Greece imposes social media age limit for children under 15
The Hellenic Republic has codified a ban on social media use for minors younger than fifteen, setting a new benchmark for digital regulation in Europe.
By Alina Campbell ·
Greece is set to enforce a social media ban for children under 15, a move that takes effect on January 1, 2027. The legislation, which has been officially passed by the Greek parliament, marks a significant step in digital governance. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis first announced the measure earlier this year, describing it as a difficult but necessary action. This makes Greece one of the first nations in the European Union to implement such a specific age restriction for major digital platforms.
The new law targets popular social media services, including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and X. To comply with the mandate, these platforms must adopt age-verification methods that are both proportionate and reliable. This requirement shifts the burden of enforcement directly onto the tech companies, compelling them to verify the age of their users before allowing access to their services. The timing of the implementation, set for the start of next year, provides a transition period for both developers and users to adjust to the new regulations.
Dimitris Papastergiou, the minister for digital governance and AI, defended the decision by arguing that waiting for a perfect European law was no longer an option. He stated that children are increasingly sinking into the internet and that a responsible government must act. Papastergiou noted that while it would have been easy to do nothing, the immediate challenge required a governmental response. This perspective highlights a growing skepticism among European leaders toward the pace of pan-continental digital legislation.
Non-compliance with the new act will result in fines under the existing EU Digital Services Act. To assist parents in enforcing the ban, the state has developed specific applications called Kids Wallet and Gov.gr. These apps are designed to be paired with a child's device to block access to social media. Papastergiou explained that these tools use age tokens to verify a child's age while minimizing the collection of personal data, aiming to protect privacy during the verification process.
The path to passing the bill was not without political friction. Minority parties in Greece opposed the legislation, but Mitsotakis utilized his government's majority to push the bill through the parliament. This legislative victory follows a 2024 decision to bar mobile phones in schools, suggesting a broader governmental strategy to limit young people's digital exposure. Recent opinion polls indicate that the adult population in Greece widely supports this new social media ban for children.
Looking beyond national borders, Mitsotakis has expressed a goal of pushing the European Union in the same direction. The European Commission recently introduced the EU Kids Act, which aims to address similar concerns at a continental level. However, that proposed law currently stipulates an outright ban only for children under 13, which is a lower age threshold than the one Greece has adopted. This discrepancy may influence future negotiations and implementations across the bloc.
Australia serves as a notable precedent for this type of legislation, being the first nation to enact a full social media ban for kids. However, the experience in Australia has shown that age verification remains a complex challenge to implement effectively. As Greece prepares for the January 2027 deadline, the success of its age-token system and the resulting fines against non-compliant platforms will be closely watched. The outcome could provide crucial insights for other nations considering similar digital restrictions for minors.
