Brazil bans loot boxes for under 18s in online child safety measure

• The sale of loot boxes to under-18s will be banned in Brazil from March 2026.
• Stricter safeguards will also come into place for games where children can exchange messages, audio or video.

Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has signed into law a ban on selling loot boxes to children.

Beginning in March 2026, games that target children or teenagers will no longer be allowed to feature loot boxes, as part of broader child safety measures.

However, the law implies that games with an adult age rating will be able to sell loot boxes, as the ban is on "content manifestly inappropriate to your age group".

For the "best interest" of children

Brazilian authorities began to investigate loot boxes as a form of gambling in 2021, after the National Association of Child Adolescent Defense Centers insisted they be banned. High-profile companies like Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts and Tencent were questioned at the time.

Now, the president of Brazil has signed the law, Lei 15.211/2025, into action.

The law also suggests companies should allow parents and legal guardians to prevent access to content deemed "inappropriate" for children.

"For the purposes of this law, it is considered an expression of the best interest of the child and adolescent the protection of their privacy, safety, health - mental and physical, access to information, freedom of participation in society, significant access to digital technologies, and wellbeing," the law stated, auto-translated into English.

Stricter safeguards are also on the way for games where under-18s may exchange messages, audio or videos.

Penalties for non-compliance could include a warning, a deadline to implement corrective measures by, a fine of up to 10% of turnover in Brazil, temporary suspension and more.

The crackdown on loot boxes as part of child safety concerns has drawn some comparison to the Online Safety Act in the UK. Though loot boxes aren’t banned in the region, the act has introduced new regulations requiring users to verify their age before accessing "harmful but legal" content.

Our Mobile Mavens recently weighed in on the Online Safety Act with thoughts on prohibitive fines, moderation expectations on UGC platforms and more.