Europe is taking steps towards a possible ban on social networks for children

The European Union moved closer to banning children from social media on Monday, in what would be the biggest effort yet in a growing global movement to create age limits for apps like TikTok and Instagram.

Experts have presented a report to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen recommending that the European Union restrict access to social media for children under 13 unless supervised by a parent or teacher.

The report by child psychiatrist Professor Jörg Fegert and epidemiologist Dr Maria Melchiorová also recommended that teenagers between the ages of 13 and 18 should only access social media platforms that have implemented safety features such as limits on infinite scrolling. He stated that toddlers under the age of 3 should not have any screen time at all.

The recommendations are the first step toward a law that would ban children and teens from using certain social media sites. Ms von der Leyen, who appointed the panel members, is expected to announce the proposed law in September during the annual State of the European Union address.

“It is very clear that we need age-appropriate platform restrictions,” Ms von der Leyen said on Monday.

“It’s not about whether kids have access to social media. It’s about if and when social media can access our kids.”

Across Europe, children now spend four to six hours a day on social media and almost 60 per cent of children have experienced emotional and psychosocial problems online, Ms von der Leyen said.

The report contributes to a global movement to limit children’s screen time and exposure to social media. The companies have faced backlash due to parental concerns about addiction and the technology’s potential to harm young people’s mental health.

Last year, Australia became the first country in the world to ban children under 16 from using social media. Since then, countries including Denmark, France, Germany, Spain, India, Indonesia and Malaysia have introduced or are considering similar rules.

In the United States, Florida passed a ban in 2024 on the use of social networks for people under the age of 14 without parental consent.

If the European Union were to introduce a new law, it would represent by far the largest global effort to ban children from accessing social media. Around 450 million people live in the European Union 18 percent the population is under 18 years of age.

But passing the new law would require a lengthy policy-making process that involves negotiations between the national governments that make up the 27-member European Union — a group that does not always agree on the need for new laws and regulations.

How such rules would be applied also remains an open question. In Australia, critics said that teenagers were easily bypassing the blocks and that the law had failed to deliver on its promise.

Even without the ban, regulators in Brussels are trying to force social media companies to change their policies. Last week, authorities told Meta that it had to change the “addictive design” of Instagram and Facebook or risk a hefty fine. TikTok faces similar demands as part of another investigation.