In a bold move to protect children’s mental health and reclaim their childhoods from the grip of digital platforms, the Danish government is pushing to ban children under the age of 15 from using major social media networks. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced the proposal during her opening address to the Folketing, declaring, “Mobile phones and social media are stealing our children’s childhood.”
While the Prime Minister did not specify which platforms would be affected or detail the enforcement mechanism, she emphasized that parents would retain the option to grant permission for their 13- and 14-year-olds to access these services—a nuance aimed at balancing protection with parental autonomy.
The initiative responds to alarming data from the children’s advocacy organization Børns Vilkår, which reports that 94% of Danish seventh graders have created social media profiles before turning 13—despite most platforms officially requiring users to be at least 13 under their terms of service. This widespread circumvention of existing rules underscores the urgency behind Copenhagen’s push for stricter national regulation.
The policy shift is made possible by new European Commission guidelines issued in July, which empower EU member states to establish their own age restrictions for social media use. Seizing this opportunity, Digitalization Minister Caroline Stage (Moderaterne) hailed the development as a “new breakthrough” and has been a vocal proponent of setting Denmark’s age limit at 15.
“We’ve been too naive,” Stage said in a recent press release. “We’ve left children’s digital lives in the hands of platforms that never prioritized their well-being. It’s time to move from digital captivity to community.”
Despite the strong rhetoric from both the Prime Minister and the Digitalisation Minister, the proposed legislation is notably absent from the government’s official legislative program for the current parliamentary year—raising questions about its timeline. If the bill is delayed until the next parliamentary session, it risks colliding with Denmark’s next general election, which must be held by November 1, 2026.
This is not the first time Frederiksen has championed raising the social media age limit. In a joint op-ed with MEP Christel Schaldemose published in Politiken ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections, the Prime Minister advocated precisely for lifting the threshold from 13 to 15 years.
As Denmark navigates the complex intersection of digital rights, child protection, and parental responsibility, the proposed ban has ignited a nationwide conversation about the role of technology in young lives—and whether legislation can effectively safeguard childhood in the digital age.