When does the UK social media ban for under-16s start?

The government has said it aims to lay the regulations before Parliament by the end of 2026, with the ban coming into effect from spring 2027. Until then, nothing changes for families.

Is WhatsApp included in the UK's under-16 ban?

No. The government has said messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal won't be included. The ban covers social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X.

Does the ban affect 16 and 17-year-olds?

Not the ban itself, but the government has announced default overnight curfews on social media apps for 16 and 17-year-olds, from midnight to 6am with notifications off, and that autoplay and personalised feeds will be switched off by default. They will remain free to change these settings.

Will the UK ban work like Australia's?

The government says it will use the same model as Australia, going further by also blocking livestreaming and communication with strangers for under-16s. Australia's ban has been in force since 10 December 2025, and a July 2026 Australian government report found fewer children holding accounts, but many had kept access.

Where does the ban come from legally?

Section 70 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 adds a new section 214A to the Online Safety Act 2023, requiring the government to introduce age or functionality restrictions for children on social media.

Guides · What's changing

The UK's under-16 social media ban: what's changing, and when

Announced in June, expected from spring 2027. Here is what has actually been decided, what hasn't, and why the months before it starts are worth using.

6 min read · Published 28 September 2026 · Last reviewed 28 September 2026

A treehouse beneath a large tree at dawn

In short

On 15 June 2026 the UK government announced a ban on social media for children under 16, expected from spring 2027. It covers platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X, but not messaging services like WhatsApp. It goes further than Australia's by restricting livestreaming and contact with strangers for under-16s, and 16 and 17-year-olds will get default overnight curfews from midnight to 6am. Nothing has changed yet for families today.

Key facts

From spring 2027: no social media accounts for under-16s.
Covers Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X. Not WhatsApp.
16 and 17-year-olds get a default curfew from midnight to 6am.

What has been decided

On 15 June 2026 the government announced that children under 16 will not be allowed to use social media. It followed a public consultation, Growing up in the online world, which ran from 2 March to 26 May 2026 and drew 116,211 responses.

The government's fact sheet, updated on 18 September 2026, names Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal aren't included, and dedicated educational platforms that support schoolwork are unaffected.

The UK is following the model Australia introduced, and going further. On gaming and other online services, high-risk features such as livestreaming and contact with strangers will be restricted for under-16s.

The government has said it aims to put the regulations before Parliament by the end of this year, with the ban taking effect from spring 2027.

What changes for 16 and 17-year-olds

On 15 July 2026 the government announced two changes for older teenagers, who won't be covered by the ban:

A default overnight curfew on social media apps, from midnight to 6am, with notifications switched off during it.
Autoplay and personalised feeds switched off by default.

These are defaults, not locks: the government says 16 and 17-year-olds will remain free to change their settings if they wish to.

The stated aim is to avoid a "cliff edge", where a young person goes straight from no access at 15 to every attention-grabbing feature on their sixteenth birthday.

Where the power comes from

The ban isn't a separate new law. Section 70 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 adds a new section 214A to the Online Safety Act 2023. That section requires the government to bring in regulations imposing some form of age or functionality restriction for children on social media. It was added after the government lost a series of votes on children's social media use in the House of Lords.

What we know from Australia

Australia's ban has been in force since 10 December 2025. A July 2026 report from the Australian government looked at families three months in. It found a statistically significant fall in the share of children holding accounts on the restricted platforms, but also that many had kept access.

That is the honest shape of the evidence so far: a law can reduce accounts, and it cannot on its own stop a determined 14-year-old.

What's still open

Several things were not settled at the time of writing:

The final list of services. The fact sheet names the main platforms, but the regulations will set out exactly what counts as social media.
How age will be checked. Age assurance sits at the centre of the plan. Ofcom will set out options for effective age assurance in the coming months.
How it will be enforced, and what happens when a child gets round it.

We will update this guide as the regulations are published.

What about AI chatbots?

The same fact sheet covers AI chatbots, which aren't part of the social media ban. It plans mandatory regular breaks for under-18s, and says the government will consider all options, including a ban, for chatbots that give dangerous mental health advice. Read AI chatbots and children.

Kairoo's view

A ban sets the floor. It doesn't build the habit.

For most families with children this age, the evening arguments aren't about social media at all. They're about one more video, one more round, one more minute. None of that changes in spring 2027. What a law can't do is teach a child to stop, and stopping is the skill that still matters at 16, when the ban lifts.

So the months before it starts are worth using. If your child is 11 to 15, talk about it now, while it's news rather than a rule being done to them. Ask what they'd lose and what they'd be glad to be rid of. Children are more ambivalent about their phones than adults often assume: in Ofcom's 2026 research, 37% of 8 to 17-year-olds said they spend too much time on screens. A conversation where they get a say goes further than a rule that arrives from outside.

What you can do now

Talk about it before it happens. Ask your child what they think of the ban. You'll learn which apps matter to them and why.
Agree your own rules, rather than waiting for the law's. A family agreement you both sign covers the things no law will: bedtime, where phones sleep, and how extra time gets asked for. Our free Family Digital Agreement takes about ten minutes.
If a first phone is coming, the first phone readiness check is a five-minute way to decide what to set up before the first problem.

Kairoo

Don't wait for spring 2027.

A ban sets the floor; the habits are yours. Agree your family's rules with your child now, both sign them, and let Kairoo hold the line on their phone.

Get Kairoo on iPhone Start with the free agreement Or start with the free agreement Tell me when Android is ready

Two apps, no adverts. iPhone now, Android soon.

Questions parents ask

When does the UK social media ban for under-16s start?: The government has said it aims to lay the regulations before Parliament by the end of 2026, with the ban coming into effect from spring 2027. Until then, nothing changes for families.
Is WhatsApp included in the UK's under-16 ban?: No. The government has said messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal won't be included. The ban covers social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and X.
Does the ban affect 16 and 17-year-olds?: Not the ban itself, but the government has announced default overnight curfews on social media apps for 16 and 17-year-olds, from midnight to 6am with notifications off, and that autoplay and personalised feeds will be switched off by default. They will remain free to change these settings.
Will the UK ban work like Australia's?: The government says it will use the same model as Australia, going further by also blocking livestreaming and communication with strangers for under-16s. Australia's ban has been in force since 10 December 2025, and a July 2026 Australian government report found fewer children holding accounts, but many had kept access.
Where does the ban come from legally?: Section 70 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 adds a new section 214A to the Online Safety Act 2023, requiring the government to introduce age or functionality restrictions for children on social media.

Sources

Fact sheet: new rules to protect children online, GOV.UK, updated 18 September 2026
Social media to be banned for under-16s in landmark government move to give kids their childhood back, GOV.UK, 15 June 2026
Proposals to ban social media for children (CBP-10468), House of Commons Library, 2026

Last reviewed 28 September 2026. Kairoo checks these pages when the rules or the research change; if you spot something out of date, tell us at hello@kairoo.family.