French lawmakers were expected to approve a new law on July 21, 2026, that bans children under 15 from using social media. The newspaper Le Monde reported that this would be the first ban of its kind in the European Union. Both houses of France's parliament had already approved versions of the bill after months of debate. A meeting on July 20 settled the differences between the two versions, finalizing a law first introduced on November 18, 2025.

The lower house of parliament, called the National Assembly, first approved the ban on January 26, 2026. The law says that social media platforms must not let anyone under 15 use their services. This means platforms have to block new users under 15 and also shut down accounts that already belong to children under 15. The bill also includes extra measures aimed at prevention.

The upper house, called the Senate, worked on its own version starting March 25, 2026. The Senate's report noted that some social networks could still be available to 15-year-olds under certain conditions. France's Conseil d'État, a top legal advisory body, gave its opinion on January 12, 2026, supporting the goal of protecting minors through the ban. The Conseil d'État also suggested creating a blacklist of social networks that would be banned for under-15s. On July 8, 2026, the Senate announced that the European Commission, which oversees EU rules, had approved this blacklist idea. The government planned to publish the list of banned networks by official order.

The bill also requires that ads promoting social media carry a warning calling them "dangerous products for" minors. This is France's second try at passing a law like this. On top of that, France plans to ban mobile phones in high schools starting September 2026.

The broader context here is that countries in the European Union have been trying out different ways to hold tech companies responsible and to set age limits on online platforms. The European Commission's approval of the blacklist means France's plan passed an early check to make sure it doesn't violate EU trade rules.

For the companies that run social media platforms, how the law is enforced matters as much as the age limit itself. Having to close existing accounts, not just stop new ones, means platforms must actively figure out who their underage users are and remove them. That raises questions about how to verify someone's age, how to handle personal data under privacy rules, and whether big platforms can realistically comply. The blacklist adds another risk: being on a government-published list could damage a platform's reputation and its ability to operate in France.

Because France is the first EU country to do this, other member states will be watching to see how the law holds up in court and how hard it is to put into practice. The advertising warnings that compare social media to "dangerous products" also frame the issue as a public health concern, which could influence how other European countries write their own rules in the future.