Italy passes new school rules banning face coverings, capping non-Italian speakers

Italy's government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, has passed new rules for the country's schools that ban face-covering garments, including the burqa, and place limits on the number of students who do not speak fluent Italian in individual classrooms.

The measures form part of a broader set of school regulations approved by the government and mark one of the more prominent education policy changes introduced under Meloni's administration.

Rules target face coverings and language fluency

Under the new rules, face coverings such as the burqa will be prohibited in Italian schools. The government has also introduced caps on the proportion of students in a class who are not fluent Italian speakers, a move that appears aimed at addressing concerns about integration in classrooms with large numbers of foreign-born pupils.

Officials have not detailed how the caps will be enforced in practice or what alternative arrangements, if any, will be made for students affected by the new limits.

The policy is likely to draw both support and criticism, reflecting the wider European debate over religious dress, secularism in public institutions and the integration of immigrant communities into national school systems.

Further details on implementation, including timelines and any exemptions, have not yet been published.