France has taken a major step for schools as students will now not be allowed to use mobile phones and other connected devices in high schools from the beginning of the 2026-27 school year. The move is part of the government's broader initiative to limit screen time, enhance focus and foster a more tranquil school atmosphere.
The new school year on September 1 will be the beginning of the France mobile phone ban in high schools. The French Education Ministry announced on August 25 that the ban would be extended across the country, with students to have a "school experience" without mobile phones from primary education to lycée.
The policy coincides with France's review of children's access to social media. The government is now looking into a new plan after the Constitutional Council recently invalidated a bill that would have prohibited social media access for children under 15.
What does France's high school mobile phone ban mean?
The new rules will mean that mobile phones and other connected communication devices will not be permitted in school. Each high school will set out how the restriction will operate in its internal regulations. Individual lockers, collective storage boxes or individual pouches can be used to store phones out of sight during the school day.
The rules are extensions of those already in place in French schools and middle schools. The purpose is to ensure consistency in expectations regarding the use of the phone during a student's school experience, the government says.
Why is France prohibiting the use of phones in high schools?
The policy has been associated with concerns about excessive screen time and its effects on students' concentration, wellbeing and social interaction, by the French government. The average time spent by young people (15-19) on screens was 5 hours and 19 minutes per day, according to a study by the National Book Centre for the Education Ministry in 2025, using the Ipsos survey. The ministry has also raised issues of sleep, focus, cyberbullying and misinformation. Minimising phone use during school hours will help to create conditions more conducive to learning and improve student interaction, the government states.
How will the phone ban be implemented in French schools?
Individual schools will make their own arrangements. Students may be asked to leave their phones in lockers on arrival and collect them at the end of the day or hand them over for collective storage or place them in individual pouches which are locked until students leave school.
Schools will also have the option to have their own policies for addressing violations. The phone may be confiscated, or a student may be disciplined, depending on the situation. Responses are to be proportionate and appropriate to the situation as per the rules.
Is there any exception to the mobile phone ban in France?
Yes. This is not a hard and fast rule. Schools may allow the use of a phone or connected device for educational purposes when it is under the supervision of a member of the educational community. Other exceptions may be added to a school's internal rules, such as some uses in documentation and information centres.
Medical use is also covered. Students with a disability or an invalidating health condition may use connected devices as needed for medical purposes. High schools that offer higher-education programmes (e.g., preparatory classes, higher technician sections) may have special arrangements for students enrolled in those programmes.
France's phone ban comes after setback to under-15 social media law
The high school mobile phone restrictions are part of a broader French initiative to control the use of digital technology by young people. France's Constitutional Council on August 14 has ruled against a measure in a law banning social media for minors under 15. The Council determined that the measure violated constitutional rights, such as freedom of expression and privacy.
The government plans to move forward with a new law to safeguard children online, President Emmanuel Macron said. The government will thus be left with the task of balancing child protection with constitutional rights in its next proposal.
What is the fate of students from September 2026?
The use of mobile phones in school will be more strictly monitored from the start of the 2026-27 school year, even for students in high school. The policy does not prohibit students from owning phones. Rather, it limits their use in school and leaves it up to each lycée to determine how devices will be kept out of the way.
The shift represents a major step forward for France in its education policy on mobile phones. The government now wishes to make the school day a place where the use of smartphones is much less prominent, with limited space for educational, medical and other authorised uses.
