Minors’ Access To Social Media: From Constitutional Invalidation In France To The KIDS Act

The Council relied on two grounds: the general prohibition amounted to a disproportionate infringement of freedom of expression and communication, and the text failed to provide sufficient safeguards for the right to privacy. The invalidation sets aside the compliance timetable initially announced, but it leaves every applicable European obligation untouched, in particular Article 28 of the DSA and Article 8 of the GDPR.

Less than a month later, on September 17, 2026, the European Commission adopted its proposal for a regulation known as the EU KIDS Act, which prohibits social media platforms from granting access to children under thirteen, sets fifteen as the harmonized minimum age for opening an autonomous account, and reverses the burden of proof by requiring providers to show that their services are age-appropriate and safe by design. Structured around four pillars, the proposal is, as a regulation, intended to apply directly in all member states and to take precedence over any diverging national legislation. The new French bill, notified to the Commission on September 14, 2026, will therefore have to be reconciled with that emerging European framework.

For online platforms, the primary issue would be to determine whether their services present the features that trigger the delay in account creation until the age of fifteen and the safety-by-design obligations, and to anticipate the age assurance requirements: for account creation on the services concerned, the proposal requires providers to rely exclusively on a certified EU age verification solution.

This article examines the grounds for the invalidation and the provisions of the proposed KIDS Act in order to assess their potential implications for the businesses concerned.