Friday, June 19, 2026 -The United Arab Emirates has become the first Arab country to introduce a social media ban for children under 15, preventing them from creating personal accounts even with parental consent.
The rules, approved by the UAE cabinet on Thursday, come as
governments around the world have increasingly moved to restrict children’s
access to social media over concerns around harmful content, unsafe
interactions, excessive use and the collection of personal data.
“The resolution sets the minimum age for social media use at
15 years,” the official WAM news agency said, citing the cabinet resolution.
“Children below this age are prohibited from creating,
using, or operating personal accounts on social media platforms.”
They are also barred from “accessing the full features of
such platforms, including social interaction, publishing, commenting, sharing,
joining public groups, open channels, or any large-scale interactive spaces”,
it said.
Children under 15 will not be allowed to create or use
personal social media accounts, and parental consent cannot be used to exempt
them from the restrictions.
The new social media age limit makes the UAE the first Arab
country to impose a minimum age of 15 for personal social media accounts.
Unlike some international approaches that allow parental permission for younger
users, the UAE’s rules place responsibility on platforms to enforce age
restrictions and create safer online experiences for children and teenagers.
Users aged 15 and 16 will still be able to access platforms,
but with additional safeguards including age-appropriate content settings,
restrictions on interactions with unknown users, screen-time management tools
and parental supervision features.
0 Comments