Social media ban for under 16s sees growing support in the Netherlands
By Simone Jacobs
The number of people who support a social media ban for children under the age of 16 has grown, according to a survey by Newcom. Nearly two-thirds of residents now support a social media age limit.
Growing number of Dutch residents support social media ban
Every year, research agency Newcom conducts a social media survey in the Netherlands. This year, 63 percent of participants support a social media ban for young people under the age of 16 - up 6 percent since last year.
Every age group saw growing support, but the largest increase was seen among people from Gen Z, between the ages of 16 and 28. 60 percent of Gen Z’ers believe there should be a social media age limit, a significant rise from 44 percent last year.
"A huge shift in one year, it breaks the cliché that young people don't want rules," Newcom director Neil van der Veer told NOS. "This is the generation that has experience with it; they may see the dangers even more clearly."
Dutch children should be protected from social media
The main reason respondents want a social media ban is that they believe children are not yet able to handle the harmful effects of social media, while an age limit would protect against inappropriate content and reduce the pressure to be online. Some negative effects caused by social media include sleep problems, panic attacks, depression, poor concentration and negative self-image.
Last year, the government provided official guidelines setting the minimum age limit for social media at 15 years old. However, many people are in favour of making it mandatory, like Australia recently did.
At the end of 2025, Australia put a social media ban in place for young people under the age of 16, barring children from having social media accounts and fining companies that fail to remove children’s accounts up to 28 million euros. Several European countries and even the European Commission are considering a similar policy.
Social media affects mental health of users
According to Newcom, people are becoming more concerned about the effect that social media is having on their happiness. 14,6 million people in the Netherlands are active on social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Instagram and TikTok, 2,6 million of whom say they feel less happy because of it - up from 2,4 million a year before.
7,2 million people also feel that spending time on their mobile phones scrolling, liking and sharing social media posts negatively affects their mental health. This figure has increased from 6,9 million users a year ago.
Based on the survey, the more time someone spends on social media, the more likely they are to feel the negative effects. It seems many people have become aware of this as 5,5 million users are now attempting to reduce their social media time.
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Editor for the Netherlands at IamExpat Media. Simone studied Genetics and Zoology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa before moving to the Netherlands, where she has been working as a writer and editor since 2022. One thing she loves more than creating content is consuming it, mainly by reading books by the dozen. Other than being a book dragon, she is also a nature lover and enjoys hiking and animal training. Read more