Kids' Online Safety Laws Starting in 2027: Every Date, and Which Are Blocked in Court
What starts in 2027: app store age checks, social media consent laws, New York's SAFE for Kids Act on 25 January, the UK under-16 rules and Denmark's under-15 plan.
At least seven US state laws on children online are due to start on 1 January 2027, in Indiana, Alabama, South Carolina, Vermont and California, and New York's SAFE for Kids Act follows on 25 January 2027. Alabama's app store law and California's warning-label law have been challenged in court. Outside the US, the UK expects its under-16 social media rules in spring 2027 and Denmark proposes an under-15 limit from 1 July 2027.
Last checked: 2 November 2026. This page lists every law on children and the internet that we could confirm is due to start, or is expected, in 2027, with its status today. Laws like these are often blocked in court just before they start, so each row carries its status as of the date above. For the full list of US state laws, including those already in force, see the social media laws by US state table; for other countries, the social media age laws by country tracker.
The 2027 timeline
| Date | Place | Law | What changes | Status (2 Nov 2026) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | Indiana | HEA 1408 (2026) | Large social media platforms need verifiable parental consent before a child under 16 opens an account | Signed; not yet in force; no lawsuit found | WBOI; ACLU of Indiana |
| 1 January 2027 | Alabama | App Store Accountability Act, HB 161 | App stores must check each user's age category and get a parent's consent before a minor downloads an app or buys in-app; accounts that existed on 2 October 2026 must be checked before 1 October 2027 | Signed 17 February 2026; challenged in court by the tech group CCIA (reported 28 to 29 October 2026); no ruling yet | Loeb & Loeb; IDTechWire |
| 1 January 2027 | South Carolina | H.4591, Act 237 of 2026 | Platforms may not create or keep an account for a child under 16 without verifiable parental consent; children's accounts default to the most private settings | Signed 19 May 2026; not yet in force; no lawsuit found | SC Legislature |
| 1 January 2027 | Vermont | Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (Act 63 of 2025) | Services likely to be used by minors owe them a duty of care, with high-privacy defaults and limits on profiling | Not yet in force; the Attorney General's rules are still being written; no lawsuit found | Mayer Brown |
| 1 January 2027 | California | Digital Age Assurance Act, AB 1043 | Phone and computer operating systems ask for the user's age at setup and pass an age bracket (under 13, 13 to 15, 16 to 17, 18+) to apps; devices set up earlier must be covered before 1 July 2027 | Not yet in force; no lawsuit found | California Legislature |
| 1 January 2027 | California | Social media warning labels, AB 56 | A Surgeon General warning when a user first opens a platform each day, and again after 3 hours of use, unless the platform has determined the user is over 17 | Challenged in court by NetChoice (filed October 2026); no ruling yet | GovTech |
| 1 January 2027 | California | SB 976 (2024), age-assurance part | Platforms must work out users' ages under the Attorney General's rules before showing minors an addictive feed | Rest of the law in force; parts blocked; appeals pending | Our US table |
| 1 January 2027 | Greece | Under-15 social media law | Minimum age of 15 for social networks | Reported passed by Parliament (Reuters, 23 October 2026); not yet confirmed on an official Greek page | Cyprus Mail (Reuters) |
| 25 January 2027 | New York | SAFE for Kids Act | No algorithmic feeds, and no notifications between midnight and 6 a.m., for under-18s without age checks or a parent's consent | Final rules published; takes effect 25 January 2027 | New York Attorney General |
| Spring 2027 (expected) | United Kingdom | Under-16 social media restrictions | Platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram blocked from offering services to under-16s | Announced; first regulations due before Parliament by the end of 2026 | GOV.UK |
| 6 May 2027 | Utah | App Store Accountability Act (SB 142, amended by HB 498) | App store age checks and parental consent | Delayed from May 2026; not yet in force | Our US table |
| 1 July 2027 | Louisiana | App Store Accountability Act (HB 977, 2026) | App store age checks and parental consent | Delayed from July 2026; not yet in force | Our US table |
| 1 July 2027 (proposed) | Denmark | Draft law on an age limit for children's access to certain digital services | Minimum age of 15 for certain digital services such as social media (the 2025 political agreement allowed parental consent from 13) | Proposed: public consultation closed 5 October 2026; not yet passed | Høringsportalen |
| By 10 December 2027 | Australia | Review of the under-16 minimum age law | The Minister must start an independent review | Ban in force since 10 December 2025 | Our article |
"No lawsuit found" means we searched the court-challenge trackers and news on 2 November 2026 and found none; it does not mean none will be filed.
