Estonian Parliament re-adopts law restricting activities of the Estonian Church

On June 18, 2025, the Estonian Parliament adopted in the third reading amendments to the Law on Churches and Parishes that effectively restrict the activities of the Estonian Orthodox Christian Church (EOCC). Among the important changes, the deadline for churches and other institutions to amend their charters was extended from two months to six months. This is reported by ERR.EE.

“We have clarified the text of the law, we have merged some clauses, and we have also removed the provision on leadership, which the President drew attention to. I think the text is much better than it was before. The second change is the extension of the entry into force. If the initial draft had two months, we decided to extend it to six months. If we hadn’t changed it, we would have been talking about the summer months. We felt that this was too short to make changes. In fact, when the Law on the Church was passed in 1993, churches and parishes had to register and bring their charters into compliance within six months. We followed the same example,” — explained Madis Timpson (Reform Party), chairman of the Riigikogu’s legal committee.

However, the MPs who voted against the amendments point out that the law has not changed significantly and still violates the Estonian Constitution.

“These changes that were made to the draft law are only superficial, cosmetic, and not fundamental. In fact, the contradictions to the Constitution have not been eliminated. In fact, for the second time in a row, the Diet is passing a law that deliberately and intentionally contradicts the Constitution. Our belief is very simple. The rule of law principle means that no matter how good, necessary and desirable political ambitions are considered, they cannot be pushed through if they contradict the Constitution. The Constitution is not some empty phrase that can be taken into account and respected only when it is convenient. The Constitution must be taken into account at all times and in any case. This is our position,” — said Varro Vooglade (EKRE faction).

Earlier, we reported that the Jerusalem Patriarchate issued an official statement in connection with the adoption by the Estonian Parliament of a new law obliging religious communities to break ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. The statement expresses deep concern about the impact of this law on thousands of believers in churches and monasteries throughout Estonia.