Influential kids and teens in Australia are saying ‘goodbye’ to social media

When Carly was 15 years old Jade Clements wakes up, and her first thought is to record a Get Ready With Me video to share with her friends Tik Tok. “I like to record everything and post it as soon as I get it,” says Clements, who lives in Melbourne, Australia.

Like many teens, Clements communicates with the world primarily through… Social media: Snapchat for messaging her friends, Pinterest for inspiration, and TikTok for… well, everything. Unlike many teens, she also uses social media professionally; Clements has more than 37,000 followers Instagramwhere she often posts product reviews (skincare and slime) and photos from modeling and acting.

But as of December 10, 2025, that will change. That’s when Australia’s minimum social media age regulation comes into effect, which will prevent Australians under the age of 16 from having social media accounts. “It will be very strange, quiet and isolated,” Clements says. “I would feel like I was cut off from the world.”

Globally, people are beginning to realize how social media can negatively impact teens. Even teenagers themselves see this: Nearly half of teens in the United States They claim that these platforms are harmful to people their age. Australia is the first country to take serious action. In December 2024, lawmakers passed a social media minimum age bill, which would penalize tech platforms (including TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, and Reddit) that allow those under 16 to access their platforms.

In response, platforms are shutting down accounts and adopting age verification requirements. Some platforms, including Meta, I started implementing it early.

Teen creators are taking steps, too. Zoe Bender, 14, likes to post GRWM videos and tips: to make friends in high school, to start seventh grade, to deal with braces. “I like to get creative with this,” says Bender, who has 58,000 followers on TikTok. “He’s my enforcer.”

Her handle was @heyitszoey. In November, she and her father Mark changed it to @_heyitszoeyandmark, hoping her account wouldn’t be deleted on December 10 because it was now run by an adult. She says many other teens with large followings do the same; Clements’ mother actually runs her Instagram account.

This means that once age restrictions are put in place, their professional accounts will likely still exist – even though teen and children’s accounts are suspended, their engagement will likely decline, and they may lose followers as well. That means a decrease in free products and revenue, though not a huge amount overall: Ava Jones, 12, who has 11,500 followers on Instagram, estimates she makes between 1,000 and 2,000 Australian dollars (600 to 1,300 US dollars) a year, which she generally spends on makeup and clothes. “If this problem goes away, I will have to do more chores around the house,” she says.