The Netherlands and Spain are pushing for a mandatory minimum age for social media use across the EU. They argue that these rules must be harmonized and applied at the European level. The European Commission is expected to present its own proposal next week during the State of the Union address by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
In a document circulated on Friday, the two governments proposed extending these age restrictions to video games, AI chatbots, AI companions, and other high-risk digital services. They emphasized that such measures must be proportionate, respect fundamental rights—including freedom of expression, the right to information, and data protection—and be based on a comprehensive impact assessment.
A unified approach to regulating digital services
Restricting minors’ access to social media is an increasingly hot topic in the EU. France, Greece, Austria, Denmark, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands are currently considering or advancing national legislation on the matter.
In August, the Constitutional Council of France struck down a law that would have banned social media access for those under 15, ruling it too broad and disproportionate due to its interference with constitutional rights.
The Netherlands and Spain are proposing a risk-based approach to combat addictive algorithms and harmful design, not just on social media, but across other digital services. They believe providers should be granted exemptions from age limits if they can prove their services are sufficiently safe.
The countries also stressed the importance of enforcing these rules at the EU level to prevent fragmentation among member states. They suggest using the Digital Services Act (DSA) as a model, under which the European Commission already performs regulatory functions for major online services, including Google, Instagram, and TikTok.
Age verification and privacy protection
In their document, the Netherlands and Spain also warned against relying too heavily on parental consent as a way to bypass age restrictions. They argue that this approach would be difficult to implement and could create additional privacy risks.
For practical implementation, the countries believe an age verification app is necessary. However, its functions should be strictly limited to confirming that a user has reached the required age to minimize the impact on privacy.
The Netherlands and Spain want the European Commission‘s future legislative proposal to be based on the existing EU framework for age verification.
Source: Euronews
