Azerbaijan joins growing list of countries banning children from social media
Azerbaijan's parliament has passed a law prohibiting individuals under 16 from registering on social media platforms. The law will take effect 12 months after its official publication.
Azerbaijan has become the latest country to impose restrictions on children's use of social media. According to local media outlet Oxu.Az, the parliament approved amendments on Tuesday in its third and final reading, modifying the administrative offenses code, the law "On Information, Informatization, and the Protection of Information," and the law "On Protecting Children From Harmful Information."
The new regulations ban children under 16 from creating accounts on social media platforms. Teenagers aged 16 to 18 may register only with the consent of a legal guardian. To verify age, users must provide a bank card (from which a small amount will be charged and later refunded), a mobile phone number, and an email address.
Responsibility for verifying user data falls on platform providers. Oxu.Az notes that providers may also use other technical age-verification methods not specified in the law. The list of platforms subject to the new rules has not yet been finalized.
Foreign providers will be required to open a branch or representative office in Azerbaijan and establish a contact center for communication with government agencies. Platforms that fail to meet all requirements within six months of being added to the list face fines of up to 400,000 Azerbaijani manats (approximately $235,000). For further violations, authorities will gradually restrict traffic to the provider in the country.
Australia was the first country to impose restrictions on children and teenagers using social media, with the ban in effect since December 2025. However, recent studies show that the restrictions have had little effect, and teenagers are still finding ways around them. According to RBC, at least nine countries now have some form of restriction on children's social media use, with another 13 planning or considering similar bans.
The United Kingdom recently decided to ban children from social media, with the law expected to pass by the end of the year and take effect in spring 2027.
