Overview
- The cabinet approved the package on Thursday, Sept. 24, as a decree-law that is already in force but must be ratified by Parliament within 60 days and signed by the president to become permanent.
- The decree sets a 30% cap on pupils with limited Italian proficiency per classroom measured by language ability rather than citizenship and directs local authorities to reassign students or grant exemptions when thresholds are exceeded.
- The law bans burqas and niqabs in schools while allowing hijabs and attaches a €1,000 fine for face-covering violations, with additional fines of €200–€1,000 for parents who skip required Italian courses unless exempted for medical or age reasons.
- Education officials say the rules will directly affect about 1,000 classrooms nationwide and offer extra language funding and limited exemptions, but teachers’ unions and principals warn the money is insufficient to hire specialist staff and that pupil reassignment could force children to travel far from home.
- Critics call the move political and predict legal challenges under existing national and EU rights frameworks, while supporters, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara, frame it as a tool to promote integration through faster language acquisition.