Can teachers require their pupils to wear a mask in France?

Mask-wearing ceased to be obligatory in most indoor spaces on March 14

Mask-wearing requirements were removed from most indoor spaces – including schools – on March 14
Emma Morgan
Published Modified

Reader Question: Can a teacher require their pupils to wear a Covid face mask in class?

On March 14, the French government lifted mask-wearing requirements in all indoor spaces apart from medical and care settings and public transport.

Mask rules were also removed from school environments, which were moved down to alert level 1, allowing for limits on inter-class mixing to be relaxed.

The education ministry has told journalists that a teacher can no longer require pupils to use a face mask in class, saying: “The rules relating to the law apply here, unless a different decision is made by a prefecture if justified by the local situation.”

So, only if a decree is issued by a local prefecture can a headteacher decide to reimpose mask-wearing rules.

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