Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states: “As for the face veil, it is nowhere mentioned that women must wear it. It is not prescribed in either the Qur’an or Sunnah; as stated by the vast majority of mufassirin, jurists and scholars, it is not required of woman to cover her face.
Given the above, we’d like to clarify that the majority of Imams — including those of the four schools of fiqh as well as others — hold the opinion that a woman is not obliged to cover her face and hands. However, a group of scholars, the majority of whom belong to the Hanbali School, teach that a woman must cover her face and hands as well.