New Era and Age Verification Mandate for Under 15s on Social Media Platforms
With a regulation published in the Official Gazette, an age limit of 15 and an e-Government-based age verification requirement were introduced for social network providers in Turkey.
In line with the new regulation published in the Official Gazette, social network providers accessible from Turkey will not be able to offer services to children under the age of 15, and this age group's access to the platforms will be blocked.
Official Gazette Decision and Scope
With the new regulation published in the Official Gazette, an age verification requirement has been introduced for all domestic and foreign-sourced social network providers accessible from Turkey. The regulation blocks children who have not reached the age of 15 from accessing social media platforms.
Enforcement and Verification Dates
The provisions of the regulation will enter into force on November 1, 2026. For existing accounts opened before this date and not verified with an age verification token, it has been made mandatory to perform age verification at least once by March 31, 2027.
Age Verification via e-Government
Age verification will be carried out through a token to be generated via the e-Government Gateway that indicates only the user's age group. Account opening requests of users determined to be under 15 as a result of the verification will be rejected.
Special Measures for the 15-17 Age Group
Segregated services will be offered for users who have reached the age of 15 but not 18. Within this scope, accounts will be private, the public account option cannot be offered, and live-streaming features will be restricted.
Parental Control Tools and Security
Platforms will provide necessary control tools for monitoring and limiting usage time, spending limits, and subjecting purchasing transactions to parental approval. In addition, measures to prevent screenshots will be taken.
Appeal Mechanism and Rights
Free appeal mechanisms featuring a Turkish language option and subject to human review will be established for closed accounts on behalf of users or their legal representatives.