Portugal has enacted a nationwide ban on face coverings in most public places, joining a number of European countries that restrict garments such as the burka and niqab while reopening a familiar debate over security, women’s rights and religious freedom.
President António José Seguro signed the measure after lawmakers approved it in Lisbon in July with support from the governing right-wing coalition, according to GB News.
The law applies broadly to clothing intended to conceal or obstruct a person’s face in public. Violators can face fines ranging from €150 to €3,000.
The legislation contains a more serious penalty for coercion. Anyone convicted of forcing another person to cover their face could face up to three years in prison.
There are several exceptions.
Face coverings remain permissible when required for professional or health purposes and for certain artistic, advertising or entertainment activities. The restrictions also do not apply in places of worship or at holy sites. Additional exemptions cover circumstances involving aircraft and diplomatic or consular activities.
Although commonly described as Portugal’s “burka law,” the final legislation does not explicitly single out Islam. Its practical effect on Muslim women who wear full-face religious garments has nevertheless generated substantial criticism.
João Godinho Martins, executive director of Amnesty International Portugal, called the measure “a threat to human rights.”
“Despite having removed direct references to Islam, which were a part of previous versions of the text, this new law clearly violates the human rights of Muslim women who choose to cover their faces,” Martins said. “It is a direct threat to their freedom of expression and freedom of religion.”
He also disputed the argument that a prohibition would necessarily improve women’s freedom.
“No one should dictate what a woman may or may not wear, and no woman should be penalized for practising her faith, cultural identity or beliefs,” Martins said.
Amnesty argues that women committed to wearing full-face veils could respond to the law by withdrawing from public spaces, potentially making it more difficult for them to work, study or obtain public services.
Supporters of such restrictions approach the issue differently, arguing that governments have a legitimate interest in requiring visible faces in shared public spaces and opposing circumstances in which women are pressured or compelled to cover themselves.
That disagreement is part of a much larger argument within Islam itself. Muslim scholars and communities differ over precisely what Islamic scripture requires women to cover.
Quran 33:59 instructs the Prophet Muhammad to tell believing women to draw their outer garments around themselves. Interpretations differ, however, over whether that passage mandates covering the face. The hijab, niqab and burka are distinct garments, and Muslim practices concerning them vary considerably by country, community and individual.
Portugal is far from the first European country to legislate on the subject.
According to the Express, numerous countries have enacted restrictions on full-face coverings, including France, Belgium, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland, Norway, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. The scope of those laws varies, with some imposing broad public prohibitions and others restricting face coverings only in particular settings.
France’s nationwide prohibition, introduced in 2011, became one of Europe’s best-known examples. The European Court of Human Rights subsequently upheld the French law against a legal challenge, although the policy has remained controversial.
Whether a comparable nationwide prohibition would be appropriate in the United States presents a substantially different constitutional question.
The First Amendment provides strong protections for the free exercise of religion as well as expression. A law explicitly targeting Islamic dress would face serious constitutional objections. Even a religion-neutral restriction on face coverings would have to be evaluated according to its wording, purpose, exceptions and application.
There are also narrower circumstances in which identification requirements can already necessitate temporarily showing one’s face, including certain security and government identification procedures.
Portugal has chosen a broader approach.
Its new law doesn’t prohibit Islam, mosques or Muslim religious practice generally. Instead, it establishes a public rule against concealing the face while carving out specific exemptions — including for religious buildings.
