France

Loi n° 2004-575 du 21 juin 2004 pour la confiance dans l'économie numérique (LCEN), art. 10, 10-1 et 10-2, modifiés et créés par la loi n° 2024-449 du 21 mai 2024, art. 1 et 2

Effective 2024-05-22 · Applies to private

Requires editors of pornographic websites and video sharing platforms accessible from France to verify that users are adults, using a system that meets a technical référentiel adopted by Arcom after an opinion from the CNIL. Abrogates the prior judicial blocking mechanism (former article 23 of the law of 30 July 2020) and lets Arcom issue a mise en demeure and then order internet access providers and DNS resolvers to block a noncompliant site directly, without a judge, and have it delisted from search engines.

Source: Loi n° 2004-575 du 21 juin 2004 pour la confiance dans l'économie numérique (LCEN), art. 10, 10-1 et 10-2, modifiés et créés par la loi n° 2024-449 du 21 mai 2024, art. 1 et 2

Délibération n° 2024-20 du 9 octobre 2024, published in the Journal officiel of 22 October 2024

Effective 2025-01-22 · Applies to private

Sets the minimum technical requirements an age verification system must meet under the SREN law: protection by default so no pornographic content is shown before verification, at least one double anonymity method letting an independent third party such as a bank, mobile operator, or dedicated identity provider confirm a user is an adult without the pornographic site learning the user's identity and without the third party learning which site is being visited, and independent audits. Adopted after a favorable opinion from the CNIL of 26 September 2024 (délibération n° 2024-067) and published in the Journal officiel on 22 October 2024; covered services had three months from publication (until 22 January 2025) to deploy a compliant system, followed by a further three month transition (until 22 April 2025) during which a card based check was tolerated pending deployment of a double anonymity method.

Source: Délibération n° 2024-20 du 9 octobre 2024, published in the Journal officiel of 22 October 2024

Arrêté du 26 février 2025 (ministère de la culture, ministère chargé du numérique), published in the Journal officiel of 6 March 2025

Effective 2025-06-06 · Applies to private

Extends the LCEN articles 10 and 10-1 age verification and blocking regime to named pornographic websites and video sharing platforms established in other EU member states, including Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube (Aylo group) and xHamster (Hammy Media Ltd). Signed 26 February 2025, published in the Journal officiel on 6 March 2025, and applicable three months after publication, from 6 June 2025. Some designated platforms deployed age verification, while the Aylo sites voluntarily blocked access from France in protest rather than comply.

Litigation: Conseil d'État, 5e chambre, 15 juillet 2025, n° 505472 (Sté Hammy Media Ltd) (Conseil d'État). The Paris administrative court's interim relief judge suspended the order on 16 June 2025 after a challenge from Hammy Media Ltd (xHamster). On 15 July 2025 the Conseil d'État set aside that suspension and rejected the request to suspend the order, finding no urgency shown, and restored the age verification obligation with immediate effect. Aylo, which had voluntarily blocked its French sites in June 2025 in protest, reblocked them immediately after the ruling. Separately, on 16 June 2026 the Court of Justice of the EU ruled in joined cases C-188/24 WebGroup Czech Republic and NKL Associates and C-190/24 Coyote System, on a reference from the Conseil d'État concerning the prior 2020 regime, that the e-Commerce Directive's country of origin principle does not prevent a member state from imposing targeted, proportionate age verification requirements on pornographic services established in another member state, removing the main EU law challenge to the French regime.

Source: Arrêté du 26 février 2025 (ministère de la culture, ministère chargé du numérique), published in the Journal officiel of 6 March 2025

Loi n° 2023-566 du 7 juillet 2023, art. 4 (créant l'art. 6-7 de la loi n° 2004-575 du 21 juin 2004) et art. 7 (entrée en vigueur)

Applies to private

Would require online social network service providers operating in France to refuse registration of a minor under 15 unless a holder of parental authority consents, and to deploy a system verifying age and collecting that consent, with a fine of up to 1 percent of worldwide annual turnover for noncompliance. Article 7 conditions entry into force on a decree in Conseil d'Etat, issued after a CNIL opinion, that cannot come more than three months after the European Commission confirms the scheme is compatible with EU law. As of this survey no such decree has been published, the European Commission never issued a confirming response, and the article has never entered into force.

Litigation: Not litigation: the provision has never entered into force for lack of an implementing decree, itself conditioned on a European Commission compatibility response under the EU technical regulation information procedure that was never received.

Source: Loi n° 2023-566 du 7 juillet 2023, art. 4 (créant l'art. 6-7 de la loi n° 2004-575 du 21 juin 2004) et art. 7 (entrée en vigueur)

Assemblée nationale, proposition de loi n° 2107, 17e législature, deposited 18 November 2025 (Laure Miller); Sénat texte n° 304 (2025-2026)

Applies to private

Would ban access to social media and certain video sharing platforms for minors under 15, with exceptions for online encyclopedias, educational or scientific directories, free software sharing platforms, and private interpersonal messaging, and would require platforms to verify age other than by self declaration and to obtain parental authorization for a more limited access regime to other services. Passed by the Assemblée nationale in first reading on 27 January 2026 after an accelerated procedure and a Conseil d'État advisory opinion of 8 January 2026 flagging tension with freedom of expression and with the EU Digital Services Act's harmonized platform obligations. The Sénat adopted an amended version on 31 March 2026 with a two tier structure: a ministerial blacklist, drawn up after an Arcom opinion, of platforms banned for under 15s, plus parental authorization for other services; the text returned to the Assemblée nationale for a second reading. France notified the European Commission under the EU technical regulation information procedure on 9 April 2026, and the Commission issued a detailed opinion on 7 July 2026 finding several provisions incompatible with the Digital Services Act while not contesting the blacklist principle, extending the notification standstill to 10 August 2026 and leaving the bill's final text and timing unresolved as of this survey.

Litigation: Not litigation: the European Commission issued a detailed opinion on 7 July 2026 under the EU technical regulation information procedure (Directive (EU) 2015/1535) finding several provisions of the Sénat's version incompatible with the Digital Services Act and extending the notification standstill to 10 August 2026, so the text must be revised before adoption.

Source: Assemblée nationale, proposition de loi n° 2107, 17e législature, deposited 18 November 2025 (Laure Miller); Sénat texte n° 304 (2025-2026)