Hungarian Constitutional Court Rejects Challenge to Amendment on Foundations; EU Funds Law to Be Reviewed Separately

Hungary's Constitutional Court on Thursday, August 13, rejected a parliamentary Fides-KDNP group's challenge to a constitutional amendment concerning public benefit foundations. The court's majority found that the objection pertained to the amendment's substance rather than its procedural legality. Constitutional courts can only examine the regularity of adoption and promulgation for constitutional changes, not their content. The ruling means the part of the amendment related to public benefit foundations remains in effect, as the court did not review its substance. The Fides-KDNP lawmakers had argued that the amendment improperly regulated the status of existing foundations rather than establishing a general constitutional norm. However, the court's majority concluded that assessing whether a rule is sufficiently general or too specific would constitute a review of the content itself. The court emphasized that if an amendment is adopted through the proper procedure, with the necessary majority, and promulgated correctly, its constitutionality based on content cannot be questioned. Despite the majority decision, Constitutional Court member Tünde Handó and President Péter Polt submitted dissenting opinions. They argued that the court should have examined the substance of the issue. Handó stated that verifying whether a provision qualifies as a legal norm or constitutional amendment is distinct from assessing its constitutionality based on content. Polt similarly argued that the court should first clarify if the disputed regulation constituted the exercise of constituent power before determining its jurisdiction. The court will separately review the constitutionality of the 18th Law of 2026, which addresses EU funds.

“

the objection does not relate to the procedure, but to the content of the constitutional amendment itself