The Ministry of Digital Affairs and the Ministry of National Education want only people who have turned 15 to be able to open an account on TikTok, Facebook or Instagram. Age would be confirmed, among other ways, through a service in the mObywatel app, and the bill has been entered on the Council of Ministers’ list of legislative works.
The draft act on the minimum age for access to online social networking services (list number: UD492) was prepared by the Ministry of Digital Affairs in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education. According to the entry on the Council of Ministers’ legislative work list, its aim is to set a minimum age of access at 15 and to specify methods of verifying it. The planned date for the government to adopt the draft is the first quarter of 2027. At this stage, only assumptions are available, not the full text of the act.
Three ways to confirm age
Platforms would have to verify age in three ways:
- through electronic attestation of attributes in the European Digital Identity Wallet,
- through a service in the mObywatel app, based on a selective disclosure mechanism – the service would only learn that the user has passed the age threshold, without first name, surname or other data,
- through a trusted solution meeting the requirements of the EU eIDAS regulation, listed in a register kept by the minister responsible for informatisation. The list is to include domestic entities and those from the European Union.
The authors of the draft note that the mObywatel service and the list of trusted solutions are meant to apply more broadly than just to social networking services.
Why 15
Currently, the terms of most platforms require users to be at least 13, but verification usually involves simply entering a date of birth. The draft’s authors cite the „Internet of Children” report, which shows that apps permitted from age 13 are also used by children aged 7–12. Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs Dariusz Standerski has stressed that the goal is to limit access below the age threshold while preserving users’ privacy. The draft also provides for changes to school education, including the core curriculum on digital safety.
Experts’ doubts
The assumptions do not make clear whether age would have to be confirmed at every login or only when opening an account. Dr Iga Małobęcka-Szwast, legal adviser and assistant professor, pointed out that a child could open an account using a parent’s or an older friend’s mObywatel. In her view, it would be sensible to limit each person to only one account on a service.
The rules would cover services falling within the definition of online social networking services adopted in the draft – besides TikTok, Facebook and Instagram, these could include, among others, Discord or Twitch. The final scope will depend on the content of the act, which has not yet been published.
