The UAE Cabinet has approved a resolution barring children under 15 from holding personal social media accounts.
The UAE has set 15 as the minimum age for social media use. The Cabinet, chaired by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, issued the resolution on June 18, marking one of the region’s most significant moves to regulate children’s lives online.
Under the rules, children below 15 are prohibited from creating, using, or operating personal accounts on social media platforms. They also cannot access the full range of features these platforms offer, including publishing, commenting, sharing, and joining public groups or open channels. State news agency WAM, as reported by Emirates 24/7, said the decision responds to the growing risks children face online, including exposure to inappropriate content.
The ban is broad in scope. It applies to all platforms whose services are available in the UAE or directed at users in the country, whether free or paid. That covers any platform that lets users create accounts or profiles, interact socially, share content, or that relies on algorithms to rank and recommend content. Major apps such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and YouTube fall within these limits.
Children between 15 and 16 are not fully banned. They may use platforms under enhanced protections. Gulf News reported that this group must be given regulated and safe access, with age-appropriate content classification, restricted interaction with unknown users, regulated usage time, and parental control tools.
UAE Social Media Ban Requires Strict Age Verification
The resolution places the burden of enforcement on the platforms. Companies must introduce accurate and reliable age verification systems, and self-declaration of age will not be accepted as a valid method. That marks a sharp shift from the common practice of simply asking users to enter a birth date, a method easily bypassed.
Time Out Dubai reported that parental consent does not create an exemption. Even children whose parents allow them to set up accounts remain subject to the prohibitions and restrictions in the resolution. Platforms must monitor accounts that breach the rules and act immediately to suspend or disable them, while also preventing users from circumventing their systems.
The rules extend to data and advertising. The National reported that platforms are barred from targeting children with personalized advertising based on tracking or behavioral profiling, and from exploiting their personal data for commercial purposes that depend on monitoring their activity. Companies must also provide parental control tools and awareness materials, carry out periodic child digital safety risk assessments, and submit regular reports to the authorities.
Platforms will not have to comply overnight. The resolution allows a transitional period of up to 12 months for companies to put the new standards in place, working with the relevant authorities to ensure technical and regulatory readiness.
Why the UAE Social Media Ban Matters for Families
The move sits within a wider legal framework. The resolution connects to the UAE’s Child Rights Law, its cybercrime legislation, personal data protection rules, media regulation, and child digital safety measures. Officials framed it as an effort to let children benefit from technology while keeping them protected in the digital space.
The concerns behind the law are well documented. Gulf Insider noted that a 2024 survey found children in the UAE spend around three hours a day on social platforms. Experts cited links between prolonged use and anxiety, attention difficulties, academic struggles, and in some cases speech delays in younger children.
The UAE is far from alone. The decision places it among a growing list of governments tightening rules on children’s access to social media. Australia became the first country to pass such a ban, with legislation taking effect in December 2025 and setting 16 as the minimum age for major platforms. Malaysia enforced its own under-16 ban in June 2026, requiring platforms to run age verification or face heavy fines. In the UK, the government announced in mid-June a plan to bar children under 16 from major platforms, while exempting messaging apps.
The coming year will test how the policy works in practice. With a 12-month window for platforms to adapt and verification methods still taking shape, the real measure of the ban will be how it holds up once the compliance period ends.
Stay tuned for more updates!
