Greece bans under-15s from social media

Overview

Updated 2 hours ago

Greece's parliament voted October 23 to ban children under 15 from social media. The law takes effect January 1, 2027. The government says it aims to be the first EU member state to put such a ban in place.

Platforms must verify users' ages or face fines up to 6% of global annual revenue. The burden sits on companies, not families. Children born in 2012 will be treated as 15 from the law's first day.

The ban is a test case for Europe. France passed a similar law, and its constitutional court struck it down in August 2026 on proportionality grounds. Greece's version faces the same legal question before it even takes effect.

Why it matters

Platforms must verify every Greek user's age or pay fines up to 6% of global revenue, setting a template for the EU.

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Key Indicators

Minimum age for social media access in Greece

Applies to anyone born in 2012 or later, with January 1 treated as everyone's birthday.

Maximum fine on platforms for failing age checks

Calculated against a company's global annual turnover under existing Greek digital services law.

80%

Public approval of the ban per ALCO poll

Poll published in February 2026 showed strong public support before the law was drafted.

Jan 1, 2027

Effective date of the ban

Six-month runway gives platforms time to build age-verification systems.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Ever wondered what historical figures would say about today's headlines?

People Involved

Kyriakos Mitsotakis

Prime Minister of Greece

In office; championed the ban and pushed for EU-wide rules

Dimitris Papastergiou

Minister of Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence

Designing enforcement through age-verification tools

Organizations Involved

Hellenic Parliament

National legislature

Passed the ban October 23, 2026

Unicameral legislature that approved the law by majority vote, adding Article 4A to existing digital services law 5099/2024.

European Commission

Executive body of the European Union

Reviewed the Greek draft; weighs EU-wide Kids Act rules

EU executive that reviewed Greece's draft under the TRIS notification process and is drafting the EU Kids Act on minor safety.

Timeline

April 2026 January 2027

6 events Latest: Yesterday

Tap a bar to jump to that date

January 2027
Ban takes effect
Upcoming Implementation

Platforms must verify user ages for Greek accounts or face fines up to 6% of global revenue.
January 1st, 2027
October 2026
Greek parliament approves the ban
Latest Legislative

Law passes by majority vote despite parliamentary scientific service warnings on definitions and proportionality.
Yesterday
August 2026
France's similar ban struck down
Legal

French Constitutional Council rules analogous blanket prohibition unconstitutional in decision 2026-91 DC.
August 14th, 2026
Commission says age limit complies with DSA
Regulatory

Detailed opinion finds a minimum age floor compatible with Article 28 of the Digital Services Act.
August 7th, 2026
May 2026
Draft law sent to European Commission
Regulatory

Greece files the draft with the Commission under the TRIS procedure for internal market review.
May 8th, 2026
April 2026
Mitsotakis announces plan to ban under-15s
Statement

Prime minister says Greece will ban social media access for children under 15 from January 1, 2027.
April 8th, 2026

Scenarios

Social media ban takes effect, platforms build age checks

Likely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: Greek government officials including Minister Papastergiou

Platforms adopt age-verification tools before January 1, 2027. The state's Kids Wallet and Gov.gr Wallet apps issue digital 'age tokens' confirming only whether a user is over 15. Greece's oversight agencies monitor compliance, and early fines set precedent. This is the base case the government expects, with a six-month runway designed to avoid disruption.

Court blocks the ban, citing French precedent

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: Nomoprisma legal analysis; Greek parliament's scientific service

A platform or rights group challenges the law before the Greek Council of State or asks the EU's top court for a preliminary ruling. The argument follows the French Constitutional Council's August 2026 decision, which rejected a blanket prohibition because it covered all services without assessing risk to each minor. The law's own scientific service flagged this as the weakest point, and Greece has no existing court precedent on point.

EU Kids Act supersedes the national law

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: European Commission; Article 6 of the Greek law

The Commission's proposed regulation on minors' online safety passes, establishing a common 13-to-15 age framework with parental oversight across member states. Greece's law contains a clause that suspends the national ban automatically if a European regulation covers the same ground. Parliament would then decide whether to keep its 15-year floor or align with the EU standard.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

December 2024

Australia's under-16 social media ban (December 2024)

Australia's parliament passed the world's first social media minimum-age law, banning under-16s from platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and X. The law made platforms responsible for enforcing the age floor, not parents or children.

Then

Platforms began rolling out age-verification systems and Australia became the reference point for age-gating debates globally.

Now

Countries including Greece, Brazil, Canada, and Indonesia moved to copy or adapt the Australian model.

Why this matters now

Greek officials cited Australia's approach as their template, lowering the age floor from 16 to 15 and keeping the same platform-side enforcement model.

August 2026

France's social media age ban struck down (August 2026)

France's Constitutional Council ruled a similar blanket prohibition unconstitutional in decision 2026-91 DC of August 14, 2026. The court found the law covered all online services indiscriminately and offered no risk assessment for individual minors.

Then

France's general ban fell; the ruling became the main legal precedent against broad age restrictions in Europe.

Now

The Greek parliament's scientific service cited the decision as a warning before the Greek vote.

Why this matters now

Greece's law faces the same proportionality test, and any legal challenge will likely turn on whether a blanket ban can survive where France's could not.