Australia will enforce a social media minimum age of 16 from December 10, 2025, forcing major platforms to shut underage accounts or risk multi-million dollar fines.
Law sets world-first social media minimum age of 16
Australia’s Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 amends the Online Safety Act 2021 to create a new social media minimum age framework for “age-restricted social media platforms.” From December 10, 2025, those platforms must take “reasonable steps” to stop Australians under 16 from creating or keeping accounts, according to the federal government’s Social Media Minimum Age fact sheet and the eSafety Commissioner’s social media age restrictions guidance.
The obligation sits on platforms, not on children or parents. The Prime Minister’s office says the reforms “place the onus on social media platforms” and warn that systemic breaches can attract civil penalties of up to AUD 49.5 million (150,000 penalty units).
The eSafety Commissioner describes the regime as “world-first social media age restrictions” that respond to design features which keep children online longer and serve them harmful content, in its overview of the new rules and statement on the Act.
Guidance released in late 2025 indicates that platforms expected to be treated as age-restricted include Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, Snapchat, X, YouTube and Reddit, with livestreaming site Kick also added in a later update.
Meta starts deactivating teen accounts from December 4
Meta will move earlier than the legal deadline. The company told Reuters it has started notifying Australian users aged 13 to 15 that their Facebook, Instagram and Threads accounts will be deactivated. Those notices began on November 19, 2025, giving a 14-day warning.
From December 4, 2025, Meta will begin blocking new sign-ups by under-16s and deactivating existing accounts, with the process due to finish by December 10, 2025, to align with the new law. Affected users are being told they can download their data, update contact details so they can regain access at 16, or delete their accounts. Meta estimates around 150,000 Facebook users and 350,000 Instagram users aged 13 to 15 in Australia will be affected.
Meta will use a mix of age-assurance tools, including ID checks and AI-based “video selfie” age estimation supplied by Yoti. Messenger will remain available, with changes so it no longer requires a Facebook account.
Enforcement, exemptions and global implications
The eSafety Commissioner will enforce the social media minimum age. Not all online services are covered. The law focuses on age-restricted social media platforms with broad sharing and engagement features. Messaging apps and games without a social media-style feed can fall outside the framework.
The government has also warned platforms against blanket age checks for every user. Guidance reported by the Associated Press in September 2025 stresses that large-scale mandatory ID verification would be an invasion of privacy and that companies should instead use data they already hold to identify likely underage accounts.
For global tech and markets, the social media minimum age law adds to regulatory pressure on ad-driven platforms such as Meta and TikTok. Australia’s model, anchored in the Online Safety Amendment Act 2024 and enforced from December 10 2025, is likely to be studied by lawmakers in Europe and North America as they weigh similar social media minimum age rules.
