Indonesia will prohibit social media access for children under the age of 16 starting March 28. Communication and digital affairs minister Meutya Hafid announced a new government regulation forcing "high-risk" platforms to identify and delete underage Indonesian accounts. The mandate puts Southeast Asia's largest digital market directly at odds with the world's leading tech platforms.

Hafid confirmed the rollout will occur in stages. It directly targets major global platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Roblox, and Singapore-based live-streaming app Bigo Live.

The Staged Implementation Plan

Enforcing a nationwide digital age limit relies entirely on cooperation from platform operators. Hafid stated that targeted platforms face compliance obligations, but the Indonesian government has yet to define them.

Platform operators currently lack technical guidance on the ban. A Meta spokesperson told The New York Times that the company has not received the official regulation and is actively awaiting details. Without specific technical requirements, platforms remain uncertain about how to verify ages and purge millions of accounts before the March 28 deadline.

A Growing Global Regulatory Movement

Indonesia joins a growing list of nations treating youth social media access as a public health issue. Australia established the precedent as the first country to implement a sweeping ban for users under 16. Regulators there are continually expanding their oversight, recently adding Twitch to their restricted platform list.

Politicians elsewhere are adopting the exact same playbook. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced in February that his government is ready to ban social media for users under 16. In neighboring Malaysia, the national cabinet approved a similar restriction taking effect later in 2026.

The impending March 28 deadline leaves companies scrambling for compliance solutions. Failing to satisfy Indonesia's digital affairs ministry risks their market access in one of the world's most active digital economies.