The UAE Cabinet has issued a new resolution setting 15 as the minimum age for social media use, introducing one of the region’s clearest regulatory frameworks yet for children’s access to online platforms.
The resolution was approved under the chairmanship of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. It prohibits children under 15 from creating, using or operating personal accounts on social media platforms, while placing new obligations on companies to verify users’ ages and reduce risks linked to online interaction, content exposure and data use.
The measure comes as governments around the world are tightening rules around children’s online activity, particularly on platforms built around algorithmic feeds, public interaction and behavioral advertising. In the UAE, the new framework is being positioned not simply as an age ban, but as part of a wider child digital safety policy that brings together platform accountability, parental tools and regulatory oversight.
The Scope of the New Resolution
Under the Cabinet resolution, children below 15 will not be allowed to access the full features of social media platforms. That includes creating profiles, publishing posts, commenting, sharing content, joining public groups, participating in open channels or using large-scale interactive spaces.
The scope is broad. The rule applies to platforms that allow users to create accounts or profiles, interact socially, publish or share content, or use algorithmic systems to display, rank or recommend material. It covers services available inside the UAE as well as platforms directed at users in the country, whether they are free or paid.
Teenagers aged 15 and 16 will still be permitted to use social media, but only under enhanced safeguards. These protections include age-appropriate content controls, restrictions on high-risk features such as contact with unknown users, limits on usage time and duration, and parental control tools.
One notable feature of the resolution is that parental consent does not override the restrictions. In other words, caregivers cannot simply approve access for a child below the permitted age if the resolution prohibits it. Caregivers will, however, be able to configure settings for 15- and 16-year-old users through parental control tools, provided those settings remain within the rules.
Stronger Age Checks for Social Media Access
Age verification is one of the most important parts of the new framework. The resolution requires platforms to use effective and reliable mechanisms to check users’ ages, including digital identity verification, artificial intelligence-supported technologies such as biometric tools, or other methods approved by the Child Digital Safety Council.
Self-declared age will not be accepted as a valid method. That provision directly addresses one of the weaknesses of current online age systems, where children can often bypass restrictions by entering a different date of birth during account registration.
The UAE’s approach also places privacy conditions around verification. Platforms must minimize data collection, secure processing and avoid keeping information longer than necessary. Verification systems will also need to be reviewed and audited regularly, with clear information provided to users about how they operate.
This balance between age assurance and privacy will likely become one of the most closely watched parts of implementation. Stronger age checks may help enforce the rule, but they also require careful handling of sensitive personal data, especially when children and teenagers are involved.
Platforms Face New Compliance Duties
Social media companies operating in or targeting the UAE will have up to 12 months to comply with the resolution. During that transition period, platforms are expected to coordinate with competent authorities and prepare the technical and administrative systems needed to meet the new requirements.
The obligations go beyond age gates. Platforms must monitor accounts created by children under 15 in violation of the rules and take immediate action to suspend or disable them. They must also prevent attempts to circumvent age-verification systems.
The resolution also restricts the commercial use of children’s data. Platforms must not target children with personalized advertising based on tracking or behavioral profiling, and they must not exploit or process children’s personal data for commercial purposes that depend on monitoring their digital activity.
The rules also require companies to provide parental control tools and awareness materials for children and caregivers. Platforms will need to conduct periodic child digital safety risk assessments and submit regular reports to the relevant authorities.
Parents Get a Clearer Role
The resolution assigns responsibilities not only to companies, but also to caregivers. Parents and guardians are expected to avoid enabling children to use platforms in ways that violate the rules, refrain from helping them bypass age verification, supervise permitted digital activity and promote awareness of online risks.
That family-facing element is important because children’s social media use rarely happens in isolation. A child’s online habits are shaped by school life, friendships, family rules, entertainment routines and access to devices at home. By setting clearer expectations for caregivers, the UAE is trying to make digital safety a shared responsibility rather than leaving enforcement entirely to technology companies.
The policy also reflects a shift in how governments are approaching youth internet use. Earlier digital safety debates often focused on removing harmful content after it appeared. The newer regulatory model is more preventive, targeting platform design, account access, advertising practices, data protection and default safety settings before harm occurs.
Enforcement and Oversight
Oversight will be handled by the National Media Authority and the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, each within its own jurisdiction. The authorities will be able to take measures in cases of non-compliance, including warnings, partial or full blocking of platforms, and applicable administrative penalties.
The Child Digital Safety Council will also play a central role. It will assess risks linked to children’s access to social media platforms and propose measures to address them in coordination with federal and local authorities.
The new resolution sits within the UAE’s broader child digital safety framework. The country’s official legislation platform lists Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2025 on Child Digital Safety as active, with an effective date of January 1, 2026. The law aims to protect children from digital risks and harmful content, while creating a structure for safer and age-appropriate digital participation.
Part of a Broader Global Shift
The UAE’s decision places children’s social media access within a broader policy debate over online safety, age verification and platform accountability. While the resolution is national in scope, it reflects growing pressure on governments and technology companies to address how younger users interact with social platforms, algorithmic feeds and online content.
The policy debate is unlikely to end with age thresholds. Governments still face difficult questions around enforcement, privacy, platform design and children’s rights to access information and communicate online. Technology companies, meanwhile, will need to adapt systems that were built for global scale to meet country-specific rules.
The UAE’s resolution gives platforms a year to prepare as children’s social media access moves into a more regulated environment. Companies will now have to demonstrate that they can verify users’ ages, reduce exposure to high-risk features and protect privacy without creating new risks in the process.
The resolution marks a significant change for families, platforms and regulators in the UAE. Children under 15 will face a formal restriction on social media accounts, while older teenagers will be placed under a more controlled access model.
The move also signals that online child protection is becoming a core part of digital governance in the region. Social platforms are now deeply embedded in daily life, and regulators are shifting from voluntary safety settings toward binding obligations. The UAE’s framework gives social media companies 12 months to show they can meet those requirements.
