EU delays national child social media laws for bloc-wide rules

12-month postponement

The European Commission has decided to postpone for 12 months draft national laws that overlap with its proposed EU-wide regulations on children's social media access, commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters in Brussels on Thursday. The move aims to ensure consistent protection for minors across all member states through harmonized rules rather than divergent national standards.

Kids Act proposal

Regnier highlighted the commission's European Union Kids Act, which introduces a gradual approach and safety by design obligations for all online services. "We have a very clear proposal that we have put on the table, whereby we're introducing a gradual approach and safety by design obligations for all online services," he said, referring to the proposed legislation.

The commission last month proposed banning social media access for children under 13 and allowing limited access for those under 15 under parental supervision. The postponement prevents different national age limits from creating a fragmented internal market that would complicate compliance for online platforms across the 27-member bloc.

Fragmentation concerns

The decision intends to stop divergent national regulatory requirements from fragmenting the internal market, making it difficult for platforms to operate consistently across borders. "Our proposal harmonizes the rules to make sure that all children across the EU receive equal levels of protection, because a European problem requires a united European response," Regnier said.

He added that the commission's position against fragmentation remains firm despite ongoing work on national legislation in other member states.

Pre-existing notifications

Regnier noted legal and procedural differences between national initiatives, citing France and Greece as examples where legislation was notified before the commission presented its own proposal. The relevant standstill periods for France and Greece had already elapsed, distinguishing their cases from Austria's and subsequent notifications by other member states.