The National Council of Switzerland has decided not to ban students in public schools from wearing hijabs, the government press service reported.

Earlier, the parliament asked the government to study the possibility of prohibiting girls under 16 from wearing headscarves, in particular whether such a ban could "guarantee all girls’ participation in physical education classes."

The Swiss government concluded that "from a legal perspective, the participation of all girls in classes, including physical education and swimming, is guaranteed." The National Council also emphasized that federal authorities consider it one of their tasks to ensure state neutrality, including in public schools, regarding religious symbols. "For these reasons, the National Council rejects a general ban on children wearing headscarves in public schools," the press release stated.

The government added that "in any case, rules regarding appearance in a free society can only be introduced in a limited manner." It also noted that matters of school education and the regulations governing church-state relations fall under the competence of the cantons. Some regional authorities have previously enacted similar bans, but in 2015 the Federal Court ruled that a general prohibition on children wearing headscarves in public schools was unconstitutional.

The 2022 request was submitted by Marianne Binder-Keller, a member of the Centre Party, who argued that children in schools should "grow up in an environment of freedom, without headscarves." She expressed the view that wearing hijabs constitutes discrimination against Muslim girls and that this garment should have no place in schools.