April 24 (Reuters) – Australia in December became the world’s first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking them from platforms including TikTok, Alphabet’s YouTube and Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, amid mounting concerns over the impact of social media on children’s health and safety.
Below is a summary of what countries and companies are doing to regulate access to social media.
AUSTRALIA
A landmark law forced major social media platforms to block minors under 16 from December 10, 2025. Companies that fail to comply could face penalties of up to A$49.5 million ($35.3 million).
AUSTRIA
Austria will ban social media for children up to the age of 14, the government said in March. Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler and junior digitisation minister Alexander Proell said draft legislation for the ban would be finalised by June.
BRAZIL
Brazil’s Digital Statute of Children and Adolescents, which requires minors under 16 to link their social media accounts to a legal guardian and bans addictive platform features such as infinite scroll, came into force on March 17.
BRITAIN
Britain is considering an Australia-style ban on social media and tighter AI chatbots safety rules for children under 16 as early as this year, technology minister Liz Kendall said in February.
Social media bans, curfews and app time limits will be tested in the homes of 300 teenagers to gauge the impact on children’s sleep, family life and schoolwork, the government said in March.
CHINA
China’s cyberspace regulator has put in place a so-called “minor mode” programme that requires device-level restrictions and app-specific rules to restrict screen time depending on age.
DENMARK
Denmark said in November it would ban social media for children under 15, while parents could provide access to certain platforms to kids down to the age of 13.
FRANCE
France’s National Assembly in January approved legislation to ban children under 15 from social media amid growing concerns about online bullying and mental health risks. The bill needs to pass through the Senate before a final vote in the lower house.
GERMANY
Minors aged 13-16 are allowed to use social media only if their parents provide consent. But child protection advocates say controls are insufficient.
GREECE
Greece will ban access to social media for children under 15 from January 1, 2027, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on April 8.
INDIA
Karnataka, home to the tech hub of Bengaluru, in March became the first Indian state to ban social media for children under 16. Neighbouring states of Goa and Andhra Pradesh are also weighing restrictions.
India’s chief economic adviser called for age restrictions on social media platforms in January, describing them as “predatory” in how they keep users engaged online.
INDONESIA
Indonesia will restrict access to social media platforms for children under 16, its communications and digital ministry said in March. From March 28, accounts owned by children under 16 on “high risk platforms”, including TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Roblox, will be gradually deactivated.
ITALY
Children under 14 need parental consent to sign up for social media accounts, while no consent is required above that age.
MALAYSIA
Malaysia said in November it would ban social media for children under 16 starting from 2026.
NORWAY
Norway will present a bill in parliament by the end of 2026 to ban children from using social media until they turn 16, making technology companies responsible for the task of age verification, the minority Labour government said on April 24.
POLAND
Poland’s ruling party is preparing legislation to ban social media for children under 15 and to hold platforms responsible for age verification, it said in February.
PORTUGAL
Portugal’s parliament approved a bill in February requiring explicit parental consent for children aged 13-16 to access social media. Tech companies that ignore the restrictions face fines of up to 2% of their global revenue.
SLOVENIA
Slovenia is drafting a law that would prohibit children under 15 from accessing social media, Deputy Prime Minister Matej Arcon said in February.
SPAIN
Spain will ban access to social media for minors under 16 and platforms will be required to implement age verification systems, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said early in February.
It was unclear if the proposed ban would require approval by the country’s highly fragmented lower house.
TURKEY
Turkey’s parliament passed a bill on April 23 that includes restricting access to social media platforms for children under 15. Under the law, which also includes regulations targeting social media platforms, secure digital spaces will be created for those under the age limit, with controlled use encouraged.
THE U.S.
The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act prevents companies from collecting personal data from children under 13 without parental consent. Several states have passed laws requiring parental consent for minors to access social media, but they have faced court challenges on free speech grounds.
EU LEGISLATION
The European Parliament in November agreed on a resolution, which is not legally binding, calling for a minimum age of 16 on social media.
It urged a harmonised EU digital age limit of 13 for social media access and an age limit of 13 for video-sharing services and “AI companions”.
TECH INDUSTRY
Social media platforms including TikTok, Facebook and Snapchat say people need to be at least 13 to sign up.
Child protection advocates say the controls are insufficient, and official data in several European countries shows huge numbers of children under 13 have social media accounts.
($1 = 1.4029 Australian dollars)
(Compiled by Christine Chen in Sydney, Hugo Lhomedet, Paolo Laudani, Lucie Barbier and Canan Sevgili in Gdansk; Editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak, Bernadette Baum, Matt Scuffham and Arun Koyyur)
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