EU Commission Adopts KIDS Act To Restrict Children's Access To Social Media
EU Commission adopts KIDS Act: under-13s barred from social media, 15 set as minimum age for own accounts.
The European Commission has adopted the EU KIDS Act, setting an EU-wide minimum age of 15 for minors to open their own social media accounts and prohibiting platforms from accessing children under 13.
The proposal, adopted in Strasbourg on 17 September 2026, reverses the burden of proof for online platforms. Service providers will now have to show that their services are age-appropriate and safe by design.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission:
"Today, our children are engaging with the most sophisticated technologies ever created. Technology that was never created with their wellbeing in mind. Our KIDS Act is reversing the burden of proof - it is for platforms to show they are safe by design. And we put parents back in the driving seat, giving them the tools to help their children navigate a safer online world."
The EU KIDS Act is structured around four pillars.
Social media delay
Children will only be able to create autonomous social media accounts from the age of 15. For those aged 13 to under 15, the proposal provides for parental control through guardian-managed mini accounts, allowing access to age-appropriate social media and video-sharing platforms. These accounts must include safeguards such as limited social contacts and screen time up to one hour per day.
Children aged 3 to under 13 cannot access social media, though they can use specially designed child-friendly video-sharing services through accounts managed by a guardian. Platforms must give parents or guardians an easy-to-use tool to restrict the use of the adult's device to such services when it is passed to children, with exposure limited to a maximum of one hour per day.
Safety by design
The obligations apply to all online services offering social media, video sharing, online video games, AI companions and chatbots to users under 18. These include a ban on addictive features and profiling-based recommender feeds that drag minors into "rabbit holes" of harmful content, along with a prohibition on infinite scroll without stopping points, reward tricks, push notifications during sleeping hours, and unsolicited contact from strangers.
AI companions and chatbots must be turned off by default and cannot simulate interpersonal relationships in ways that create emotional dependency. Minors' profiles must be private by default, with geolocation, camera and microphone access turned off. Platforms must also offer easy ways for minors to block and mute users, effective time-management tools, and safe recommender systems that minors can control, tune and reset.
Privacy-preserving age assurance
Online services and app stores must use age assurance tools, such as the EU's age verification app, which the Commission says does not retain identity documents or biometric data. Member States will be closely involved in setting up this system.
Providers of social media and video-sharing platforms must verify age when a new account is opened. For existing accounts, they must estimate a user's age based on reasonable proxies, such as account creation date or credit card details.
Effective enforcement
The proposal reverses the burden of proof, making providers of very large online platforms responsible for proving their services are safe by design. They will be required to submit a compliance plan to the Commission and to an independent auditor, who must thoroughly assess the new service, feature or functionality. The Commission can request corrective measures if, based on the auditor's report, it considers the compliance plan contains any shortcoming.
The enforcement framework builds on structures already in place under the Digital Services Act and the Artificial Intelligence Act. The Commission is required to conclude investigations into non-compliance within 90 days.
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy:
"With our EU KIDS Act, we make sure our children can enjoy their rights online - to learn, stay connected and explore. We also give parents the tools to accompany their kids to navigate a safe digital world. All of this by keeping the pressure high on platforms, because they must prove their services do not harm."
The legislative proposal has been submitted to the European Parliament and Council to begin the legislative process for examination and adoption.
The Act builds on a report by the Special Panel on Child Safety Online, co-chaired by Dr Maria Melchior and Prof. Dr. Jorg M. Fegert. The panel, made up of more than 60 experts including civil society representatives, youth representatives, parents, educators, child psychiatrists, public health specialists, neurologists and tech specialists, was first convened in March 2026 and met three times ahead of delivering its report in July 2026.
The Commission cites its Special Eurobarometer on the Digital Decade 2026, which found that 92% of Europeans consider strengthening children's online protection a top policy priority, whether from cyberbullying, exposure to harmful content, addictive design or other risks.
