France’s constitutional council blocked a law banning social media access for children under 15 on August 14, ruling that the measure violated freedom of expression and failed to provide adequate safeguards for the right to privacy, France 24 reported. The decision forces President Emmanuel Macron to send the flagship legislation back for a rewrite just weeks before it was set to take effect.
The law, passed by parliament on July 21, would have barred anyone under 15 from opening new social media accounts starting in September, with existing underage accounts required to shut down by January 2027 unless users verified they had turned 15. It had made France the first European Union country to impose a blanket ban on the platforms, following Australia’s under-16 ban, which took effect in December.
The council found that while the law required proof of age, it never specified how that proof should work. “By prohibiting minors under the age of fifteen from accessing certain online services, the law inherently requires every person, even an adult, to prove their age before accessing them,” the council said in its ruling, adding that lawmakers had “not established the legal safeguards necessary” to protect that requirement. The council separately found that the restrictions disproportionately infringed on freedom of expression.
Macron has tasked Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu with reworking the legislation to address the council’s concerns, according to a statement from the Élysée. The president remains determined to have a revised law in effect before spring 2027, when France holds its presidential election. Macron cannot run for a third term.
The setback lands as momentum builds elsewhere in Europe for similar restrictions. According to The Guardian, Greece has announced plans to ban social media access for under-15s from January 2027. Slovenia and Sweden are also weighing rules for minors’ social media access, while Spain is considering a ban for under-16s, and Austria is considering one for under-14s. The UK is preparing to block leading apps for under-16s next year.
At the EU level, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for “phased and gradual access” by age rather than a single cutoff, and has said Brussels will present a formal proposal after summer. Social media companies have generally opposed blanket bans, arguing they already enforce a minimum age of 13, while saying they would comply with whatever governments require.
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France’s constitutional council blocked a law banning social media access for children under 15 on August 14, ruling that the measure violated freedom of expression and failed to provide adequate safeguards for the right to privacy, France 24 reported. The decision forces President Emmanuel Macron to send the flagship legislation back for a rewrite just weeks before it was set to take effect.
The law, passed by parliament on July 21, would have barred anyone under 15 from opening new social media accounts starting in September, with existing underage accounts required to shut down by January 2027 unless users verified they had turned 15. It had made France the first European Union country to impose a blanket ban on the platforms, following Australia’s under-16 ban, which took effect in December.
The council found that while the law required proof of age, it never specified how that proof should work. “By prohibiting minors under the age of fifteen from accessing certain online services, the law inherently requires every person, even an adult, to prove their age before accessing them,” the council said in its ruling, adding that lawmakers had “not established the legal safeguards necessary” to protect that requirement. The council separately found that the restrictions disproportionately infringed on freedom of expression.
Macron has tasked Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu with reworking the legislation to address the council’s concerns, according to a statement from the Élysée. The president remains determined to have a revised law in effect before spring 2027, when France holds its presidential election. Macron cannot run for a third term.
The setback lands as momentum builds elsewhere in Europe for similar restrictions. According to The Guardian, Greece has announced plans to ban social media access for under-15s from January 2027. Slovenia and Sweden are also weighing rules for minors’ social media access, while Spain is considering a ban for under-16s, and Austria is considering one for under-14s. The UK is preparing to block leading apps for under-16s next year.
At the EU level, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for “phased and gradual access” by age rather than a single cutoff, and has said Brussels will present a formal proposal after summer. Social media companies have generally opposed blanket bans, arguing they already enforce a minimum age of 13, while saying they would comply with whatever governments require.
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