Poland Plans Social Media Ban for Children Under 15, Starting With Next School Year

In brief

• Poland's government is preparing a bill that would bar children under 15 from social networks such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram.
• The draft is planned to take effect from the next school year, with public consultation expected in mid-November.
• Age checks could use mObywatel or a European digital identity wallet, while experts doubt the safeguards would be effective.

Draft law and timeline

The Ministry of Digital Affairs and the Ministry of National Education have jointly prepared a bill setting a minimum age of 15 for using internet social networks. The draft has been entered into the government's register of legislative work (Koniec mediów społecznościowych dla dzieci do 15 lat. Zakaz od nowego roku szkolnego – Portal Samorządowy) (Koniec TikToka dla dzieci? Rząd szykuje nowe przepisy – RMF24). Deputy Education Minister Katarzyna Lubnauer has said the rules should take effect from the coming school year, and the text is expected to go to public consultation in mid-November (Social media od 15 lat. Konta młodszych użytkowników mają być blokowane – dlahandlu.pl).

Who would be affected

The rules would cover platforms that let users create profiles, make contacts, publish content and communicate with other people. Children and younger teenagers would not be allowed to use them. Under current platform terms, the minimum age is usually 13, but that threshold is rarely enforced. The authors of the bill acknowledge that children as young as 7 to 12 use these services (Dostęp do TikToka, Facebooka i Instagrama dzięki weryfikacji w mObywatelu. Rząd ma plan – Bezprawnik).

How age would be checked

The central question is verification. Entering a birth date would not be enough. The draft considers three options: the European digital identity wallet, a solution inside the mObywatel app, and tools supplied by the platforms themselves that meet EU security requirements (mObywatel do potwierdzania wieku użytkowników social mediów? W grę wchodzą trzy koncepcje – wprost.pl). Monika Rosa, deputy head of the KO parliamentary club, has said verification should be effective but also secure and anonymous.

Existing accounts

According to Rosa's reading of the proposal, existing accounts would not be deleted. Users would instead have to confirm their age when logging in, and those below the limit would lose access until they reach 15.

Political support and doubts

Rosa has said the governing coalition agrees on the approach, and some opposition figures have reportedly signalled support after early talks. Experts quoted by Rzeczpospolita warn that the new safeguards may not work in practice (Social media dopiero od 15. roku życia. Rząd szykuje obowiązkową weryfikację przez mObywatela – Bankier.pl). Lawyers point to a gap: a child could use a parent's or an older friend's phone and confirm their age with that person's data.

What comes next

The bill is still at the draft stage. Public consultation is planned for mid-November, after which the text would go through the usual legislative process before the proposed school-year start.