New Zealand under-16 social media ban: The bill moved in parliament has some teeth. But will it pass?

New Zealand's coalition government took its most concrete step yet to curb under-16s' use of social media with the introduction of the Online Safety (Minimum Age and Child Safety Risk Assessment) Bill. Introduced in Parliament on Monday (Aug 24), the bill requires high-risk platforms such as Meta-owned Instagram and Facebook, as well as TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, X and others, to take reasonable steps to prevent under-16s from holding accounts. Particularly targeted are endless-scroll features, algorithmic manipulation and feedback loops, as well as social AI companions.

A stringent bill if passed, with strong penalties

The bill mandates facial age estimation, digital ID and formal identification for age verification, while self-declaration alone is not enough. Platforms must conduct annual child-safety risk assessments covering illegal and harmful content, advertising, profiling and design features.

They are also expected to report to a new regulator within the Department of Internal Affairs.

The penalties could be as high as 10 per cent of a platform's global annual revenue.

The tools for compliance will range from warnings and audits to geo-blocking and criminal sanctions for providing false information.

No penalties will be imposed on children or their parents.

Messaging apps, VPNs are excluded

Excluded from the law's purview are messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Discord, multiplayer games such as Roblox, online music streaming services, educational and health platforms, as well as productivity AI such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot. VPNs are also unregulated.

Coalition partners are not in full alignment with the bill. Will it pass?

Government coalition partners ACT and New Zealand First have opposed the bill under the "agree to disagree" provision. The ruling National Party needs Labour's support for it to pass. The first reading of the bill is not expected before Parliament rises ahead of the November election. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has acknowledged that the legislation will not progress before the election, leaving its future uncertain.

How tough is the under-16 bill in NZ compared to Australia?

The New Zealand bill is the latest in a series of similar laws and regulations, particularly following Australia's world-first legislation. The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act, which came into force on 10 December 2025 in Australia, is now facing questions over implementation. The law imposed an under-16 account restriction on similar social media platforms. Penalties can reach A$49.5 million for companies.

The Australian law explicitly prevents platforms from requiring government-issued identification or Digital ID as the only option for age assurance. Users must have a reasonable alternative.

According to the Australian government, millions of under-16 accounts have been removed or restricted since the rules came into effect. However, Australia's eSafety regulator has said significant numbers of under-16s remain on social media.

New Zealand's bill mirrors Australia's platform list and risk-assessment approach. The main differences are the addition of social AI companions and revenue-percentage-based penalties instead of Australia's fixed maximum fines.

Other countries following suit on teen social media use bans

The UK is considering an Australia-style under-16 ban, which could be effective from early 2027. The regulations could also include restrictions on teen livestreaming and stranger contact for under-18s.

France passed an under-15 social media ban in July, but the measure was struck down by the Constitutional Council in August, that cited concerns about disproportionate limits on free expression and inadequate safeguards. A revised bill is likely to come up in 2027.

Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey and Spain are also pushing similar legislation, while Indian authorities are also looking into the issue of teen social media use and addiction.