Message 001
Communication from the Commission - TRIS/(2026) 2390
Directive (EU) 2015/1535
Notification: 2026/0458/BE
Notification of a draft text from a Member State
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MSG: 20262390.EN
1. MSG 001 IND 2026 0458 BE EN 28-08-2026 BE NOTIF
2. Belgium
3A. FOD Economie, KMO, Middenstand en Energie
Algemene Directie Kwaliteit en Veiligheid - Dienst Verbindingsbureau - BELNotif
NG III – 2de verdieping
Koning Albert II-laan, 16
B - 1000 Brussel
be.belnotif@economie.fgov.be
3B. Vlaamse Gemeenschap
Departement Cultuur, Jeugd en Media
Team Media en Film
4. 2026/0458/BE - SERV30 - Media
5. Draft decree amending the decree of 27 March 2009 on radio broadcasting and television in relation to the protection of minors in brokering services that may affect their physical, mental or moral development
6. This draft decree concerns the protection of minors and introduces a decree age standard of 13 years for access to brokering services that may affect the physical, mental or moral development of minors
7.
8. This draft decree introduces a restriction on access for minors under the age of 13 to certain brokering services that may be detrimental to their physical, mental or moral development.
The Flemish government is establishing an exhaustive list of brokering services to which the age limit applies. The regulation is risk-based. The composition and updating of the list will take into account the nature and specific characteristics of the service, the intended or actual use, the scope and user base, the concrete risks for minors and the protection measures taken by the provider. This is in line with the criteria set out in the European Commission’s guidelines on Article 28 of the Digital Services Act.
A finding by the competent supervisory authority under the Digital Services Act that a service does not comply with Article 28(1) may give rise to including that service on the list. In addition, for the assessment of the risks, the Flemish government may take into account, among other things, court rulings, scientific studies and reasoned opinions from expert organisations. The listing procedure does not constitute a separate enforcement procedure for the Digital Services Act.
The draft sets out the applicable age threshold, but does not seek to introduce a separate Flemish system of obligations regarding age checks or verification in addition to the Digital Services Act. The manner in which providers verify the age of users remains subject to the harmonised European framework, in particular Article 28 of the Digital Services Act and the European Commission’s guidelines based on it. These guidelines set out requirements relating to, among other things, effectiveness, proportionality, privacy and data minimisation, and expressly provide for age verification where national rules establish a minimum age for certain categories of online social media services.
The supervision of compliance with the Digital Services Act will continue to be organised entirely in accordance with Chapter IV of that act. Article 28 us governed by the rules on jurisdiction set out in Article 56. The European Commission retains exclusive authority in relation to the additional obligations set out in Articles 34 and 35 concerning very large online platforms and very large online search engines.
The draft also contains the necessary provisions on the processing and security of personal data in the context of the drawing up of the list when applying Regulation (EU) 2016/679.
9. The measure aims to better protect children under the age of 13 from the risks associated with certain online brokering services. In 2025, the Belgian Superior Health Council investigated the impact of screen and social media use on the basis of a multidisciplinary review of the literature. The Council emphasises that the effects are generally mild to moderate and highly context-dependent, and that digital media can also offer benefits. At the same time, it identifies specific risks, including sleep disruption, problematic use, cyberbullying, grooming and exposure to harmful content, to which young children are particularly vulnerable.
The decision to set the age at 13 is in line with this expert advice. The majority of the experts involved who support an age restriction advocate a minimum age of 13 for non-chat-based platforms, followed by gradual access with parental guidance, media literacy and supervision.
The need for this measure is partly driven by the fact that young children do have access to social media. Although most platforms stipulate a minimum age of 13 in their terms and conditions, this age limit appears to have a limited effect in reality. Medianest figures for 2025 show that, according to 84% of parents, their child created his or her first own social media account before 13 years of age. with the average age being 10 years and 3 months.
Existing European regulations already contain important obligations to protect minors. Article 28 of the DSA requires online platforms accessible to minors to take appropriate and proportionate protective measures, but does not itself a uniform minimum age for access. Similarly, the Belgian age limit of 13 under Article 8 of the GDPR does not constitute a general age limit for access, but relates to a minor’s ability to give consent independently to the processing of personal data. The draft therefore establishes a clear statutory age limit.
A general ban on social media or a higher age limit of 15 or 16 years was deliberately not chosen. The access restriction applies only to children under 13 years of age and only to services that are placed on an exhaustive list based on their specific risks. A service that provides a sufficiently secure online environment through appropriate protection measures will not be included or may be removed from the list. This will avoid services with different risk profiles being treated equally.
The measure is also part of a broader approach involving media literacy, parental guidance, awareness raising and enforcement. The maximum harmonisation by the DSA is also taken into account. Flanders sets the age standard, but does not create a separate national system of technical or due diligence obligations in terms of age verification. The manner in which providers apply age verification rules remains governed by Article 28 of the DSA and the European Commission’s guidelines. As a result, additional national technical requirements are avoided and the impact on cross-border service traffic is limited.
The measure therefore seeks to strike a balance between safeguarding the health, safety and development of young children, their right to digital participation, the protection of personal data and the free movement of services within the internal market.
9a. The measure aims to protect the health, safety and physical, mental and moral development of minors from risks posed by certain online brokering services. These include exposure to harmful or age-inappropriate content, cyberbullying, grooming, problematic or addictive use, and design mechanisms that encourage long-term use.
