Online Safety Amendment (Strengthening Enforcement for the Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2026

Summary

This amendment strengthens how Australia's Online Safety Commissioner can enforce rules around social media use by minors, making it easier to penalize platforms that don't comply with a minimum age requirement. It modifies the Online Safety Act 2021 to give the regulator tougher powers — likely including higher fines or faster action — when social media companies fail to prevent children below a certain age from accessing their services. The change matters because it closes loopholes that currently allow platforms to ignore age restrictions with minimal consequences, shifting responsibility directly onto tech companies to verify and enforce age limits rather than relying on parents or users to police themselves.

What happens at this stage

The final vote in this chamber on the bill as a whole, after all amendments have been considered. If it passes, the bill moves to the other chamber to go through the same process. If both chambers have already agreed to identical text, the bill proceeds directly to Royal Assent.

Next: The other chamber, which runs the same process from First Reading, or Royal Assent if both chambers have already agreed