The EU Age Verification App: Where It Stands in Each Country, and Why Websites Ask Your Age
Is the EU age verification app out yet? Status in all 27 EU countries on 18 October 2026, the 31 December 2026 target and the laws behind age checks.
As of 18 October 2026 Denmark is the only EU country with a live official age-proof app built to the EU standards: AltID, launched on 3 June 2026. The European Commission's design has been feature-ready since 15 April 2026, the other frontrunners (Cyprus, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy and Spain) are still building or piloting theirs, and a Commission recommendation of 29 April 2026 asks every country to offer age verification by 31 December 2026. Age checks you meet today come from national rules such as Ireland's Online Safety Code, France's SREN law and Italy's AGCOM rules.
As of 18 October 2026, Denmark is the only EU country with a live official age-proof app built to the EU standards. Its app, AltID, launched on 3 June 2026. The European Commission's design became "feature ready" on 15 April 2026, and the Commission names seven frontrunner countries (Cyprus, Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy and Spain). France is piloting an age proof for pupils aged 15 or over in its France Identité app. On 29 April 2026 the Commission adopted a recommendation asking every EU country to give people access to age verification by 31 December 2026. Outside Denmark, if a website or app is asking you to prove your age today, that comes from a national law or the platform's own rules, not from the EU app.
The country-by-country status is in the EU age verification tracker.
Where each country stands
| Country | EU app status | National rule we confirmed | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | Frontrunner | Online Safety Code, Part B: adult video platforms must use effective age assurance | Deadline 21 July 2025 |
| Denmark | Live: AltID age proof, launched 3 June 2026 | None confirmed in this check | Digitaliseringsstyrelsen, 3 June 2026 |
| France | Frontrunner; France Identité age proof (15+) piloted with pupils | SREN law of 21 May 2024: pornographic sites must verify age to Arcom's standard | Arcom standard 11 October 2024 |
| Italy | Frontrunner | Law 159/2023 art. 13-bis and AGCOM resolution 96/25/CONS: pornographic sites and video platforms must verify users are 18 | Published 12 May 2025, six months to comply |
| Spain | Frontrunner | Audiovisual Law 13/2022, art. 89.1(e): video-sharing platforms must run age-verification systems against pornography and gratuitous violence | BOE, checked 18 October 2026 |
| Greece | Frontrunner; national Kids Wallet app | National strategy: under-15s on social networks only with parental consent, through Kids Wallet (strategy, not confirmed as law) | Eurydice, 26 November 2025 |
| Cyprus | Frontrunner | None confirmed in this check | Commission FAQ, 18 May 2026 |
| Germany | Not a named frontrunner | JMStV: some adult content only behind an approved age-verification system | KJM page, checked 18 October 2026 |
| The other 19 EU countries | Not named frontrunners | None confirmed in this check | Recommendation, 29 April 2026 |
"None confirmed" means we did not find a rule on an official page, not that the country has no rules. The Digital Services Act applies in every EU country.
Denmark's AltID
Denmark's Agency for Digital Government launched AltID on 3 June 2026 as the country's official app for ID and credentials. It holds two credentials, an age proof and an ID card, and works in shops and nightlife as well as online. The agency says AltID meets the EU's standards for age verification, so online services in the EU that support those standards will be able to accept it. You need MitID to set it up.
What the EU app is
The Commission describes it as a privacy-preserving "mini wallet". You download an app, prove your age once, with a passport or ID card, a national eID, a banking app or in person at a post office, and the app then stores only the fact that you are over a certain age. When a website asks, the app answers a single question, such as "over 18: true". According to the Commission's FAQ, it uses zero-knowledge proof, so the website does not learn who you are, and the provider that checked your age cannot see which sites you visit.
It uses the same technical rules as the European Digital Identity Wallets due in every EU country by the end of 2026. There will not be one single EU app: countries and private companies can publish their own versions, and the Commission will list the trusted ones.
The timeline so far
- July 2025: the Commission published the blueprint (14 July) and adopted its Digital Services Act guidelines on protecting minors.
- 15 April 2026: the solution became feature-ready for countries and companies to adapt.
- 29 April 2026: the Commission recommended that every country use the blueprint, draw up implementation plans and give access by 31 December 2026.
- September 2026: the Commission proposed the EU KIDS Act, which would set 15 as the minimum age to create an independent account. It is a proposal, not law, and the Commission was collecting feedback in October 2026.
All dates are from the Commission's age verification page, last updated 22 September 2026.
Why websites in Ireland ask your age
Ireland's media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, made the Online Safety Code for video-sharing platforms under Irish jurisdiction. Part B, which platforms had to implement by 21 July 2025, says platforms that allow pornography or extreme or gratuitous violence must use an effective form of age assurance, and that simply asking users whether they are over 18 is not enough. The services designated by the regulator include Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, Pinterest, Tumblr and Udemy; Reddit's designation was revoked in May 2025.
Other services you may see asking for age, such as gaming or chat platforms, are not on that list. When they ask, it comes from their own policies or other laws, not from the Irish code.
France and Italy
In France, Arcom enforces the ban on minors accessing pornographic sites under the law of 21 May 2024 to secure and regulate the digital space (SREN). Its technical standard of 11 October 2024 sets the minimum requirements for age checks, and it can fine, block or delist sites that do not comply. Arcom announced action against 31 more sites on 29 July 2026.
In Italy, AGCOM resolution 96/25/CONS, published on 12 May 2025, sets how pornographic websites and video-sharing platforms available in Italy must verify that users are adults. Sites had six months from publication to comply.
What it means for families
The EU app is aimed first at adult content: pornography, gambling and alcohol sales. It does not, on its own, set a minimum age for social media; that is a matter for each platform and for national laws (see social media age laws by country).
Sources
European Commission: EU age verification policy page, FAQ and the 29 April 2026 recommendation; Coimisiún na Meán: Online Safety Code and designation notices; Arcom: protection of minors from online pornography; AGCOM: resolution 96/25/CONS; KJM: technical protection of minors; Digitaliseringsstyrelsen (AltID); France Identité; BOE (Law 13/2022); Eurydice. All checked on 18 October 2026.