Age Restrictions and Verification in Belgium

In Belgium, age restrictions are in place to ensure the safety and well-being of its youth. These regulations cover a range of activities and products, including alcohol, tobacco, and gambling.

With the increasing shift toward online shopping, it becomes critical to set up secure digital age verification processes to prevent underage users from accessing restricted content or products.

In this blog post, we will:

• Look at the various age restrictions in Belgium
• Explore the importance of online age verification
• Discuss potential future challenges with age verification

Current age restrictions in Belgium

Alcohol

In Belgium, the legal age for purchasing or being served beer and wine is 16, while for spirits and stronger alcoholic beverages it is 18.

To further protect young people, the Belgian expertise center for alcohol, illegal drugs, psychoactive medication, gambling, and gaming (VAD) is suggesting to raise the legal age for purchasing all alcoholic beverages from 16 to 18. Belgian charity Stand Up To Cancer is also advocating to raise the age limit to 18 due to the health risks of alcohol consumption.

Energy drinks

At present, there are no legal age restrictions on the purchase of energy drinks in Belgium. 

Nonetheless, there have been debates about implementing an age limit of 16 due to concerns about the health effects of caffeine and other stimulants on younger consumers.

Tobacco

The legal age for purchasing tobacco products in Belgium is 18. 

This restriction aims to stop people from taking up smoking at a young age, which is associated with higher rates of addiction and long-term health issues.

In 2022, the Belgian government banned all online sales of tobacco-based products and e-cigarettes as part of a larger legislative effort to decrease the consumption of tobacco and nicotine products for future generations.

Online gambling and betting

The age limit for gambling at casinos and on slot machines, both online and at physical locations, is 21. For betting, it is 18.

In September 2024, the legal age for online betting will be raised to 21 to reduce the chance of gambling addiction. This new legislation will align betting restrictions with those for gambling at casinos and slot machines.

Gambling and betting platforms that fail to provide sufficient age verification for those under 21 will be required to provide a refund.

This change reflects growing concerns about the impact of gambling on younger individuals.

Riding electric scooters

In Belgium, the minimum age for riding electric scooters is 16. 

This regulation is designed to reduce the risk of accidents and injuries by ensuring that users have the maturity and awareness to navigate safely in traffic.

Driving a car

In Belgium, the minimum age for obtaining a driver's license is 18, but individuals can already take their theoretical test at the age of 17.

This regulation aims to ensure that first-time drivers reach a level of maturity and responsibility necessary for the safe operation of a vehicle.

Solarium use

The use of sunbeds is restricted to individuals aged 18 and over. 

This rule is in place to protect young people from health risks associated with ultraviolet (UV) radiation, including skin cancer.

Fireworks

Belgium categorizes fireworks into different classes with varying age restrictions:

• For F1 category fireworks, the minimum age is 12
• For F2 category fireworks, the minimum age is 16. 
• Selling category F3 fireworks to regular consumers is considered a criminal offense.

Vendors must require secure age verification in order to sell F1 and F2 category fireworks. 

The need for secure age verification online

As people spend more time online, secure digital age verification becomes increasingly critical. Effective age verification is essential to restrict access to age-sensitive products, services, and content.

One such product is alcohol, which can currently be easily purchased online in Belgium. 

Ecommerce alcohol sales grew as high as 35.8% from 2019 to 2020. Admittedly, a large part of this was due to Covid-19, which led to people ordering alcohol to their homes. But this trend is forecasted to continue with a compound annual growth rate of 15.6% from 2024 to 2028.

Online sports betting and gambling are also expected to grow in the next five years. Online sports betting is set to have an annual growth rate of 4.94% and online gambling a slightly lower 4.65%. 

As Belgian authorities work to raise the legal age, robust and secure age verification measures become crucial to protect underage consumers.

Age verification on social media

Some online channels lack strict age verification systems, including social media platforms that often depend on simple self-declaration for age verification.

Age verification on social media is a topic of discussion in Belgium. 

A report by the Conseil Supérieur de l’Audiovisuel (CSA) highlighted just how easy it was to access explicit content unsuitable for children on certain platforms, stressing the lack of age verification compliance under the Digital Services Act (DSA).

In Belgium, the minimum age requirement to create a social media account is 13. But the lack of robust age verification increases the risk of children being exposed to age-restricted content on platforms like X.

Social media platforms are popular among young Belgians. 94.2% of Belgian youths use Instagram and Facebook and the number of social media users in Belgium is projected to increase over the next five years.

As such, the need for secure age verification is only becoming more pressing, but implementing digital age verification in previously unregulated areas is easier said than done.

Age verification and privacy challenges

Introducing age verification in new areas poses challenges.

First, it can negatively impact the user experience by disrupting their access to familiar websites and content.

Second, it involves individuals sharing personal information, which can potentially compromise privacy and raise concerns about data security.

One of the primary challenges posed by the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) is balancing age verification measures with the need to safeguard the users’ online privacy. 

The DSA aims to protect children from over-sharing personal data, which is a crucial aspect to consider for major digital platforms—such as social media—as they begin to implement age verification for their users.

One potential solution is the use of zero-knowledge proofs. Zero-knowledge proofs let individuals verify that they meet legal age requirements without revealing unnecessary personal data like their date of birth or exact age. 

This approach helps protect privacy while ensuring compliance with age restrictions.

But until this type of unified method is in place, achieving a balance between ensuring security and protecting privacy remains a significant challenge.

Age verification with itsme®

Several countries in Europe have national electronic identities (eIDs) for digital identity verification. eIDs are often used for online age verifications because they are secure and contain proof of the individual’s age.

In Belgium, itsme® is the primary eID for online identity verification and always includes the date of birth.

Here’s what makes itsme® the best option for age verification:

• High usability: itsme® has over seven million users and is used more than one million times each day. This ensures a familiar user experience for Belgians when verifying their age.
• Easy verification process: itsme® offers fast verification with either pin code or biometrics.
• Emphasis on security: itsme®  is certified for eIDAS (level “High”), uses multi-factor authentication, and protects the user data with advanced encryption.

Want to implement age verification with itsme®?

• Sign up to a free test account
• Talk to one of our identity experts
• Learn more about itsme® on our eID page

Learn more about age verification in Europe

Read on for details about age verification in other European countries.

Denmark

• Age restrictions and verification in Denmark
• Why MitID is the future of digital age verification in Denmark
• Age check solution with MitID (in Danish)

Sweden

• Navigating age restrictions in Sweden

Norway

• Age restrictions and verification in Norway

Finland

• Online alcohol sales in Finland: how to ensure age verification