Unlock unlimited alerts, exports & API access — RuleWatch Pro at $29/mo
Regulation dossier
A focused view of the rule, its enforcement posture, and the timeline teams should keep in their operating plan.
Plain-English summary
The United Kingdom's Children's Code requires online services likely to be accessed by children to design around the best interests of the child. It expects a risk-based approach to age assurance and demands high privacy defaults, limits on profiling and geolocation, and stronger transparency for child users. It affects apps, games, connected toys, social platforms, and websites that are likely to be used by children.
Reading guide
Use the timeline below to see how the rule progressed from enactment to current obligations.
Related regulations surface adjacent requirements in the same jurisdiction or policy lane.
Timeline
Sep 2, 2020
The ICO Children's Code entered into force with a one-year transition period.
Sep 2, 2021
The transition period ended and services were expected to conform with the Children's Code.
Get email alerts when this regulation changes and export records to CSV for your compliance workflow — available with RuleWatch Pro.
Subscribe for regulation alerts
Free weekly digest for compliance professionals following material legal changes.
Related regulations
Pulled from the same jurisdiction or category so teams can compare adjacent obligations quickly.
United Kingdom
The UK Online Safety Act gives Ofcom powers over child-safety duties and age-assurance measures, especially for services that host harmful or adult content.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom continues to pursue a sector-led AI model rather than a single cross-economy AI statute. Its 2024 response keeps five cross-sector principles for existing regulators and signals targeted future legislation for the most capable general-purpose AI models. This affects regulated firms that rely on AI in sectors such as finance, healthcare, telecoms, employment, and consumer platforms.
Australia
Australia amended its online safety regime to require providers of age-restricted social media platforms to take reasonable steps to prevent under-16 users from holding accounts. The framework affects covered social platforms serving Australian users and relies on age-assurance systems rather than mandating government digital ID. It also gives the eSafety Commissioner implementation and oversight responsibilities.