France's Constitutional Council has struck down a proposed ban on social media for those under 15, ruling that it infringes upon their freedom of expression. The council found that the legislation, which was backed by French lawmakers in July, was neither "appropriate, necessary, nor proportionate" to protect young people's rights. The ban was set to take effect from September and would have required age verification for all online services. French President Emmanuel Macron has asked his Prime Minister to prepare a new draft that addresses the council's concerns.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-16,
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Story summary
France's Constitutional Council struck down a social media ban for children under 15, ruling that it infringes upon their freedom of expression. The ban, backed by French lawmakers in July, aimed to protect young people from the potentially harmful effects on mental health associated with social media use. However, the court found that the law's requirement to provide proof of age to access online services was also problematic. As a result, French President Emmanuel Macron has directed his Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, to draft a new version of the legislation by 2027. This decision makes France the first European country to have attempted and failed to implement such a ban. The ruling is significant because it sets a precedent for other countries considering similar social media restrictions on minors.
Written for “French Social Media Ban Blocked” on 2026-08-31,
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Leaning score -0.35 for article 868 (low confidence, 1 verified quote) · logged 2026-08-26
- Published
France's top court has struck down a ban on social media for under-15s, saying it infringed upon freedom of expression.
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it → strike → expression
The legislation was backed by French lawmakers in July, making it the first European country to block young people from the platforms, after concerns over the harmful effects on children's mental health.
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it → back → health
Friday's ruling by the Constitutional Council overrides the ban, which Emmanuel Macron had pledged would be introduced in stages from September.
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Macron → override → September
Responding to the news, the French president immediately asked Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu to prepare a new draft that would take into account all the council's points.
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that → respond → points
After lawmakers voted through the bill last month, Lecornu referred parts of the legislation to the council - a nine-member authority that checks whether a law complies with the constitution - for review.
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law → vote → review
The Constitutional Council said it had found that Article 1 of the legislation "constitutes an infringement that is neither appropriate, necessary, nor proportionate" to the freedom of expression and communication for under-15s.
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that → say → under-15s
The ruling also raised concerns over the law's requirement to provide proof of age to access online services and said it failed to establish "the legal safeguards necessary".
Macron's office said after the ruling that the French government would work "as quickly as possible" to propose a new draft and said the president was determined to see the reform implemented by early 2027.
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reform → raise → 2027
The original legislation had envisaged that from September all those under-15 would not be able to open accounts, and verification would be required on all new accounts.
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verification → envisage → accounts
And from January, this would have applied to all existing accounts.
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this → apply → accounts
Opponents have repeatedly questioned the law's viability and raised concerns over privacy, the efficacy of age-verification tools, the risks of young people bypassing them, and how quickly the ban has been designed and brought in.
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ban → question → them
Australia was the first country to introduce last December a social media ban for those under-16, although it is widely acknowledged that many in the country continue to use the platforms.
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many → introduce → platforms
Legislation restricting young people's access to social media has been ramping up around Europe in the past few months.
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Legislation → restrict → months
In May, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed a "social media delay" for children in the EU, saying new legislation could be put forward in months.
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legislation → propose → months
In the UK, former British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced in June that under-16s in the UK will be banned from social media from January 2027.
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under-16s → announce → January
An optional midnight curfew for UK teens aged 16 and 17 was also announced.
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curfew → announce → teens
