Countries Restricting Burqas, Niqabs, and Hijabs

This table summarizes national restrictions on face-covering veils (burqas and niqabs) and visible Islamic headscarves (hijabs). The legal scope varies significantly by country. Face-covering bans are generally more common than hijab bans.

Country	Burqa / Niqab Status	Hijab Status	Notes
Austria	Public face-covering ban	Restricted in some school settings	National face-covering law; additional school-related restrictions.
Belgium	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Nationwide ban on full-face coverings in public.
Bulgaria	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Public face-covering ban enacted in 2016.
Denmark	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Applies to all face-concealing garments.
France	Public face-covering ban	Restricted in certain schools and government settings	First European country with a nationwide public face-covering ban.
Luxembourg	Public face-covering restrictions	Generally allowed	Restrictions apply in public contexts.
Netherlands	Partial ban	Generally allowed	Restricted in schools, hospitals, public transportation, and government buildings.
Switzerland	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Nationwide face-covering restrictions.
Portugal	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Nationwide restrictions adopted in 2026.
Italy	Local and regional restrictions	Generally allowed	No comprehensive national burqa ban.
Norway	Limited restrictions	Generally allowed	Restrictions exist in certain public settings.
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Limited workplace restrictions	Generally allowed	Some public-sector restrictions.
Turkey	Limited restrictions in some institutions	Generally allowed	Modern policy is broadly permissive toward hijabs.
Tunisia	Government-setting restrictions	Generally allowed	Not a universal public-space ban.
China	Restrictions in certain regions	Restrictions in certain regions	Most notable restrictions are in Xinjiang.
Kazakhstan	Restrictions on face-covering veils	Restrictions in some educational settings	Government policies discourage concealing veils.
Kyrgyzstan	Restrictions on face-covering veils	Generally allowed	Face-covering garments are the primary target.
Tajikistan	Strong national restrictions	Restrictions on religious dress	Among the most restrictive regimes in Central Asia.
Turkmenistan	Restrictions reported	Restrictions reported	Government regulates visible religious attire.
Uzbekistan	Restrictions reported	Generally allowed	Policies focus mainly on face-covering veils.
Sri Lanka	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Implemented after security concerns.
Cameroon	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Security-related measure.
Chad	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	Security-related measure.
Gabon	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	National restrictions in force.
Republic of the Congo	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	National restrictions in force.
Senegal	Public face-covering ban	Generally allowed	National restrictions in force.
Zambia	Restrictions reported	Generally allowed	Primarily focused on face-covering garments.
Morocco	Sale/manufacture restricted	Generally allowed	No general wearing ban; restrictions focus on production and commerce.

Legend

• Red: National public-face-covering ban.
• Yellow: Partial, local, institutional, or regional restrictions.
• Green: Generally permitted nationwide.

Note: In most countries listed, restrictions are aimed at full-face coverings such as the burqa and niqab rather than the hijab. Countries with broad restrictions on ordinary hijabs are considerably less common than countries with bans on face-covering veils.