BRUSSELS / RankWire.AI / – The European Union is preparing bloc-wide restrictions on young children’s access to social media after an expert panel urged phased, age-based controls. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the move in Brussels on July 13. She said the 27-member bloc needs common rules that reflect children’s ages and online risks. The Commission plans to present concrete proposals after the summer. The announcement does not yet create a ban or change current access rules across EU member states.
The panel recommended that children under 13 use social media only for limited periods with parents, caregivers or teachers. It called for restrictions to ease gradually as teenagers grow older. The experts also examined gaming, messaging services and artificial intelligence tools alongside mainstream social networks. Their report covered services with age-inappropriate or addictive features, not social media alone. The final scope, age bands and enforcement arrangements remain undecided. The Commission will use the report when developing its next child-safety measures.
The special panel met three times from March through June 2026. It brought together young people and specialists in health, neuroscience, psychology, computer science, child rights and digital literacy. The group reviewed research and the experiences of children and families across Europe. A Commission survey released with the report found cyberbullying and harassment concerned 71% of respondents. Online grooming and sexual exploitation concerned 70%, while nearly two thirds supported age-based EU access rules.
EU weighs phased access by age
Current EU law already places child-safety duties on digital platforms. The Digital Services Act requires services accessible to minors to maintain high levels of privacy, safety and security. It also bans targeted advertising to children. Commission guidelines issued in July 2025 recommend private accounts by default, safer recommendation systems and stronger blocking tools. Those guidelines also address addictive design, cyberbullying, unwanted contact and exposure to harmful content. The new initiative would sit alongside those existing obligations.
The Commission has also developed a privacy-preserving age-verification tool. The system became feature-ready on April 15, 2026, and member states can now customize it. It lets users prove they are over 18 without disclosing other personal information. The technology can also support other thresholds, including confirmation that a user is at least 13. It shares technical standards with the EU Digital Identity Wallets scheduled for rollout across the bloc by the end of 2026.
Parliament backed a higher threshold
The European Parliament has separately backed a higher digital age threshold. In November 2025, lawmakers supported a nonbinding proposal for a minimum age of 16 on social media, video-sharing platforms and AI companions. The proposal would allow users aged 13 to 16 to gain access with parental consent. Parliament approved the report by 483 votes to 92, with 86 abstentions. It also called for limits on infinite scrolling, autoplay, engagement-driven recommendations and gambling-like gaming features. The vote did not establish binding access rules.
The Commission’s coming proposal will draw on the panel’s recommendations and the existing EU digital-safety framework. Officials have not announced a final minimum age, a complete list of covered services or an enforcement model. The Commission also has not published draft legislation. Until that process advances, platforms must continue following the Digital Services Act and national laws in each member state. The July announcement marks the EU’s latest formal step toward common rules for children’s access to social media and related digital services.