By Soniya:
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has approved a landmark resolution establishing 15 years as the minimum age for creating and operating personal social media accounts. The new regulation, approved by the UAE Cabinet on June 18, 2026, aims to enhance child safety, protect personal data, and promote responsible digital engagement.
Under the new rules, children below the age of 15 will not be permitted to open or use personal accounts on major social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Users aged 15 and 16 will be allowed access with additional safeguards, including age-appropriate content controls, parental supervision tools, restricted interaction with unknown users, and regulated screen time measures.
The resolution also requires social media companies to implement robust age-verification systems using digital identity checks and artificial intelligence-based technologies. Simple self-declaration of age will no longer be accepted, and platforms must disable accounts belonging to users under the minimum age threshold.
To further protect children, the UAE has prohibited the commercial use of minors’ personal data based on online activity tracking. Notably, parental consent cannot be used to bypass the restrictions outlined in the regulation.
The UAE has become the first Arab nation to introduce a nationwide minimum age requirement for social media access. Social media companies have been given up to 12 months to comply with the new standards, with full implementation expected by June 2027.
