France’s under-15 social media ban: where the law stands and what it means for brands
Searches about France’s under-15 social media ban went through the roof this summer. Lots of parents, obviously, but also brands wondering whether part of their audience would vanish overnight on September 1.
Short answer: no, the ban was struck down before it took effect. Long answer: it will probably come back in another form, and some rules already apply.
Key takeaways
- The bill led by MP Laure Miller was finally passed on July 21, 2026. It was due to apply to new accounts from September 1.
- The Constitutional Council struck it down on August 14, 2026 (decision no. 2026-911 DC): a disproportionate infringement on freedom of expression, with age verification poorly defined.
- The government is aiming for a rewritten text in spring 2027.
- What already applies: the EU DSA bans profiling-based ads to minors.
- For brands, the issue is not lost reach, it is incoming age verification, and how to speak to teens without targeting them.
The timeline
The under-15 law, January to August 2026
What the law said
The principle was simple: “access to an online social network service provided by an online platform is prohibited for minors under fifteen”. Platforms would have had to block new sign-ups from September 1, 2026, then close existing under-15 accounts by January 1, 2027. A few services were excluded, such as online encyclopedias and educational platforms.
The final vote was not close, especially in the Senate.
Why the Constitutional Council struck it down
The Council did not say protecting children from social media was illegitimate. Quite the opposite: it recognized that lawmakers were pursuing the best interests of the child, given the risks of addiction, isolation, harassment and exposure to pornography.
What it rejected was the method. A blanket ban that also cuts off access to information and the ability to express oneself, without the law spelling out how age would be checked or how personal data would be protected. Too broad, too vague: the hit to freedom of expression was ruled disproportionate.
In other words: the next version will need to be narrower (certain features, certain networks?) and say exactly how age is verified.
What already applies, law or no law
Under the DSA, the EU Digital Services Act, platforms may not show profiling-based ads to a user they know, with reasonable certainty, to be a minor. That is why you can no longer target 13 to 17 year olds by interests on Meta, TikTok or Snapchat in Europe.
So if your ad strategy relied on targeting teens in Europe, it has been dead since 2023. The French law changed nothing on that front.
What it actually changes for brands
For most brands, the under-15 share of their audience is small, and often overestimated. Check your analytics: Instagram and TikTok give an age breakdown, and the 13 to 17 bracket rarely tops a few percent, except in gaming, music, teen fashion or with certain creators.
The real change ahead is age verification. Whatever shape the next text takes, people will have to prove their age to sign up, maybe to use certain features. That means a bit of friction at sign-up, fewer but more reliable accounts, and more accurate audience data.
What brands can do now
Do
- Check the 13 to 17 share in your analytics
- Talk to parents when they are the buyers
- Keep strict moderation in comments and DMs
- Diversify toward email and your website
Avoid
- Building a strategy on an under-15 audience
- Trying to work around minor-targeting rules
- Partnering with creators whose audience skews very young without guardrails
- Panicking: nothing changed on September 1
What comes next
France is not alone. Several European countries are debating age limits, and the European Commission is working on a shared verification tool. The issue is not going away, it will come back better drafted.
For a brand, the best insurance is not depending on a single audience or a single network. Perroly helps you publish to 6 networks from one calendar and track how your audience evolves over time, network by network, so you see changes coming instead of being caught out.
Frequently asked questions
Is social media banned for under-15s in France?
No. The law passed on July 21, 2026 was struck down by the Constitutional Council on August 14, 2026, before its planned September 1 start. A new version is targeted for spring 2027.
Why was the law struck down?
The Constitutional Council found the infringement on freedom of expression disproportionate: the ban was blanket and age verification poorly defined (decision no. 2026-911 DC).
Can brands target teenagers with social media ads in Europe?
Not through profiling. The DSA bars platforms from showing profile-based ads to users they know are minors, across the EU.
What should brands do?
Check the under-18 share in their analytics, avoid building a strategy on a very young audience, and prepare for age verification, which will likely return in the next text.
Who proposed the law?
MP Laure Miller (Ensemble pour la République). It passed 243 to 2 in the Senate and 279 to 81 in the National Assembly.
Sources
- LCP : Interdiction des réseaux sociaux aux moins de 15 ans, ce que contient la loi définitivement adoptée (juil. 2026)
- PPC Land : France’s top court kills under-15 social media ban 18 days before start (août 2026)
- UK Human Rights Blog : French Constitutional Council rules that measures to protect minors from social media are unconstitutional (17 août 2026)
- EUR-Lex : Règlement (UE) 2022/2065 sur les services numériques (DSA)