Virginia to enforce law limiting minors’ social media use to one hour daily

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Attorney General Jay Jones announced Monday that his office will require social media platforms to limit minors' usage to only one hour a day unless a parent or guardian chooses to increase the limit.

On Monday, Jan. 16, Jones announced in a press release that his office intends to fully enforce the new provisions of the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act, which limits a minor's usage on social media platforms to one hour a day unless the minor's parent or guardian decides to increase the time.

This announcement is followed by the office's decision to file a motion to dismiss a lawsuit by NetChoice, a trade association for social media companies.

This lawsuit attempted to block Virginia's law and allow the company's members to continue allowing unlimited access to minors.

The Virginia law started on Jan. 1, 2026, which requires social media platforms to use “commercially reasonable methods, such as a neutral age screen mechanism, to determine whether a user is a minor younger than 16” and “to limit a minor’s use of social media platform to one hour per day, per service or application,” according to the release.

MORE: These Virginia laws are going into effect Jan. 1, 2026

It also said that to increase or decrease the daily time limit, consent from a verifiable parent or guardian is required.

Jones' office will share evidence of non-compliant companies directly with them and will provide 30 days for violators to fix it as required by law.

If the companies continue to violate the law, Jones will file enforcement actions, which could result in up to $7,500 in civil penalties for each violation. There could also be an injunctive relief to stop the violating social media platforms from continuing their illegal conduct.

“As a father, there is nothing more important to me than the emotional, mental and physical safety of our children. Today’s announcement ensures that parents and caregivers have the final say in how much social media content their children consume, not the unscrupulous tech companies,” Jones said in a release. “By enforcing our consumer protection laws, Virginia can and will take meaningful steps to protect our children and hold bad actors accountable.”

Long-term use of social media for minors has been shown to increase feelings of anxiety, depression and isolation.

Additionally, excessive screen time, such as social media feeds for children under the age of 16, has been shown to create insufficient or inadequate sleep, disordered eating, delays in social skills development, reduced attention span and negative performance outcomes, per the release.

The Attorney General Consumer Protection Section is encouraging families to report any violations by filing a complaint on their website here.

Families from Virginia can also call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-552-9963 or 804-786-2042 if calling from Richmond or outside Virginia.