11 September 2026

France’s social media ban for under-15s stalls, as other countries join in

Ava Miltenberg in New Jersey, United States

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France is attempting to ban social media accounts for under-15s.

France’s attempt to ban social media for under-15s has been blockedby the country’s Constitutional Council, which recently ruled that the legislation placed disproportionate restrictions on freedom of expression.

Lawmakers in both chambers of Parliament overwhelmingly approvedthe ban on 21 July, which would have made France the first country in the European Union to ban social media for under-15s. Australia was the first country in the world to adopta nationwide, age-based ban, for under-16s, which came into force in December 2025 .

President Emmanuel Macron, who has made online child safety a central priority during the final years of his presidency, has asked the French prime minister, Sébastian Lecornu, to produce new legislation that takes into account the council’s objections.

What does the ban propose?

From the start of the new school year (1 September), under-15s would have been prohibited from creating accounts on social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X. Verification would be required on all new accounts. From January 2027, this would apply to all existing accounts.

The suggested legislation required technology companies to introduce stronger age-verification systems to prevent underage users from accessing their services.
Educational platforms, online encyclopedias and scientific websites would be exempt.

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The ban also sought to expand France’s existing restrictions on the use of mobile phones in schools, to include those in high school (for those aged 16 and above). This will still come into force, despite the Constitutional Council’s ruling.

French lawmakers introduced the original ban in response to growing evidence linking excessive social media use to poorer adolescent mental health and concerns that existing safeguards have failed to adequately protect young users online.

Earlier this year, France’s national public health agency, ANSES, published a report on the effect of social media use on adolescents. The five-year study found that nearly 90% of French children aged 12–17 use smartphones every day, with more than half using social media for several hours daily.

The report concluded that social media can have harmful effects on teenagers – particularly girls – including increased risks of anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and eating disorders as well as exposing them to content promoting self-harm and suicide.

President Macron hailedthe proposed ban as a landmark step in protecting children. “France is leading the way in Europe when it comes to protecting our children and teenagers,” he said.

The legislation also reflects France’s broader push for greater “digital sovereignty”, as the government seeks to reduce dependence on major American and Chinese technology companies while imposing stricter regulations on digital platforms.

What are other countries doing?

France’s decision comes as governments around the world look at how children access social media – a debate that Harbingers’ Magazine has followed from multiple perspectives.

In May 2025, our Editorial Board, made up of teenage journalists from countries across the world, acknowledged both the opportunities and risks social media presents for young people, concluding that “we find ourselves in a similar position to other teens around the world as well as adults in governing bodies… we are torn.”

In July, Vivienne Movsisyan reported on the UK’s proposed social media ban for under-16s, highlighting the government’s argument that the policy would give young people “their childhood back”.

Several other European governments are considering similar restrictions. Spain has proposed limiting social media access for under-16s, while Greece is set to introduce restrictions for under-15s from January 2027.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also signalled that the issue could soon be addressed across the EU, stating, “It is clear we need age-appropriate restrictions to platforms. This is not about whether children can access social media. It is about whether and when social media can access our children.”

She has pledged to introduce draft EU legislation later this year, suggesting France’s proposal may be the beginning of a broader shift rather than an isolated policy.

The movement extends well beyond Europe. In March, Indonesia became the first country in Southeast Asia to enforce restrictions for under-16s. Malaysia began barring under-16s from holding social media accounts in June, requiring major platforms to introduce age-verification measures.

Similar debates are taking shape across Latin America: Brazil has introduced stronger protections for minors online, while lawmakers in countries including Mexico, Chile and Uruguay are considering further restrictions. The approaches differ – from outright age limits to restrictions on algorithms, platform design and parental controls.

An OECD review found that, by April 2026, 25 countries had some form of social media age restriction either in force or under consideration.

Written by:

Ava Miltenberg

News Editor 2026

New Jersey, United States

I still have a highlighter-streaked notebook from a rainy afternoon at my middle school, the pages warped from my backpack getting soaked, the ink a little smeared, everything glowing yellow anyway. I remember sitting in a crowded classroom, bell blaring, while my social studies teacher explained what your First Amendment rights actually meant. I didn’t say much, but I wrote everything down.

Long before that, I used to sit on the stairs at home and eavesdrop on my dad’s late-night phone calls from his office. I didn’t understand the legal jargon, but I picked up the cadence, the careful questions, the long pauses, and the way words could shift any situation. It was my quiet introduction to how law works in real life.

Last summer, I took criminal justice classes at USC, trading my high school classroom for a packed lecture hall where professors challenge easy narratives about punishment, power, and fairness. The experience made me more skeptical, more curious, and less willing to accept simple explanations.

When I’m not thinking about law or history, I’m usually reading or writing poetry, or scribbling lines in the margins of whatever it is that I’m studying. I like precision, in a poem, in a news story, or in a legal argument from Suits.

I write to slow complicated moments down, look at them closely, and understand what they reveal about people and power.

Edited by:

Arnav Maheshwari

Editor-in-Chief 2026

Georgia, United States

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