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ARTICLE · 09 NOVEMBER 2026

The EU Proposes Children’s Online Safety Rules In EU KIDS Act

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The European Commission has proposed the EU KIDS Act, which would establish age-based restrictions for social media accounts while implementing comprehensive online safety requirements for platforms serving children. The legislation would create tiered access levels based on age groups, mandate parental controls, and require safety-by-design features across social networks, video-sharing platforms, online games, and AI chatbots.

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Liisa Thomas
Liisa Thomas
Kathryn Smith
Kathryn Smith
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The European Commission recently proposed the EU KIDS Act, which would combine age limits for certain social media accounts with online safety requirements. If adopted, most rules would apply six months after entry into force, which would occur 20 days after Official Journal publication. Some provisions have separate timelines. Enforcement would fall under the Digital Services Act and EU AI Act frameworks, with separate data-protection oversight.

The proposed Act would cover social networks, video-sharing platforms, online games, app stores, operating systems, AI companions, and general conversational chatbots accessible to children under 18. It would apply to non-EU companies that provide these services to users in the EU or place covered AI systems on the EU market or put them into service there. Exemptions include nonprofit online encyclopedias and certain educational, research, and public-authority services.

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