Austria Bans Headscarves for Girls Under 14

Austria's conservative-led government passed a law banning headscarves in schools for girls under 14, effective September, with an initial awareness period starting in February 2026. Parents of non-compliant students could face fines of 150 to 800 euros. The government, including Integration Minister Claudia Bauer and Austria — NEOS (Austria)'s Yannick Shetty, argues the ban protects girls from oppression and sexualization. However, the law has drawn significant criticism from rights groups like Amnesty International and SOS Mitmensch, as well as the Islamic Religious Community in Austria (IGGOe) and Amazone (women s rights association), who deem it discriminatory, unconstitutional, and a threat to social cohesion. The Austria — The Greens (Austria) was the sole opposition party to vote against it. This is the second attempt at such a ban, after the Austria — Constitutional Court (Austria) struck down a similar law in 2020 for targeting Muslims. Legal experts like Heinz Mayer have raised doubts about the new law's constitutionality, while Farid Hafez of Georgetown University suggested the debate might be a distraction from Austria's economic issues.