Greece to Ban Under-15s From Social Media From January 2027
Greece has announced that it will ban children under 15 from accessing social media from the start of 2027, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis saying rising anxiety, sleep problems and what he called the "addictive design" of online platforms were the leading factors behind the ban.
Mitsotakis announced the ban in a video message on Wednesday, telling young people: "Many young people tell me they feel exhausted from comparisons, from comments, from the pressure to always be online." He acknowledged that the restrictions were "difficult but necessary," saying his goal was not to cut young people off from technology but to address business models "based on capturing your attention — on how long you stay in front of a screen — takes away your innocence and your freedom. That has to stop somewhere."
Greece's parliament will legislate the ban in mid-2026, with the ban taking effect on 1st January 2027. From that date, platforms that cannot verify users' ages and restrict access for under-15s will face fines of up to 6% of their global annual turnover under the EU Digital Services Act. Greece has already banned mobile phones in schools and introduced parental control platforms to help limit screen time.
The decision has a strong public backing in Greece: polling firm ALCO found 80% of Greek adults support a social media ban for children. According to the Greek Safer Internet Centre, 75% of children currently using social media in Greece are of primary school age.
Mitsotakis has also written to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen calling for coordinated EU action, proposing a bloc-wide "digital age of majority" set at 15, mandatory age verification and regular re-verification across all platforms, and a harmonised enforcement framework in place by the end of 2026. Greece's state minister noted the limits of acting alone: "Unless we have an EU legislative framework... national legislation alone will be ineffective."
Greece could be the first European country to implement such a ban, though France may beat them to it when it comes to the date of the ban taking effect. The French Senate voted in favour of a similar ban last month, though a dispute between the government and Senate over its scope means it may not be resolved in time for it to be implemented in September.
Australia became the first country in the world to ban social media for under-16s in December, with platforms including TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook required to remove accounts held by minors. Countries including the UK, Spain, Austria, Denmark, Poland, Slovenia and Malaysia are either consulting on or legislating similar measures.
The global push to restrict the usage of social media for children is gaining momentum alongside a wave of legal action in the US. Two landmark trials have recently found Meta and Google liable for building platforms with addictive features that harmed users' mental health. Both companies said they disagreed with the verdicts and planned to appeal. Meta said: "Teen mental health is profoundly complex and cannot be linked to a single app."
