EU moves toward social media ban for under-13s, with phased access for teens

The European Union took its most concrete step yet toward restricting children's access to social media, as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen received a report from a panel of experts recommending a tiered system of age-based limits. The report, authored by child psychiatrist Professor Jörg Fegert and epidemiologist Dr. Maria Melchior, found that children across Europe now spend four to six hours per day on social media, with almost 60 percent experiencing emotional and psychosocial problems online.

Von der Leyen said the Commission would study the recommendations and return with a concrete legislative proposal after the summer, likely during her State of the European Union address in September. Any law would require approval from the European Parliament and all 27 member states before taking effect across the bloc of 450 million people, of whom roughly 81 million are under 18.

The expert recommendations

The panel, which included doctors, academics, youth representatives and parents, proposed a three-tier framework. Children under three should have no screen access at all. Those between three and 12 should be allowed only supervised use of age-appropriate social media and devices, with time limits. Teenagers between 13 and 18 would gain gradually expanding autonomous access, but only to platforms that have introduced key safety features such as limits on infinite scrolling, autoplay and constant notifications.

This is not about whether children can access social media. It is about whether and when social media can access our children.

The report identified several platform features as inappropriate for younger users, including infinite scroll, automatic content playback and persistent notifications. Von der Leyen said the Commission would also work to define which platforms are harmful to minors, describing the target category as "social media plus", services with addictive and age-inappropriate design elements.

A growing global movement

The EU initiative joins a wave of similar efforts worldwide. Australia became the first country to introduce an age limit for social media access at the end of 2025, barring children under 16. The Australian government recently doubled the maximum penalty for platforms breaching the law to 99 million AUD (around 68 million USD). The UK is set to implement a ban on certain social media for under-16s by spring, with Technology Secretary Liz Kendall saying the country's "highly effective age-verification measures" would make it stronger than the Australian system.

This is about providing clarity for parents and children and resetting expectations and social norms when it comes to young people's use of social media.

Several EU member states, including France, Germany, Ireland, Portugal, Denmark, Greece, Poland, Austria and the Netherlands, are already weighing national age restrictions, adding pressure on Brussels to spearhead a unified approach. One US state, Florida, implemented a ban in 2024 on social media use for children under 14 without parental approval. China, India and Indonesia have also imposed or are considering restrictions.

Enforcement and platform pressure

Von der Leyen acknowledged that age restrictions would not be foolproof, comparing the cultural shift to the introduction of seat belts for road safety. Critics of Australia's ban have noted that children can sidestep it by lying about their age or using fake accounts. The Commission has already developed a verification app for online platforms to age-gate their services.

This won't be foolproof, and change takes time.

The push comes amid intensifying regulatory pressure on platforms. Last week, the EU escalated a probe of Meta into the use of addictive design on Facebook and Instagram under the Digital Services Act, which could result in significant fines. A similar finding was issued against TikTok earlier this year. A US jury also ordered Meta and Google to pay damages to a 20-year-old woman who said her addiction to the platforms damaged her mental health.

What happens next

The Commission will spend the summer studying the expert report before presenting draft legislation, most likely in September. The proposal will then face negotiations in the European Parliament and among the 27 member states, a process that could take considerable time. Von der Leyen framed the urgency in personal terms, saying childhood cannot wait.

Childhood won't wait, and once it's gone, we can never give it back.