New Zealand PM's social media ban for under-16s faces coalition roadblocks
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has proposed legislation that would ban children under 16 from using social media platforms, describing the move as a response to “harm being done to a generation” of young people. The proposal was announced on Monday (August 24, 2026), but it is unlikely to become law in the current parliamentary term.
In New Zealand, bills must pass three readings in Parliament before becoming law, a process that usually takes months. However, Parliament was dissolved on October 1 ahead of a general election scheduled for November, leaving no time for the required votes. Mr. Luxon said that if his government is re-elected, he intends to pursue the ban.
The bill does not yet have enough support to pass. Two of the three parties in Mr. Luxon’s coalition government — the libertarian ACT and populist NZ First — have said they will vote against it. As a result, the measure would need support from Opposition lawmakers. The largest Opposition party, centre-left Labour, has not yet decided how its members will vote, according to party leader Chris Hipkins.
The Prime Minister cited 2025 research showing that a third of New Zealand teenagers spend at least five hours a day on social media. “Social media is exposing them to harmful content, addictive technology and pressures they are not equipped to deal with and it’s affecting their family life, mental health, sleep, and education,” he said.
Under the proposal, platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook would be required to “take reasonable steps” to confirm that users are older than 16. Methods could include checking existing account information, facial age estimation, digital ID services or formal identification, according to material released by Mr. Luxon’s party. The proposed law would not apply to messaging services like WhatsApp, online gaming platforms such as Roblox, or artificial intelligence applications used for productivity, including ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot.
No penalties would be imposed on parents or children. However, technology companies that fail to meet their obligations could face fines of up to 10% of their global revenue. Platforms regularly used by children would also be required to assess and report on the risks their services pose.
New Zealand’s proposal follows Australia’s world-first ban on social media for under-16s, which took effect in December 2025. Since then, Canada, Brazil and Indonesia have enacted similar bans, and several other countries are studying or developing such laws.
Child safety advocates and some parents have welcomed age restrictions. Privacy groups, however, argue that such rules can be bypassed and that requiring users to provide identification raises significant privacy concerns. In January, social media platforms told an Australian regulator that they had removed access to about 4.7 million accounts identified as belonging to children.
Mr. Luxon’s government also introduced a ban in 2024 on the use of cellphones during the school day for students of all ages.