The measure is based on scientific research and expert advice. In 2025, the Belgian Superior Health Council reviewed the available scientific evidence on the basis of a multidisciplinary literature review, partly in accordance with the GRADE methodology. The Council concluded that the effects of screen and social media use are generally mild to moderate and highly context-dependent. The impact is partly determined by the content, the design of the platform, the context of use and individual characteristics. At the same time, concrete risks have been identified, including cyberbullying, grooming, harmful content, sleep disturbance and problematic use, by which young children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable.
These findings support a targeted measure rather than a general one. The draft does not impose any access restriction on all digital or brokering services. Only services which, on the basis of their nature, characteristics, use, scope and concrete risks, are identified as likely to impair the development of minors may be included in an exhaustive list. The existing protective measures of the service will also be taken into account. A service that provides a sufficiently secure online environment will not be included or may be removed from the list.
The choice of 13 years is also supported by the expert advice. More specifically, the majority of the experts involved support an age limit of 13 for non-chat-based platforms, followed by a supervised and progressive introduction.
Finally, the measure is part of a broader approach involving media literacy, parental guidance, enforcement and digital resilience. This ensures that the objective is pursued in a coherent and systematic manner (see the ‘Safe Online’ action plan).
9b. The measure may affect the cross-border provision of online services by requiring providers of services to take into account an age limit of 13 years for the users concerned. However, the restriction does not prevent the services from being offered or used across borders by persons aged 13 and over. Furthermore, it applies exclusively to a group of services selected on a risk-based basis.
Existing legislation already provides significant protection, but does not set a general minimum age of 13 for access to such services. Article 28 of the Digital Services Act requires online platforms accessible to minors to implement appropriate and proportionate protective measures. By contrast, the Belgian age of 13, as set out in Article 8 of the GDPR, relates to the ability to give consent independently to the processing of personal data and does not constitute a general age limit for access. The age of 13 specified in the terms and conditions of many platforms is primarily a contractual choice.
Moreover, practice shows that such contractual obligations are limited in their effectiveness. Medianest figures for 2025 show that, according to 84% of parents, their child created his or her first own social media account before 13 years of age. with the average age being 10 years and 3 months. The Superior Health Council also notes that many children use these platforms well before the age of 13 and that the existing age verification measures are inadequate.
Less restrictive measures have been examined and remain part of the policy, including media literacy, sensitisation, parental guidance and measures aimed at safer platform design. The Superior Health Council stresses that an age restriction should not be considered an isolated measure and advocates a combination of prevention, education, support and platform responsibility. At the same time, experts who support an age limit argue that parental guidance and media education alone do not fully compensate for the developmental vulnerability associated with early exposure.
In order to minimise the restriction in the internal market, a decision was taken not to impose a general restriction on access to social media, nor to raise the age limit to 15 or 16. The measure applies only to children under the age of 13 and exclusively to services for which the specific risks justify a restriction on access. This involves a more targeted measure than a uniform restriction for an entire category of online services.
9c. The drafting of the measure took into account both the importance of the protection of minors and the potential impact on digital participation and cross-border movement of services.
The scientific evidence does not, however, justify a general negative assessment of social media. The Superior Health Council expressly emphasises that the effects are generally mild to moderate and context-dependent, and that digital media can also offer benefits, including social connection, learning, creativity and access to information. The Council therefore warns against a one-size-fits-all approach and points out that risks vary depending on the platform, content, context and parental support.
It is precisely for this reason that the designed measure is limited. There is no general ban on social media or internet use. The access restriction applies exclusively to children under the age of 13 and to services that are included on an exhaustive list following a specific risk assessment. If a service provides sufficient protection measures, inclusion on the list is not appropriate or the service may be removed from it.
The administrative burden on providers regarding age verification will also be reduced. The draft sets the applicable age limit, but does not establish a separate Flemish system of obligations regarding age checks or verification. This takes into account the principle of maximum harmonisation on which the Digital Services Act is based: for matters harmonised by the DSA, no additional national obligations are imposed on providers.
The manner in which service providers verify the age of users therefore remains governed by the European framework, in particular Article 28 of the DSA and the European Commission’s guidelines. The draft does not prescribe any specific technical method and does not require the use of an identity document, eID, national registration number or any other specific means of identification. The European guidelines require age verification methods to be, among other things, accurate, reliable, robust, non-intrusive and non-discriminatory.
The national measure is therefore limited to adopting the age standard and leaves the technical and due diligence obligations for its implementation to the harmonised European framework. This prevents additional national technical requirements and therefore also reduces the potential barrier to the cross-border provision of services.
In the light of these restrictions, the impact on the provision of services is not considered to be excessive in relation to the protective objective pursued. The potential harm of inaction lies in the fact that young children would continue to have access to services to which they are particularly vulnerable from a developmental perspective. By contrast, the potential market barrier is limited by the low age threshold, the selective list approach, the dynamic assessment and alignment with existing European legislation.
10. Numbers or titles of the basic texts:
11. No
12.
13. No
14. No
15. No
16.
TBT aspects: No
SPS aspects: No
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European Commission
Contact point Directive (EU) 2015/1535
email: grow-dir2015-1535-central@ec.europa.eu
