Digital Reality Heatmap

Legislative Tracker

Public-source posture estimateNot legal adviceMap regenerated2026-05-08 · 8 May 2026

Youth & Social Media

Virginia

Specific rule in effect.Trending toward more guardrails.

Effective 2026-01-01 · 1 January 2026Next review by 2026-08-06 · 6 August 2026

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Sources

law.lis.virginia.govVirginia Code § 59.1-577.1 — Social Media Platforms; Responsibilities and Prohibitions Related to Minors

Why this status

Virginia Code § 59.1-577.1 (enacted via 2025 c. 703) took effect January 1, 2026. The rule requires social-media platforms to limit users under age 16 to one hour per day on each service or app, use a neutral age-screen method to identify minor users, and accept verifiable parental consent to adjust the daily time limit.

What this means

Virginia's rule is structurally different from most other states' — it sets a default daily-use cap (one hour per service per day for users under 16) rather than a flat consent-or-block rule at account creation.
Platforms must use a neutral age-screen method to identify minor users, and a parent may give verifiable consent to either increase or decrease that daily limit.
Platforms can't penalize a minor — by lowering service quality or raising prices — solely because the minor's use is capped at the one-hour limit.

What to verify next

Read § 59.1-577.1 directly on the Virginia Code site for the exact age-screen and consent mechanisms.
Watch for court challenges or guidance from the Virginia Attorney General or the Consumer Data Protection Act enforcement office — both can shift what platforms have to do in practice.

How this was scored →