Social media ban: FAQs

What is the social media ban? When and why is it happening?

What is the social media ban?

The Australian Government has passed a law called the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024. This law says that you must be aged 16 years or older to hold an account on social media platforms.

When will the ban start?

The law takes effect from 10 December 2025.

Which platforms are being banned?

The Australian Government is still drawing up the full list of social media platforms that will be included in the ban. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X and YouTube might be included.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Which platforms are age-restricted?

Are any platforms excluded from the ban?

The Australian Government says that platforms that are primarily for messaging or online gaming will be excluded from the ban. Health and education services will also be excluded.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

Why are young people being banned from social media?

The Australian Government is introducing the ban to protect young people aged under 16 from unhealthy and unsafe social media content and messages. This includes negative, upsetting or manipulative content or pressure to spend unhealthy amounts of time on social media.

The Government says the ban will create more opportunities for young people to learn how to manage social media risks and stay safe before they turn 16.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

Will young people still be able to see social media?

Young people aged under 16 will still be able to see publicly available social media content that can be accessed without an account. This includes:

most YouTube content
public videos on TikTok
some Facebook content – for example, business or service pages.

Young people aged under 16 will also be able to access online mental health and other support services.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

What will happen to young people’s social media accounts after the ban?

What will happen to young people aged under 16 who already have accounts?

The Australian Government says that platforms must take reasonable steps to find and remove or deactivate accounts held by young people aged under 16.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

Will young people be able to reactivate their accounts when they turn 16?

The Australian Government says that some social media platforms might deactivate accounts belonging to users aged under 16 and reactivate them when users turn 16.

But not all platforms will do this.

Therefore, well before 10 December, young people should download data they want to save, including connections, posts, chats, photos and videos. Social media platforms should give users information about how to download this data.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

What will happen if young people’s accounts are closed incorrectly?

The Australian Government says that platforms must have processes to correct errors if someone aged over 16 has their account removed in error.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

How will the social media ban and the age restrictions be enforced?

How will the ban be enforced?

The Australian Government says platforms covered by the ban must take reasonable steps to:

find and deactivate or remove accounts held by users aged under 16
prevent young people aged under 16 from opening new accounts
prevent workarounds that allow young people to bypass the restrictions.

The eSafety Commissioner will monitor compliance and enforce the law. This will be done through regulatory powers set up in the Online Safety Act. If platforms don’t take reasonable steps, a court can impose fines.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

How will platforms stop young people from getting around the age restrictions?

To make sure that young people aged under 16 can’t create or keep accounts, social media platforms might:

stop people from using false identity documents or AI tools to fake their age
prevent people from using VPNs or other technology to pretend that they’re outside Australia
assess age based on usage patterns, language use and style, and community memberships
assess age based on facial analysis.

For more information, go to eSafety Commissioner – Social media ‘ban’ or delay FAQs.

How can you help your child handle the social media ban?

How can you prepare your child for the ban?

The following resources can help you and your child:

It’s a good idea to start preparing as soon as you can.

How can you help your child cope with the ban?

The social media ban might be a big and upsetting change for your child. Talking and listening is one of the best ways to help your child handle it. Talking and listening helps you understand your child’s feelings about the ban and work out what support they need. It also sends the message that your child’s feelings are valid and important to you.

Conversations about the ban might be difficult, and these articles can help:

You can also go to eSafety Commissioner – How to talk about social media age restrictions with under-16s.

How can you help your child stay connected with friends?

Young people use social media to stay connected with their friends, so the ban might affect your child’s social life and friendships.

You can help your child to find ways to connect with friends and family without using social media. For example, your child could set up a WhatsApp group, or they could join a club or activity to meet new people.

These articles can help you support your child’s offline friendships and connections:

You can also be a role model for healthy social media and digital technology use.

What if your child needs more support?

Staying connected with your child will give you a sense of how they’re handling the social media ban. You can also read more in the following articles:

If you’re concerned about your child, mental health services for young people can help. These services include:

Your child might come across online safety risks even if they aren’t using social media. You can read more about helping your child stay safe in our articles on online safety, digital citizenship and cyberbullying.