The European Commission has proposed banning children under 13 from social media and limiting younger teenagers to one hour a day, a major policy push that could reshape how millions of children access platforms across the EU.
EU announces plan to restrict social media access for children https://t.co/MH2DZ6Xrym
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) September 17, 2026
Under the proposed EU Kids Act, children aged 13 to 15 would be allowed restricted access through “mini accounts” linked to a parent or guardian. Only those aged 15 and over would be able to create their own social media accounts.
The plan was formally outlined on Thursday, September 17, after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signalled the policy in her annual address to the European Parliament. The measures are proposals and are not yet in force across the EU.
EU social media rules proposed for each age group
- Under 13: Social media access would be banned.
- Ages 13–15: Access would be available through parent- or guardian-linked “mini accounts.”
- Daily use: These younger users would be limited to one hour per day.
- Age 15 and over: Teenagers could create their own social media accounts.
- Under 18: Covered online services would face additional child-safety obligations.
The graduated approach is significant. Rather than setting one minimum age and immediately allowing unrestricted access above it, the proposal introduces a supervised period before teenagers can hold independent accounts.
YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and AI chatbots could be affected
The initiative extends beyond conventional social networks. Reuters reported that the Commission is also proposing obligations for video-sharing services, online video games and AI chatbots providing services to people under 18.
That could affect major services including Google’s YouTube and Meta Platforms’ Facebook and Instagram, alongside gaming and AI products used by younger audiences.
The Commission also wants technology companies to show that their services are safe by design, shifting some responsibility for children’s online safety from families to the companies building and operating digital platforms.
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Parents would get greater control over younger teens
Von der Leyen said the proposed legislation would put parents “back in the driving seat.” The mini-account system would make parental or guardian involvement part of social media access for children between 13 and 15.
Europe is not alone in tightening children’s access to social platforms. Australia has already introduced significant age restrictions, and the experience covered in our report on how teenagers responded to Australia’s social media restrictions illustrates a central enforcement challenge: stopping younger users from simply finding ways around age controls.
Age verification could determine whether the rules work
The practical challenge is proving how old a user actually is. Asking for a date of birth can be easy to circumvent, while stronger identity checks can raise concerns about privacy and collection of personal information.
The European Commission has already been developing an EU age-verification approach intended to let users demonstrate that they meet an age requirement without unnecessarily revealing additional personal details.
How that technology would interact with the proposed Kids Act will be important because an under-13 ban and supervised teen accounts depend on platforms being able to distinguish reliably between different age groups.
France and Spain have already pursued tighter controls
Individual EU countries, including France and Spain, have already announced or pursued measures aimed at restricting children’s social media access. An EU-wide system could eventually provide a more consistent framework across the bloc.
The proposal also comes as artificial intelligence becomes a bigger part of children’s digital lives. Including AI chatbots and online games alongside social networks shows that European policymakers are treating child safety as a broader technology issue, alongside other developments affecting digital platforms and their users.
The EU ban has not started yet
The September 17 announcement does not mean children under 13 have immediately been removed from social media across Europe.
The European Commission has proposed the legislation, which would still have to proceed through the EU lawmaking process. Details could change during negotiations before final rules are adopted.
That leaves several questions still to be settled, including how age checks will operate, how parental accounts will be verified, which services will fall within the final rules and when any approved restrictions would take effect.
For families, the proposal nevertheless signals a clear change in direction: European policymakers are considering moving from largely voluntary parental controls toward enforceable age-based rules that would place greater responsibility on the platforms children use.
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