OpenAI · OpenAI Terms of Use

Age Restriction (Minimum Age Requirement)

Medium severity
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What it is

You must be at least 13 years old to use OpenAI's services, or older if required by the laws in your country, and users aged 13–17 must have parental consent.

Why it matters

Allowing minors to use AI services raises significant child safety and privacy concerns, including exposure to potentially inappropriate AI-generated content.

Institutional analysis (Compliance & legal intelligence)

Age restriction provisions engage COPPA (for US users under 13), GDPR Article 8 (for EU users under 16 in some jurisdictions), and the UK Children's Code; compliance teams should assess whether OpenAI's age verification mechanisms meet applicable legal standards.

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Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.

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Consumer impact

OpenAI's Terms require users to resolve most disputes through binding arbitration rather than in court, and include a class action waiver that limits collective legal remedies. OpenAI also claims a broad license to use content you submit to improve its models, and can suspend or terminate accounts at its discretion. You can opt out of the mandatory arbitration clause by notifying OpenAI in writing within 30 days of creating your account at https://openai.com/policies/row-terms-of-use/.

Applicable agencies

  • Federal Trade Commission (ftc)
    Oversees unfair or deceptive business practices and can investigate companies that mislead consumers about data collection, sharing, or use.
    Who can file: Anyone affected by the company's practices (US or international)
    What you need: Your account details, a timeline of relevant events, and a description of the specific issue
    What to expect: Complaints inform FTC enforcement priorities and investigations but do not result in individual resolution or compensation
    File a complaint →

Provision details

Document information
Document
OpenAI Terms of Use
Entity
OpenAI
Document last updated
March 24, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
March 7, 2026
Last verified
March 9, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-00009004
Document ID
CA-D-00009
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
SHA-256
3a064f11bc2cb0f491e5ad76938f2712026c1d020c9f8b50528f8c7b639a4f7f
Verified
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Change verified
How to Cite
ConductAtlas Policy Archive
Entity: OpenAI | Document: OpenAI Terms of Use | Record: CA-P-00009004
Captured: 2026-03-07 12:16:22 UTC | SHA-256: 3a064f11bc2cb0f4…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/openai/openai-terms-of-use/age-restriction-minimum-age-requirement/
Accessed: April 4, 2026
Classification
Severity
Medium
Categories

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