UK Bans Social Media for Under-16s, AI Romantic Chatbots for Under-18s

The social media ban for children under the age of 16 in the U.K. is official, with legislation set to finalized for a formal launch in 2027. Prime Minister and Labour Party boss Keir Starmer unveiled landmark legislation on Monday, which will make the likes of X, Facebook, YouTube, SnapChat and TikTok unavailable to under-16s in a move that follows the lead of Australia, where such a ban was launched late last year.

Not covered are messaging services, such as WhatsApp. The government said that the ban will formally launch by spring 2027 once legislation is finalized.

Promising “world-leading action,” the U.K. government said on Monday: “Children will be given back their childhoods,” with “less time for scrolling and more time for play. The plans will set a new normal for future generations, kickstarting a cultural shift and driving forward the government’s fight to give every child the best start in life.”

Added the administration: “The government plans to use the same model for a social media ban as Australia. This would capture user-to-user platforms, whose purpose is to enable social interaction and which allow users to post material, alongside algorithms. The ban will therefore include platforms like Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. We do not intend for messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal to be included in the social media ban.”

The goal is to “capture user-to-user platforms, whose purpose is to enable social interaction and which allow users to post material, alongside algorithms.”

Media regulator Ofcom, which is tasked with working out details, said: “So far, Ofcom has driven some of the strongest changes of any online safety regulation in the world, from widespread age checks to grooming protections for children. But the industry needs to go much further to make people safe. The Government has entrusted us to build on this progress with new measures to protect children, and we’re ready to work closely with them as the detailed regulations take shape.” 

Said Starmer: “Parents want to keep their kids safe and happy, but the online world has made that harder than ever. I’ve heard firsthand from families crying out for change and we will do right by them. That’s why we’re going further than any country in the world by banning social media for under-16s and putting wider protections in place to give kids their childhood back.”

And he concluded: “This is a line in the sand. Tech giants had their chance and failed, but we’re stepping in to protect children, back parents and set a new normal for future generations.”

The government also highlighted the rise of “so-called AI ‘romantic companion’ chatbots – designed to simulate sexual relationships or roleplay with users” that will “have to enforce a minimum age of 18. Similar intimate functionalities will be restricted for under-18s on AI chatbots more widely.”

Concluded the U.K. government: “Taken together, these measures will mean a much more comprehensive model than just a blanket ban on social media — one that responds to how children experience harm online, rather than just where it happens.”