An ever growing number of states in the USA have recently enacted and about half have already implemented several laws mandating age verification. We've compiled a list detailing these laws, their effective dates, and brief summaries of their requirements.

Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this article is accurate, neither its authors nor The AVPA Ltd. accepts responsibility for any errors or omissions. The content of this article is for general information only, and is not intended to constitute or be relied upon as legal advice.

This page reflects the position as of September 2026, At least 27 states have passed laws requiring age verification to access online pornography:

Bills currently under consideration

Detail on Bills in force today

January 1 2023

Louisiana HB 142 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) digital ID card or (2) government-issued ID or (2) a commercial reasonable method based on transaction data (e.g. mortgage, education, employment)

May 3, 2023

Utah SB 287 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) government-issued ID or (2) a commercial reasonable method based on transaction data (e.g. mortgage, education, employment)

July 1, 2023

Mississippi SB 2346 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) state-approved digital ID, (2) independent, third-party age verification services checking authoritative databases or (3) a commercial reasonable method based on transaction data (e.g. mortgage, education, employment)

Virginia SB 1515 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) commercially available database or (2) a commercial reasonable method of age and identity verification

July 31, 2023

Arkansas SB 66 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) state-approved digital ID, (2) government-issued ID or (3) a commercial reasonable method that holds identity assurance level 2 (for IAL2 definition, see NIST)

August 1 2023

Louisiana HB 77 Gives commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic 30 days to remedy a failure to provide age verification before the Attorney-General can take legal action to impose a fine of $5k per day or $10k if done knowingly (the “PAVE Act”)

September 19 2023

Texas HB 1181 – Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) digitized ID card (not defined), or a commercial age verification system based on (2a) government-issued ID or (2b) a commercial reasonable method based on transaction data (e.g. mortgage, education, employment). The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Texas HB 1181 in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton on June 27, 2025

January 1st 2024

Montana SB 544 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) digitized ID card (not defined), or a commercial age verification system based on (2a) government-issued ID or (2b) a commercial reasonable method based on transaction data (e.g. mortgage, education, employment)

North Carolina HB 8 Makes commercial websites where more than one-third of their content is pornographic liable to being sued for damages by individuals unless age verification using (1) commercially available database or (2) a commercial reasonable method of age and identity verification

July 1 2024

Idaho H 498 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform “reasonable age verification” to prevent minors from accessing the harmful material.

Kansas SB 394 Requires any commercial entity that knowingly shares or distributes material that is harmful to minors on a website, and the material appears on 25.0 percent or more of the webpages viewed on the website in any calendar month, or that knowingly hosts the website, to verify any person who is a resident of or is located in the state attempting to access the site is 18 years of age or older.

July 15 2024

Kentucky HB 278 Retain original provisions except, new sections of KRS Chapter 436 to declare legislative findings relating to pornography; define terms; establish a civil cause of action against any commercial entity that publishes matter harmful to minors on the internet without obtaining age verification; require removal of personal data following review for access; establish civil causes of action for violations; establish limitations on applicability and liability.

July 18 2024

Nebraska NE LB 1092 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to  perform “reasonable age verification” to prevent minors from accessing the harmful material.

August 16 2024

Indiana Act 17 Requires an adult oriented website operator that displays material harmful to minors to use a reasonable age verification method to prevent a minor from accessing an adult oriented website.

September 1 2024

Texas HB 18  Requires digital service providers to implement age verification measures if knowingly hosting “harmful” or “obscene” content. Allows parents more control over their children’s usage. A joint legislative study is required into the harms of various types of media on children.  Much of this Bill was stayed by a US Federal Judge but the parts relating to pornography remain in force.

October 1, 2024

Alabama HB 164 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform “reasonable age verification” to prevent minors from accessing the harmful material. Pornographic websites are also required to display a health warning.

November 1, 2024

Oklahoma SB 1959 Prohibits commercial entities from distributing adult material without age verification.

January 1 2025

Florida HB 3 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform “reasonable method of age verification” to prevent minors from accessing the harmful material.  Adult sites must offer at least one option of anonymized age verification. After the social media restrictions in HB 3 were blocked by a federal judge in June 2025, the porn-age-check requirement did remain after plaintiffs dropped that portion of the challenge in July 2025.

Tennessee SB 1792 Requires an individual or commercial entity that publishes or distributes a website that contains a substantial portion of material harmful to minors perform reasonable age-verification methods to verify the age of individuals attempting to access the material. Also specifies that a violation of age-verification or data retention requirements is a Class C felony.

South Carolina HB 3424 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform "reasonable age verification" to prevent minors from accessing the harmful material. Establishes penalties for noncompliance and outlines enforcement measures.

July 1 2025

Georgia SB 351 Requires social media companies to verify the age of users and gain parental consent for under 16’s.

Wyoming HB 43 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform "reasonable age verification". Includes private right of action.

South Dakota HB 1053 Requires websites for which it is in the regular course of the website's trade or business to create, host, or make available material that is harmful to minors to implement "reasonable age verification".

August 1 2025

North Dakota HB 1561 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform "reasonable age verification". Includes private right of action.

September 26, 2025

Arizona HB 2112 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform "reasonable age verification". Includes private right of action.

September 30, 2025

Ohio HB 96 Requires websites displaying material “obscene or harmful to juveniles” to use reasonable age verification and geofencing to block minors in Ohio. Mandates periodic re-verification, strict data deletion rules, and allows the Ohio Attorney General to enforce penalties for noncompliance.

November 30, 2025

Missouri 15 CSR 60-18 Requires websites where at least one-third of the content is pornographic to perform "reasonable age verification".

May 6, 2026

Utah SB 73 with the 2% excise tax beginning October 1; enhanced enforcement, AV standards/safe harbor and controversial VPN/location provisions currently being litigated.

August 1, 2026

North Dakota SB 2380 Requires device manufacturers, operating systems, and app stores to estimate the age of the primary user and transmit a digital age signal to websites and apps, which must block access to mature content for users under 18.

June 12, 2026

West Virginia HB 4412 Requires commercial entities that publish or distribute a substantial portion of sexual material harmful to minors to verify users are 18 or older using digital ID, government-issued identification or a commercially reasonable transactional-data method. Includes data-retention restrictions, civil liability and Attorney General enforcement.

July 1, 2026

Iowa HF 864 Requires operators of internet sites, applications, or portions thereof containing a substantial amount of material pornographic for minors to use reasonable age verification to prevent minors from accessing that material. Permitted methods include digital identification, commercially reasonable methods relying on transactional data, and methods approved by the Attorney General.

August 28, 2026

Missouri HCS HBs 1839, 2921 & 3015 Establishes a statutory age-verification requirement for commercial websites, including social-media platforms, where more than one-third of the material is sexual material harmful to minors. Requires third-party reasonable age verification, prohibits retention of identifying information by the verification provider and provides Attorney General enforcement and civil penalties

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Other Notable State-Level Activity:

• Pennsylvania SB 603 is a 2025–26 bill “Requiring Age Verification for Internet Pornography”
• New Jersey - 2 bills (see above)