The landmark legislation backed by President Emmanuel Macron will restrict children’s access to major social platforms, placing France at the forefront of Europe’s campaign to regulate the digital lives of minors.
PARIS — France has approved one of Europe’s most far-reaching restrictions on children’s use of social media, prohibiting those under the age of 15 from opening or maintaining accounts on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat.
The legislation was adopted by both chambers of the French Parliament on Tuesday, making France the first country in the European Union—and the first in Europe—to approve a blanket social-media age limit of this kind. The measure passed by 243 votes to two in the Senate and by 279 votes to 81 in the National Assembly.
The policy has been strongly promoted by President Emmanuel Macron, who has made the protection of children from online harm a defining domestic priority during the closing period of his presidency. Macron has argued that social-media platforms compete aggressively for young people’s attention while exposing them to addictive design features, cyberbullying and potentially damaging content.
Under the planned timetable, children younger than 15 will be prevented from creating new social-media accounts from September 1, 2026. Technology companies will then have an additional four months to identify and close accounts already belonging to users below the minimum age. Platforms will be responsible for introducing age-verification systems approved by France’s data-protection regulator.
The law does not impose penalties on children or their parents. Instead, the burden of compliance falls on social-media companies, which will be expected to prevent underage registrations and determine whether existing users meet the age requirement.
Although the legislation does not name individual companies, its definition is expected to cover conventional social networks built around profiles, content sharing and algorithmic recommendations. TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat are widely understood to fall within its scope. More complex questions remain over services such as YouTube and WhatsApp, where only certain social functions—such as public channels or content-sharing tools—may be restricted. Online encyclopedias and educational or scientific directories are specifically exempted.
The measure also extends France’s restrictions on mobile phones in education. Phones are already limited in primary and lower-secondary schools, and the new legislation will prohibit their use in high schools as well.
Supporters describe the law as a necessary response to mounting evidence that prolonged and poorly supervised social-media use can damage children’s well-being. France’s public-health authorities have reported that approximately 90 percent of children between 12 and 17 use smartphones to access the internet every day. The authorities have also warned about reduced self-esteem and greater exposure to material associated with self-harm, drug use and suicide.
The debate has taken on particular urgency following legal action by several French families against TikTok. The families allege that harmful content recommended on the platform contributed to severe psychological distress and, in some cases, teenage suicides. TikTok and other major platforms have repeatedly said that they provide safeguards for younger users and maintain minimum-age requirements, while also indicating that they will comply with national laws.
Yet the practical implementation of the French ban remains uncertain. A reliable age-verification system may require millions of adult users to prove that they are over 15, raising questions about privacy, data security and the future of online anonymity. Critics, including lawmakers from the left-wing France Unbowed party, have argued that the prohibition will be difficult to enforce and could restrict legitimate access to online communities and information.
The law may also face examination by France’s Constitutional Council. Opponents have questioned whether a general prohibition is proportionate and compatible with fundamental freedoms. A constitutional challenge could delay the legislation’s formal implementation, even though the government is aiming to have the central restrictions operating when the new school year begins.
European authorities will also scrutinize the measure. Earlier versions of the legislation raised concerns in Brussels because online-platform regulation is already governed by the European Union’s Digital Services Act. French lawmakers subsequently amended the text, but the European Commission is continuing to develop its own proposals for age-appropriate access to digital services across the bloc.
France follows Australia, which introduced the world’s first nationwide social-media ban for users under 16. Spain, Denmark, Greece and other European governments are considering restrictions of their own, suggesting that the French vote may accelerate a broader shift in how governments approach children’s online lives.
For Macron, the legislation represents more than a technical regulation of technology companies. It is an attempt to establish a legal boundary around childhood in an environment where algorithms increasingly influence entertainment, relationships and personal identity.
Whether France can enforce that boundary without creating new privacy risks will determine whether the measure becomes a model for Europe—or a warning about the limits of regulating childhood in the digital age.
