The Online Safety Act 2023 (Commencement No. 6) Regulations 2025
S.I. 2025/888 · Made 17 July 2025
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS
Made 17th July 2025
The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 240(1) and (2) of the Online Safety Act 2023f1.
Annotations to the whole text
Footnotes
- f1
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2023 c. 50. Section 240(3) of that Act prevents section 210 from being commenced before the end of the period of six months beginning with the date specified in regulations made under paragraph 8(1) of Schedule 3. Regulation 2 of S.I. 2024/571 specified that date as 2nd September 2024.
Contents
1Citation and extent
These Regulations may be cited as the Online Safety Act 2023 (Commencement No. 6) Regulations 2025.
These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
2Provisions coming into force on 25th July 2025
Section 210 of the Online Safety Act 2023 (repeal of Part 4B of the Communications Act 2003f1) comes into force on 25th July 2025.
Signature
Jones of Whitchurch
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
17th July 2025
Explanatory note
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations are the sixth commencement regulations made under the Online Safety Act 2023 (c. 50) (“the 2023 Act”). They bring into force section 210 of the 2023 Act, which repeals the video-sharing platform regulatory regime under Part 4B of the Communications Act 2003 (c. 21) (“the 2003 Act”). Services known as “pre-existing Part 4B services” (defined in paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 17 to the 2023 Act) have been regulated under both the 2003 Act and the 2023 Act since entering a transition period on 10th January 2024. Detailed transitional arrangements are provided for in Schedule 17 to the 2023 Act.
These Regulations mark the end of the transition period. From 25th July 2025, pre-existing Part 4B services will be regulated wholly under the 2023 Act and will be subject to each of the relevant duties of care specified in Part 3 of the 2023 Act.
A full impact assessment has been published in relation to the 2023 Act and copies can be obtained from the UK Government website at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-safety-act-enactment-impact-assessment or from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology at 100 Parliament Street, London, SW1A 2BQ, United Kingdom.