New law requires tech platforms to enforce strict age verification measures or face regulatory penalties and possible shutdown.
The UAE has banned children under 15 from using social media; however, legal experts say it is more than just a restriction—it represents a shift in responsibility for children’s online safety onto tech platforms.
The new law gives platforms 12 months to identify, disable, and remove underage accounts, moving the UAE away from relying solely on parental supervision toward enforcing platform accountability backed by real penalties.
Legal experts in the UAE say the resolution marks a turning point in how the law interprets a child’s right to privacy, establishing that it is a right that cannot be waived or transferred by either tech companies or parents.
“The headlines frame this as a ban, but legally the real shift is in accountability,” said lawyer Byron James. He noted that the child’s right to privacy already exists under Wadeema’s Law, but what has changed is that responsibility for protecting it now falls directly on platforms, backed by enforceable penalties.
Parental consent cannot override the law
The new regulation prohibits children under 15 from creating accounts, posting content, commenting, or using full interactive features on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and X. For users aged 15 and 16, platforms must apply additional safeguards, including restricted interaction features and screen-time controls.
Importantly, the law explicitly states that parental consent cannot override these restrictions.
“The most striking line in the whole resolution is that parental consent won’t override it,” Byron James said. “The law treats a child’s privacy as something neither platforms nor parents can simply waive. It’s a shift in who gets to speak for the child.”
He added that the principle extends beyond public influencers to everyday family life, where posting children online may also be restricted if it risks their privacy or welfare.
More identity data to enforce the ban
Enforcing the rules will require stronger age verification systems, moving beyond self-declaration to methods such as government digital ID checks, biometric verification, or AI-based age estimation.
However, this also introduces a challenge: protecting children may require collecting more personal data. As Byron James explained, “To keep children off these platforms, you have to verify everyone’s age, which means collecting more identity data, not less. A child-protection law arrives with a data-protection problem built in.”
Despite these challenges, he noted that the regulation has strong enforcement powers, allowing authorities to block or shut down non-compliant platforms within 12 months, regardless of where the company is based.
Social media ban prioritised in the best interest of children
For many within the UAE’s legal and parenting community, the decision has been widely welcomed. The country is the first in the Arab region to introduce such a comprehensive restriction on underage social media use.
Mohammed Saleh Al Maisari, Director General of Al-Azm Legal Consultancy, said the move reflects a strong understanding of the negative impact social media platforms can have on young people.
“We rejoiced at hearing the Cabinet’s decision,” he said in a video statement. “As parents, this decision warms our hearts because it is in the best interest of the child. It protects their innocence and allows them to experience a normal childhood, away from the influence of social media on their behaviour, habits, traditions, religion, and values.”
He added that the government did not take the decision lightly, but only after carefully studying the harmful effects of such platforms on children.
“We thank the Cabinet, and we hope for more decisions that all serve the best interests of the child,” he said.
