In an effort to shield kids from excessive screen time, French lawmakers have approved a bill that would prohibit under-15s from using social media. President Emmanuel Macron has supported this initiative.
In a protracted overnight session from Monday to Tuesday, the lower National Assembly approved the text by a vote of 130 to 21.
The Senate, France's upper chamber, will now review it before it becomes law.
In a post on X, Macron praised the vote as a "major step" to safeguard French youth.
After Australia banned cell phones for under-16s in December, France would become the second nation to follow suit with the legislation, which also calls for a ban on cell phones in high schools.Concern that excessive screen time is impairing children's development and causing mental health issues has developed along with social media.In a video released on Saturday, Macron stated, "Our children and teenagers' emotions are not for sale or to be manipulated, either by American platforms or Chinese algorithms."
Authorities want new accounts to be subject to the measures starting with the 2026 school year.
The lower house leader of Macron's Renaissance party, former prime minister Gabriel Attal, expressed his optimism that the Senate will approve the bill by mid-February, allowing the ban to take effect on September 1.

"Social media platforms will then have until December 31 to deactivate existing accounts" that don't meet the age restriction, he continued. "Destiny of our country"
Attal emphasised that the policy will challenge "a number of powers that, through social media platforms, want to colonise minds" in addition to addressing the negative effects of screens and social media on young adolescents' mental health.
"France can be a pioneer in Europe in a month: we can change the lives of our young people and our families, and perhaps also change the destiny of our country in terms of independence," added Macron.

This month, the French public health watchdog ANSES reported that teenagers, especially girls, were negatively impacted by social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, however this was not the only cause of their deteriorating mental health.
Cyberbullying and exposure to violent content are among the concerns mentioned.
"Access to an online social networking service provided by an online platform is prohibited for minors under the age of 15" according to the law.
Online encyclopaedias and educational platforms are not included in the draft bill.
For the ban to be implemented, an efficient age verification system would need to be put in place. At the European level, work is being done on such a system.

Arnaud Saint-Martin of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) denounced the ban as "a form of digital paternalism" and a "overly simplistic" reaction to the detrimental effects of technology.
Legislators were asked on Monday by nine child protection organisations to "hold platforms accountable" rather than "ban" youngsters from social media.
Additionally, Macron has supported prohibiting students from using cell phones in class.
Children between the ages of 11 and 15 were prohibited from using cell phones in French colleges in 2018.
Elisabeth Borne, a former prime minister, voiced concerns about the proposal on Monday.She said to broadcaster France 2, "It's more complicated than that."
"We must first ensure that the prohibition is appropriately implemented in middle schools."