In an announcement made on TikTok of all places, Greece’s prime minister cited anxiety, sleep deprivation, and addictive design as reasons for a ban set to take effect in early 2027.
Starting in early 2027, Greece will prohibit children under the age of 15 from accessing all social media platforms. The enforcement details are still being finalised by policymakers, but the law is expected to require platforms to verify user ages and parents to use a state-backed app to restrict access on children’s devices.
Greece is not alone in taking this step. Indonesia, Austria, and Australia have all introduced similar age-based social media bans over the past year, making Greece part of a growing wave of countries taking legislative action to protect children online.
The announcement — made on TikTok
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced the ban in a video posted to TikTok — a platform that would itself fall under the new restrictions. Without naming specific apps, he pointed to anxiety, sleep problems, and the addictive design baked into social media platforms as the driving forces behind the decision. He also flagged the particular harm of children comparing themselves to others online and internalising negative comments.
“Greece will be among the first countries to take such an initiative. I am certain, however, that it will not be the last. Our goal is to push the European Union in this direction as well.”
— Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
How the ban would actually work
The enforcement side of things involves both platforms and parents. Social media companies would be legally required to verify the ages of their users — and those that fail to comply face fines under the EU’s Digital Services Act, according to Greece’s digital governance minister, Dimitris Papastergiou. On the family side, parents would need to download a state-backed app called Kids Wallet, which can be paired to a child’s device to block access to restricted platforms. The finer details of exactly how all this gets enforced are still being worked out.
This isn’t Greece’s first move in this space. The country already banned mobile phones in schools back in 2024, signalling a consistent direction of travel on children’s digital wellbeing.
Public support is strong — even if the kids won’t be happy
Mitsotakis openly acknowledged that the ban would not go down well with Greece’s younger population. But among adults, the plans enjoy wide backing — an opinion poll by ALCO published in February found significant support for the restrictions. The move puts Greece in company with Indonesia, Austria, and Australia, all of which have introduced similar bans in the past year. The UK is also exploring tighter social media restrictions for under-16s, suggesting a broader global momentum is building around the issue.
What’s next: Greece is pushing the European Union to adopt a similar framework across member states. With the EU’s Digital Services Act already providing a ready-made enforcement mechanism, Brussels could prove a receptive audience — especially as more countries move in the same direction.
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