Minors Cyberspace Protection Regulations take effect 1 January 2024

On 24 October 2023 the Cyberspace Administration of China carried a Xinhua release stating that Premier Li Qiang had signed a State Council Order publishing the 《未成年人网络保护条例》, effective 1 January 2024. The full text republished the same day as 国务院令第766号 records that the Regulations were adopted at the State Council’s 15th executive meeting on 20 September 2023, signed 16 October 2023, and 自2024年1月1日起施行 (Article 60).

This China Watch record preserves that 2024-01-01 effective date. It is not a 2026 news event.

Game-relevant duties on the face of the text

Chapter V (网络沉迷防治) requires network product and service providers to build anti-addiction systems (Article 42); requires games, livestreaming, audio/video and social services to offer minors mode with time, duration, function and content controls and guardian tools (Article 43); requires reasonable limits on single and daily consumption by age band (Article 44); requires games to verify minors via the unified electronic identity system and bans account rental/sale to minors (Article 46); and requires age-appropriate classification prompts (Article 47). Article 48 assigns the national press and publication department to lead prevention of minors’ addiction to online games and to set rules on service periods, duration and consumption caps together with other departments.

Those are statutory duties for China builds, SDKs and creatives that reference minors. The ordinance does not publish CPI targets or creative templates.

Operator action

Download the regulations card. Pair with current NPPA / CAC implementing notices before changing China creative or SDK settings.

Research checked 20 September 2026. Local draft; human editorial review pending.