Lisbon, July 17, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal's centre right PSD, CDS, far-right Chega and Liberal Initiative Parties on Friday approved, in a final overall vote – with opposition from MPs on the parliamentary left – a bill known as the “burqa law”, which originated from Chega.

Following the bill’s approval – during which PAN MP Inês de Sousa Real abstained – Chega MPs marked the occasion by standing and giving a prolonged round of applause.

This Chega bill, aimed at banning the concealment of the face in public spaces, had already been approved at the committee stage with the same vote last week by the Committee on Constitutional Affairs.

During the committee stage, this bill was the subject of lengthy negotiations between Chega and the PSD, as the Social Democrats demanded the introduction of amendments that would de-emphasise the issue of religion and highlight the aspect of face-covering in public spaces as a security matter.

After being approved in October 2025 at the first reading stage, Chega’s bill then lay dormant for around eight months awaiting a the committee stage vote.

In June, the PSD tabled a replacement bill for Chega’s original proposal, emphasising the security reasons underlying the ban on face coverings, thereby downplaying the issue of Islamic burqas.

At that time, Chega threatened to vote against the changes proposed by the Social Democrats. However, last week, on the eve of the committee stage vote on the bill, André Ventura’s party tabled a new replacement text, which aligned more closely with the Social Democrats’ positions.

One of the PSD’s objectives during the committee stage was to prevent the bill from being challenged on the grounds of potential unconstitutionality, particularly with regard to religious freedom.

Compared to its initial proposal, Chega added age or origin to the list of reasons for which no person may be compelled to conceal their face – alongside gender and religion – and amended the title of its own bill: Whereas it previously read “prohibits the concealment of the face in public spaces except in certain cases”, it now reads “prohibits the concealment of the face in public spaces for reasons of security and public order”.

In cases of forced concealment of the face, in the initial version of the bill, Chega advocated the application of the offence of coercion, carrying a prison sentence of up to three years. This sentence would be increased by a third where the victim was a minor. Chega subsequently proposed an offence punishable by a fine of between €150 and €750 in cases of negligence, and between €400 and €3,000 in cases of intent.

PMF/AYLS // AYLS 

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