EU to impose social media restrictions for children under 13, von der Leyen announces

On July 13, 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to propose EU-wide social media restrictions for children. Following recommendations from an expert panel, the proposed legislation will advocate a tiered approach, including restricting unsupervised access for children under 13. The move comes amid growing concerns over mental health vulnerabilities and addictive platform designs, such as infinite scrolling, which have already drawn regulatory warnings against Meta.

EU social media age restrictions

• ▪An EU-wide draft law restricting children's social media access must be approved by a weighted majority of European Union member states and the European Parliament
• ▪The European Commission plans to present a concrete legislative proposal regarding children's social media use after the summer of 2026, with an expected announcement in September 2026
• ▪European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on July 13, 2026, that the European Union will propose legislative curbs on children's social media access

Expert panel staged approach

• ▪A special EU panel on child safety online recommended restricting access to social media and other digital services for children under 13 until providers prove their platforms are safe
• ▪The expert panel's report defined 'social media plus' as social media platforms and other providers, such as video games or AI chatbots, that feature age-inappropriate and addictive designs
• ▪The expert panel recommended that the burden of proof for safety must rest on digital service providers rather than regulators, parents, or children

Member state national bans

• ▪France has pledged to ban social media for children under 15, Spain wants restrictions for under-16s, and Greece has proposed curbs for under-15s to enter into force on January 1, 2027
• ▪At least 10 European Union member states have announced plans for national social media bans for children
• ▪Estonia opposes EU-wide social media bans for children, arguing instead for a focus on regulating platforms because children will bypass access bans

Platform addictive design features

• ▪EU investigations identified infinite scrolling, video autoplay, push notifications, and highly personalized algorithms as problematic, addictive features on platforms like Meta and TikTok
• ▪The European Commission issued preliminary findings accusing Meta of failing to address the mental health risks of its addictive designs on young users

Child mental health vulnerabilities

• ▪The expert panel noted that ages 13 to 15 represent the peak of vulnerability to mental health problems, heightened by sensitivity to social comparison, feedback, and exclusion
• ▪Research cited by the expert panel indicates that almost 60% of young children have experienced emotional or psychosocial problems online

Screen use by age

• ▪For children aged three to 12, the expert panel recommended time-limited, supervised use of age-appropriate social media and digital devices
• ▪The expert panel recommended that babies and toddlers under three years of age should have no exposure to screens, except for limited activities like video calls