Are AI girlfriends legal? The laws that apply to the apps in 2026

The short answer by region

Other countries have their own rules on adult content, data and online services, and some restrict adult material far more tightly. Our guide to AI girlfriend laws by country goes through them one by one.

Companion chatbot laws in New York and California

Two US states now regulate AI companions directly.

New York

New York's AI companion law, General Business Law Article 47, took effect on 5 November 2025. According to the Governor's office, companies must detect signs of suicidal ideation or self-harm and direct users to crisis services, and must tell users they are talking to AI at the start of a session and every three hours of continued use. The law covers systems "designed to simulate human relationships with users", such as an AI friend or romantic partner, and the Attorney General enforces it.

California

California's SB 243 was approved on 13 October 2025. It defines a companion chatbot as an AI system that gives "adaptive, human-like responses" and is "capable of meeting a user's social needs". Operators must:

• Show a clear notice that the chatbot is not human where a reasonable person could think otherwise.
• Keep protocols against producing suicide or self-harm content, with referrals to crisis services.
• For users known to be minors, remind them every three hours to take a break, and take reasonable steps to stop sexually explicit material.
• Report crisis referrals to the state from July 2027.

Users can sue for at least $1,000 per violation.

Age verification for 18+ content

Every app we track is for adults, and the law increasingly expects them to check. In the US, the Supreme Court upheld Texas's age-verification law for sites with sexual content in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, decided on 27 June 2025, finding that "adults have no First Amendment right to avoid age verification."

In the UK, Ofcom has said that sites and apps with generative AI tools that can create pornographic material are regulated under the Online Safety Act. Highly effective age checks have been required since 25 July 2025, and Ofcom can fine a company up to £18 million or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue.

The apps are responding. OurDream says UK and Australian users must pass a third-party check (face age estimation, a selfie, ID or a card), and Roger and Swipey AI ask UK users to verify with Yoti and Ondato respectively. Our guide to AI girlfriend age verification explains each method.

What is illegal on any AI girlfriend app

• Anything involving minors. Sexual content involving or resembling minors is illegal and banned by every app's rules. Candy AI's content policy, for example, says such material is removed and child sexual abuse material is reported to NCMEC.
• Sexual deepfakes of real people. The US Take It Down Act, signed in May 2025, makes it a crime to knowingly publish intimate images without consent, including AI deepfakes, and gives platforms 48 hours to remove them once a victim asks.
• Impersonating real people. App rules commonly ban this too. Candy AI's, for example, prohibit deepfakes of real people and deceptive impersonation of celebrities. Uploading a photo of an ex or a coworker to make a character can break both the app's rules and the law.

The EU adds its own layer. From 2 August 2026, Article 50 of the AI Act requires that people are informed when they are interacting with an AI system unless it is obvious, and that deepfakes are labeled as artificially generated.

Privacy law and your chats

AI girlfriend apps handle unusually sensitive data, and regulators have noticed. In April 2025 Italy's data protection authority fined Replika's developer Luka Inc. 5 million euros, finding it had no age verification at sign-up or during use, had not identified a legal basis for its data processing and gave an inadequate privacy notice.

China's December 2025 draft rules go further on consent. According to Sixth Tone's report, users would have to give explicit consent before their conversations are used to train AI models, and platforms would have to prompt users to stop after two hours of continuous use.

In the US, the FTC opened an inquiry in September 2025 into how seven companies, including Character Technologies, Meta, OpenAI and xAI, measure and limit harms from companion chatbots to children and teens. Our guide to whether AI girlfriend apps read your chats covers what each app's privacy policy allows.

Is it legal for you to use one?

For an adult in the US, UK or EU, yes. Using an AI girlfriend app breaks no law, and the obligations above fall on the companies, not on you. Three things can still get you in trouble:

1. Being under 18. Every app's terms require you to be an adult, and lying about your age breaks those terms.
2. Using real people's images or names for sexual content, which can be a crime.
3. Local law. Some countries restrict adult content far more than the US or UK. Secrets AI's terms, for example, say the site is for use outside places where its content is illegal or subject to age verification, so check your own country's rules.

If you want explicit content, our list of NSFW AI girlfriend apps covers which apps allow it and how they check age.