France’s Historic Ban on Social Media for Kids Under 15

Paris – On Tuesday, French lawmakers finally gave their long‑awaited vote to a bill that bans anyone under the age of 15 from logging onto social‑media sites. It’s a bold step, and—so far—no other European Union country has taken something quite this sweeping.

The measure, championed by President Emmanuel Macron as part of his second‑term agenda, also throws out the idea of smartphones in public high schools. In practice, that means a teen in a lycée will have to leave their phone at home or at least in a locker.

For many families, the law feels like a long‑overdue safety net. Gaëlle Berbonde, a 52‑year‑old mother from the Paris suburbs, told the Associated Press that she only discovered how dangerous TikTok could be after her daughter started self‑harm and struggled with anorexia. “We’ve been campaigning for this bill from the start because, frankly, we have no other option,” she said, drawing a direct comparison to how we keep kids away from alcohol.

Under the new rules, the ban won’t apply to encyclopedic sites, educational databases or scientific directories – the idea being to keep learning resources open while shutting the door on endless scrolling. Critics, especially from the left‑wing France Unbowed party, argue the law is vague, could erode online anonymity, and seems impossible to police.

Legal adviser Inès Legendre of the child‑online‑protection group e‑Enfance warned that the practicalities are messy. “How do we identify existing accounts for those under 15? How do we suspend them? And what about age verification for new users?” she asked.

France’s health watchdog paints a stark picture: roughly half of teenagers spend two to five hours a day on their phones, and about 90 % of 12‑ to 17‑year‑olds go online daily. Of that, 58 % admit to using social networks, a habit linked in studies to lower self‑esteem, exposure to self‑harm content, drug use and even suicide.

Macron wants the law to kick in at the start of the new school year in September, though a constitutional review may delay matters. The European Commission flagged that parts of the bill overlapped with the EU’s Digital Services Act, prompting a final round of tweaks before the vote was sealed.

Whether the ban will truly shield French youth or simply push them to secretive, unregulated corners of the internet remains to be seen. One thing is clear: France is now testing the limits of state‑driven digital protection, and the world will be watching.