In August 2026, Meta reached an agreement with a bipartisan group of U.S. state attorneys general concerning the use of Instagram and Facebook by minors.

Under the agreement, users under 18 in participating states and territories will have a default cumulative daily time limit of two hours across Facebook and Instagram. Changing this setting will require parental permission. The agreement also includes restrictions on nighttime use from midnight to 6 a.m. and limits on notifications during school hours, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The settlement does not mean that Meta admitted wrongdoing or legal liability. Nor does it establish a medical causal relationship between social media use and health problems in individual children or adolescents.

Comment from GAME-F
An important aspect of this development is that the measures address not only the amount of time spent on social media but also its potential impact on sleep and school life. GAME-F similarly emphasizes functional impairment—the “F” in GAME-F—including effects on sleep, education, family relationships, and everyday functioning. This settlement provides an important international example of considering children's digital media use from both the perspectives of time spent and its impact on daily life.

References

Meta, “Our Agreement With Bipartisan Attorneys General: Calling on TikTok and YouTube to Join Us in Supporting Teens,” August 26, 2026. https://about.fb.com/news/2026/08/agreement-with-state-attorneys-general-supporting-teens/
Reuters, “Meta agrees to pay $18 billion to settle US lawsuits over children's social media addiction,” August 26, 2026.  

https://www.reuters.com/business/meta-reaches-18-billion-settlements-over-childrens-social-media-addiction-2026-08-26/