EU KIDS Act: age rules and safety requirements
The Commission proposed the KIDS Act on 17 September 2026. It combines access rules for certain social and video services with safety requirements across games, AI and other digital services.
The legal status
This is a legislative proposal, COM(2026) 681 final, 2026/0286(COD). The European Parliament and Council must consider it before it can become law. The dates and obligations below describe the proposed text, not duties already created by KIDS. Existing DSA, GDPR and other applicable obligations continue.
The proposed age rules
| Service | Proposed approach | Key reference |
|---|---|---|
| Risk-triggered social and video services | Independent accounts from 15. Limited guardian-created accounts for ages 13–14, with guardian tools always active, a maximum of one hour per day and contact controls. | Article 6 |
| Child-specific video services | A narrow exception for ages 3–12 through the guardian’s own account, subject to impact assessment, protective features and a one-hour daily ceiling. | Article 7 |
| Online games | Under-13 access must be enabled and controlled through guardian tools. The social-account ban is not automatically the gaming rule. | Article 15 |
| AI companions and general chatbots | Under-13 access through guardian tools, plus child-specific design and evaluation requirements. | Article 14 |
Safety remains relevant after entry
Article 8 proposes protective design by default. Covered providers would derogate from these defaults only after establishing adulthood through the applicable age-assurance route. Different articles specify the controls for different service categories.
For social and video services, Articles 9–13 address compulsive use, recommendations, safe settings, contact and transactions. Article 15 incorporates selected provisions for games. Article 14 sets requirements for covered AI systems. Do not copy one service’s entire checklist into every category.
Timing and existing accounts
Article 43 proposes general application six months after entry into force, with exceptions for Articles 5, 33 and 35. Entry into force would follow Official Journal publication by 20 days. These are relative draft periods; there is no fixed KIDS compliance date yet.
Article 6(4) proposes checks of existing accounts within six months after application. Article 32 contains high-confidence exceptions. Existing under-15 accounts and accounts whose age cannot be established face disabling under Article 6(4); a compliant guardian-created route needs separate handling.