Italian Prime Minister Proposes Legislation on Foreign Students and Dress Code in Schools

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced plans on September 20 to propose legislation that would cap the number of foreign students in Italian classrooms and ban face-covering garments, such as burqas and niqabs, in schools. The conservative leader stated that these measures aim to encourage integration, preserve the Italian cultural identity, and ensure that native Italian children do not feel marginalized in classrooms.

“There’s no way that in an Italian classroom, the ones who feel marginalized are Italian children because they have become a minority,” Meloni said during a speech to Gioventù Nazionale, the youth wing of her conservative Brothers of Italy party, in Rome.

Under the proposal, limits would be set on the number of non-Italian students in individual classrooms to prevent high concentrations in specific districts. Although the exact cap was not specified, the government plans to mandate Italian-language lessons for parents of foreign students who struggle with integration.

“For us, anyone who comes to Italy and wants to build their future here must learn our language, understand our culture, and respect our rules,”

Meloni emphasized. The Associated Press reported her saying, “It is the only serious way to welcome them.”

According to Italy’s Education Ministry, students who do not hold Italian citizenship represent around 11.6% of school enrollment nationwide. Children born to foreign parents do not automatically receive citizenship at birth and must wait until the age of 18 to apply.

Meloni argued that a high concentration of non-native speakers in classrooms impacts everyone’s learning process. She commented that if a classroom has only one non-Italian-speaking child, integration can happen more effectively with the assistance of peers and teachers. However, if they are many or a majority, it results in what she termed “abandonment.”

The proposed legislation also addresses religious face coverings. It explicitly bans burqas and niqabs in educational settings, although other forms of Islamic dress like the hijab remain permitted.

The Brothers of Italy party echoed the prime minister’s message in a series of posts, stating, “Those who choose to build their future in Italy must learn our language, know our culture, and respect our rules.” They affirm that schools should be attended with one’s face uncovered, asserting, “No tradition can impose on a young woman the obligation to hide herself.”

An additional post outlined: “Limit on the number of foreign students in classrooms, obligation for parents of pupils with serious integration difficulties to learn Italian, and ban on burqas and niqabs in educational institutions.”

Integration is seen by the party as stemming from knowledge of the language, adherence to the rules, and safeguarding cultural identity. Other European nations like France and Belgium have previously implemented bans on face coverings in public areas, although enforcement varies.

The Italian legislation is anticipated to be reviewed by Italy’s Council of Ministers before progressing to Parliament for consideration. Meloni has led Brothers of Italy since 2014 and was president of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party from 2020 to 2025. She has governed Italy since 2022, with her administration recently becoming the longest-serving uninterrupted government in modern Italian history.