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Hungary's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026
Yes. Since September 2024, Hungarian schools must restrict pupils' phones and smart devices during the school day, and in practice pupils hand them in on arrival and get them back after lessons. Teachers can allow use for learning.
Parliament amended the public education law on 18 June 2024, and a government decree published in August 2024 set out the detail. The rules apply from the 2024/25 school year to primary, secondary and vocational schools. They cover mobile phones, image and sound recording devices and smart devices that connect to the internet. Use is allowed only where a teacher or the head permits it for learning. Teachers may use phones in lessons only for teaching.
The law passed in June 2024 and took effect on 1 September 2024, with the school year opening on 2 September. Enforcement was tested early: on 28 August 2024 the Interior Ministry dismissed the head of Budapest's Madách Imre Gimnázium after the school said it would not collect phones, which led to protests outside the school. We found no announced change to the rule for the 2026/27 school year.
Heads decide how devices are stored, within the decree. The common model is that pupils hand phones to a designated teacher, or put them in school storage, before lessons start and collect them at the end of the day. The law lets teachers and school security staff check bags and storage areas for compliance. Pupils may use phones before and after school, and can ask a teacher for permission when there is a genuine need.
Whatever the rule in Hungary requires, in every általános iskola, lockable pouches let students keep their own phone, locked, from the first bell to the last, so staff do not collect, store or answer for devices. Before The Internet ships lockable phone pouches and unlocking bases worldwide, including to Hungary, and can print the school's name or crest on them. Schools buy them outright: one price, no subscription, lease or per-student annual licence. Send us your student numbers and any written quote you have, and we will beat it.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hungary's ban cover breaks?
In practice, yes. Phones are handed in before lessons and returned at the end of the school day, so pupils do not have them during breaks unless a teacher allows it.
Can a school choose not to collect phones?
No. The restriction is national law. In August 2024 a Budapest head who said his school would not collect phones was dismissed by the Interior Ministry.
Can Hungarian schools use lockable pouches?
The decree leaves the storage method to the head, so a school can choose lockable pouches, as long as phones are out of use during the school day.
Related reading
School phone bans by country · Phone-free schools toolkit · How to roll out phone pouches in a school
Written by the team at Before The Internet, a Toronto-based phone-free company that rents lockable phone pouches for events across North America and sells them to schools and venues worldwide, shipping purchases to any country.
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