions announced by Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday in what will restore balance between businesses on both sides of the river.

For the first time since coronavirus restrictions began dictating how owners ran their businesses, pubs, clubs and cafes will be on an even playing field in both Albury and Wodonga.

Church Street Hotel publican Michael Beattie said they were "elated" when Mr Andrews announced the loosening of restrictions.

"We watched eagerly and it is all happy days now," he told The Border Mail.

"The easing will mean we can cater for more patrons with the new one person per two square metre rule and it will mean we don't have to rely as heavily on the outdoor beer garden.

"We have some live music in the beer garden on a Sunday so for people to enjoy that by being able to stand and dance that is just an added bonus.

"It will just breathe some life back into the venue."

From 11.59pm on Sunday face masks were no longer mandatory when inside in Victoria and now only have to be worn in major department stores, such as Kmart and Bunnings, on public transport and in an Uber or taxi, in supermarkets and where social distancing isn't possible.

It is still mandatory to carry a mask at all times.

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Family gatherings of up to 30 people will be allowed in North East homes this Christmas, with outdoor events capped at 100.

But for businesses the major win from Mr Andrews announcement, was the increase in density limits and scrapping the mandatory face masks inside.

"Density limits in our pubs, restaurants and cafes will shift to one person per two square metres for both indoors and outdoors with no other cap. The use of electronic record keeping - a QR code - will be mandatory," Mr Andrews said.

"And for small operations, there'll be no density limits if the patron number is under 25.

"Until we have a vaccine - and even then, until we have a widely distributed vaccine - some aspects of these rules and restrictions must continue to be part of our reality."

The cap for funerals and weddings will also be removed, subject to the new density limit of one person per two square metres.

Dance floors can hold up to 50 people, with a density of one person per four square metres.

Private sector businesses will return to 50 per cent of the workforce in the office from January 11.

While Business Wodonga chairman Graham Jenkin said this doesn't apply to most local small businesses, it is "fantastic news".

"Most small businesses in Wodonga who have less than 40 employees have been able to have 10 people return to the office," he said.

"Finally we are returning to some sort of normality given the lack of cases in our area.

"This is fantastic news for our hospitality businesses and hopefully will encourage people to stay in Wodonga for lunch or dinner and not feel they need to drive across to Albury to be more comfortable.

"Masks no longer being mandatory goes a long way for small cafes and retail shops."