CAC publishes draft State Council rules on healthy/safe internet use by minors (18 Sep 2026)
A 18 September 2026 CAC/Xinhua notice opens the State Council draft on minors’ healthy and safe internet use for comment until 17 October 2026. Under-16 game, social and AI services would run through minors mode; NPPA keeps the anti-addiction lead. No effective date is set.
Xinhua’s republication of the Cyberspace Administration notice 关于《国务院关于保障未成年人健康安全使用网络的规定（征求意见稿）》公开征求意见的通知, opened 20 September 2026, is stamped 18 September 2026 17:14:10 and sourced to 中国网信网. Comments are invited through email or post with a deadline of 17 October 2026. The attached text is a 征求意见稿 (draft for comment), not a final State Council regulation.
Game-relevant draft clauses (observation)
Article 5 would require network-service providers that offer the following to users under 16 to do so through minors mode, including: online audio/video; livestream services other than livestream publishing; online game services; network social services; AI services that may affect minors’ cognition; and other services with important impact on minors.
Article 4 would bar several service types for minors (with limited exceptions), including stranger social networking, virtual kinship/partner services, addiction-inducing services, and livestream publishing for under-16s.
Article 12 would assign the national press and publication department to lead organisation of minors’ online-game addiction prevention, and would require game services for minors to follow the Minors Network Protection Regulations and that department’s game-management rules.
Article 25 leaves the effective date blank (“自2026年 月 日起施行”). Do not treat any blank month/day as live law.
What this does not establish
| Field | Evidence or limit |
|---|---|
| Notice / draft date | 2026-09-18 |
| Comment deadline | 2026-10-17 |
| Status | Draft for comment only |
| Under-16 games | Must use minors mode (Art. 5 draft text) |
| Anti-addiction lead | National press/publication dept (Art. 12) |
| Effective date | Unknown / blank in Art. 25 |
| Not established | Final promulgated text; measured UA inventory impact |
Download the draft card. Monitor for a final State Council promulgation before changing live creatives or product flows solely on this draft.
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