MELBOURNE – In a pioneering move, Australia is launching an educational campaign aimed at guiding parents on reducing their children’s social media usage. This initiative comes as the country prepares to enforce a groundbreaking national age limit of 16 for social media users starting in December.

Julie Inman Grant, the Australian eSafety Commissioner, announced on Friday that the agency’s website, esafety.gov.au, now offers detailed information about the new regulations and advice on managing them effectively.

From December 10, major social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X, and YouTube may face fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (approximately $33 million) if they fail to prevent users under 16 from creating accounts.

The awareness campaign will kick off on Sunday, featuring messages across digital platforms, television, radio, and billboards to ensure widespread public knowledge.

Communications Minister Anika Wells emphasized the importance of this initiative, stating, “We want children to enjoy their childhoods, parents to feel reassured, and young Australians to have those extra years to discover themselves before social media platforms define them,” reflecting on the current informal age limit of 13, which is based on U.S. privacy laws.

The Australian age restrictions have already proved polarizing, with some experts warning the changes will harm as well as protect children. More than 140 Australian and international academics signed an open letter to the government last year opposing a social media age limit as “too blunt an instrument to address risks effectively.”

Despite that warning, the laws passed with resounding support last year. The platforms had a year to figure out how to comply without foolproof technology available to verify ages.

Inman Grant said the social media age restriction would be a “very monumental event for a lot of young people.”

Her agency offered checklists and conversation starters about ways to make the transition, such as following an online influencer through a website rather than a social media account, she said.

“How do we start weaning them from social media now so it isn’t a shock on Dec. 10? How do we help them download their archives and their memories and how do we make sure that they’re in touch with friends and are aware of mental health support if they’re feeling down when they’re not tethered to their phones over the holiday period?” she added.

Australia’s move is being watched closely by countries that share concerns about social media impacts on young children.

Denmark’s Ambassador to Australia Ingrid Dahl-Madsen said her government would use its current presidency of the Council of the European Union to push the agenda of protecting children from social media harms.

“This is something that is a global challenge and we are all looking at how we can manage it best and we are looking to Australia and we will be looking at what Australia does,” Dahl-Madsen told Australian Broadcasting Corp. in Melbourne on Monday.

“It’s so important that Australia and Demark and the EU — we share lessons, we compare experiences and we can push forward hopefully practical progress on this,” she added. It was about “protecting our children in this digital world that is increasingly complicated.”

The Danish government last week proposed legislating an age limit of 15. But Dahl-Madsen said Denmark would consider letting parents exempt their children who were 13-14. Australia has no similar exemption.