Australia Doubles Social Media Fines for Under-16 Ban Violations Effective June 2026

The Australian government will double the maximum penalty for social media companies that fail to comply with the under-16 ban, raising the fine to 99 million AUD. This legislative move aims to tighten enforcement of the social media minimum-age law, which prohibits children under 16 from maintaining accounts on designated platforms.

What Changed

In addition to the increased financial penalties, new legislation will expand the powers of the eSafety Commissioner. The regulator will now have the authority to compel social media platforms and third parties—including age-assurance providers and app-store operators—to produce information and documents required to verify compliance with the law. Furthermore, the maximum penalty for failing to comply with the Commissioner's information-gathering notices has also been doubled.

Who Is Affected

The primary entities affected are designated social media platforms. As of March 2026, the eSafety Commissioner has already launched investigations into Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube. The expanded powers also directly impact third-party service providers, such as age-verification technologies and app stores, which may be compelled to provide data to the regulator.

Compliance and Enforcement

The social media minimum-age law was enacted in late 2024 and took effect in December 2025. Regulatory scrutiny is intensifying; the eSafety Commissioner's first compliance report noted several systemic concerns, including platforms allowing repeated age-verification attempts and relying on self-declared age rather than robust age assurance. Decisions regarding enforcement actions for the currently investigated platforms are expected by mid-2026.

Social media platforms should immediately review their "reasonable steps" and technical safeguards to ensure they are preventing children from circumventing age restrictions through ineffective reporting or verification loops.

Source: Australia doubles social media firms' fine for breaching under-16 ban, expands watchdog's power
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