The United States: 1 January is the big date
Most of the US laws on this page start on New Year's Day. They fall into three kinds:
- Parental consent for social media accounts. Indiana and South Carolina both require a parent's consent before a child under 16 has an account. Similar laws in Arkansas, Ohio, Utah and Virginia were blocked by courts before they could be enforced, while Florida's and Georgia's came back into force in October 2026 after appeals courts lifted injunctions. Expect lawsuits.
- App store age checks. Alabama's law, like those in Texas (in force), Utah (May 2027) and Louisiana (July 2027), makes Apple's and Google's app stores check ages and get a parent's consent, instead of each app. California's AB 1043 takes a different route: the phone's operating system asks for an age once, at setup, and passes an age bracket to apps.
- Design and warning laws. Vermont's design code and New York's SAFE for Kids Act change how services treat children by default. California's AB 56 adds warning labels; a similar Minnesota law is on hold while it is challenged.
New York's SAFE for Kids Act is the one most families will notice: from 25 January 2027, under-18s in New York should stop getting algorithmic "for you" feeds and overnight notifications unless a parent agrees.
Outside the US
- United Kingdom. The government announced on 15 June 2026 that social media would be blocked for under-16s. Its July response says it intends to lay the first regulations "by the end of this year" and expects the restrictions to start in spring 2027. Messaging services such as WhatsApp are not intended to be covered. See our UK under-16 ban explainer.
- Denmark. The political agreement of November 2025 has become a draft law, consulted on until 5 October 2026, with a proposed start of 1 July 2027. It has not been put to a vote. The Copenhagen Post reported on 2 November 2026 that the government is seeking EU approval, without saying whether 1 July 2027 still holds.
- Greece. News agencies reported that Parliament passed an under-15 law on 23 October 2026, to start on 1 January 2027. The official Greek sites refused our requests, so our country tracker still lists it as a bill until we can read the law.
- European Union. The Commission proposed the EU KIDS Act on 17 September 2026 (own accounts from 15, supervised accounts at 13 and 14). The European Parliament and the member states still have to agree it, and no 2027 start date is fixed. The separate Digital Fairness Act, on manipulative design, was listed for the fourth quarter of 2026 and had not been published by 2 November 2026 (European Parliament legislative train).
- Already in force: Australia (under 16, since 10 December 2025), Brazil, Malaysia, and Turkey (under 15, since 1 November 2026). France's under-15 ban was struck down in August 2026.
What parents can do before the dates
None of these laws asks parents to do anything; the duties fall on platforms and app stores. In practice, expect more age checks when your child opens an app or sets up a new phone in 2027. If a new device arrives at Christmas, setting it up with the parent controls on from the start is easier than adding them later: see our guide to setting up an Android phone for a child, the app age requirements chart and the online safety checklist.
Sources
- New York Attorney General (28 July 2026). Final SAFE for Kids Act rules.
- South Carolina Legislature. H.4591.
- WBOI (27 February 2026). Indiana cracks down on kids' social media; ACLU of Indiana, bills that restrict minors' access to social media.
- Loeb & Loeb (February 2026). Alabama becomes the fourth state to enact an App Store Accountability Act; IDTechWire, CCIA sues to block Alabama's app store age verification law.
- GovTech. Tech lobbyists sue California to block social media warning law.
- California Legislature. AB 1043.
- Mayer Brown (September 2026). Vermont's proposed AADC rules.
- GOV.UK (July 2026). Growing up in the online world: government response.
- Høringsportalen (Danish Agency for Digital Government). Consultation on a draft law on an age limit for children's and young people's access to certain digital services.
- Cyprus Mail, via Reuters (23 October 2026). Greece passes social media ban for children under 15.
- European Parliament. Legislative train: Digital Fairness Act.
- Court status of the other US laws: our social media laws by US state table, checked 1 November 2026.