Turkey has prohibited social media platforms from providing services to children under the age of 15, according to a regulation published in the official gazette.

Social media companies will be required to verify users' ages through age verification tokens via Turkey's e-government system when accounts are created.

Under the new rules, platforms must block account applications once it is confirmed that a user is under 15.

The regulation takes effect on November 1, following a bill passed by Turkey's parliament in April.

Age verification for existing accounts is expected to be completed by March 31, 2027, and all accounts found to belong to users under 15 will be shut down.

According to the new rules, accounts belonging to users aged 15 to 17 will be set to private by default, with content filtering enabled, and personalized advertising or live streaming features will not be offered.

Platforms are also required to take technical measures to prevent users from taking screenshots of these accounts.

Platforms must additionally provide parental control tools for accounts of users aged 15 to 17, allowing parents to manage settings, limit usage time, and authorize paid transactions.

Under Turkey's internet law, social media platforms that fail to comply may face fines of up to 3% of their global revenue, advertising bans, and restrictions on internet bandwidth.