Overview
- France’s Parliament approved the measure in final votes on Tuesday, delivering a law that prohibits under‑15s from using designated social networks.
- The law sets a two‑phase timeline that bars new account creation for under‑15s from 1 September 2026 and requires platforms to close existing under‑15 accounts by 1 January 2027.
- Enforcement is placed on platforms, which must deploy multiple age‑verification options and may use tools such as France Identité or Docaposte to check users’ ages.
- The statute also bans mobile phone use in secondary schools, includes exceptions for online encyclopedias and educational projects, and carries no penalties for children or parents.
- The text now awaits review by the Constitutional Council while the ministry and ARCOM must define which services are covered and how verification will work, raising privacy, feasibility and EU‑law questions that could shape implementation.