The Turkish parliament voted on April 22 to prevent children under the age of 15 from accessing social media platforms, the latest country to try such a ban.
Under the law, under-15s will be banned from creating accounts on social media, while digital platforms will be forced to put in age-verification systems.
Social media providers will be required to offer differentiated, age-appropriate services specifically designed for users 15 and over.
The regulations also introduce stronger parental control mechanisms. Platforms will be required to provide tools that allow parents to manage account settings, approve or restrict in-app purchases and monitor or limit screen time.
Additionally, social media companies will be obliged to take steps to prevent deceptive or harmful advertising and reduce online risks, particularly for minors.
The vote follows in the footsteps of similar bans and proposals to limit the harms of internet use for young people, including Australia's landmark move to restrict social media to over-16s only.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is expected to sign the legislation, which was introduced by his party.
The law will enter into force six months after being published in the official gazette.
If alerted to an "emergency," major social media platforms will have a duty to intervene within an hour of harmful content being posted online.
The stricter obligations will apply in particular to social media platforms with more than 10 million daily users in Türkiye.
Besides Türkiye, France has been spearheading a push for action alongside EU partners including Denmark, Greece and Spain — with a hotly-debated ban for under-15s working its way through the French parliament.
It comes after Australia in December became the first nation to prohibit people under the age of 16 from using immensely popular and profitable social media platforms.
Greece has since said it will ban social media for under-15s, while the European Union has said an expert group will start preparing recommendations for action across the bloc.
