- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As enacted)
Online Safety Act 2023
You are here:
What Version
Advanced Features
- Show Geographical Extent(e.g. England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)
- Show Timeline of Changes
Opening Options
Changes to legislation:
Online Safety Act 2023, PART 1 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 02 December 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Changes to Legislation
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. Changes and effects are recorded by our editorial team in lists which can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area. Where those effects have yet to be applied to the text of the legislation by the editorial team they are also listed alongside the legislation in the affected provisions. Use the ‘more’ link to open the changes and effects relevant to the provision you are viewing.
Changes and effects yet to be applied to Schedule 14 Part 1:
- Sch. 7 para. 28A inserted by S.I. 2024/1188 reg. 2(2)
Changes and effects yet to be applied to the whole Act associated Parts and Chapters:
Whole provisions yet to be inserted into this Act (including any effects on those provisions):
- Sch. 7 para. 28A inserted by S.I. 2024/1188 reg. 2(2)
PART 1U.K.Amendments consequential on offences in sections 179, 181 and 183
Football Spectators Act 1989U.K.
1In Schedule 1 to the Football Spectators Act 1989 (football banning orders: relevant offences), after paragraph 1(z) insert—
“(z1)any offence under section 179 (false communications) or 181 (threatening communications) of the Online Safety Act 2023—
(i)which does not fall within paragraph (d), (e), (m), (n), (r) or (s),
(ii)as respects which the court has stated that the offence is aggravated by hostility of any of the types mentioned in section 66(1) of the Sentencing Code (racial hostility etc), and
(iii)as respects which the court makes a declaration that the offence related to a football match, to a football organisation or to a person whom the accused knew or believed to have a prescribed connection with a football organisation.”
Commencement Information
I1Sch. 14 para. 1 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)
I2Sch. 14 para. 1 in force at 31.1.2024 by S.I. 2024/31, reg. 2
Sexual Offences Act 2003U.K.
2In Schedule 5 to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, in the list of offences for England and Wales, after paragraph 63C insert—
“63DAn offence under section 179 of the Online Safety Act 2023 (false communications).
63EAn offence under section 181 of that Act (threatening communications).”
Commencement Information
I3Sch. 14 para. 2 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)
I4Sch. 14 para. 2 in force at 31.1.2024 by S.I. 2024/31, reg. 2
3U.K.In Schedule 5 to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, in the list of offences for Northern Ireland, after paragraph 171H insert—
“171IAn offence under section 179 of the Online Safety Act 2023 (false communications).
171JAn offence under section 181 of that Act (threatening communications).”
Commencement Information
I5Sch. 14 para. 3 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)
I6Sch. 14 para. 3 in force at 31.1.2024 by S.I. 2024/31, reg. 2
Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008U.K.
4In Schedule 3 to the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 (relevant enactments for the purposes of relevant functions to which Parts 1 and 2 of that Act apply), at the appropriate place insert—
“Online Safety Act 2023, sections 179 and 181”.
Commencement Information
I7Sch. 14 para. 4 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)
I8Sch. 14 para. 4 in force at 31.1.2024 by S.I. 2024/31, reg. 2
Elections Act 2022U.K.
5In Schedule 9 to the Elections Act 2022 (offences for purposes of Part 5), in Part 2, after paragraph 52 insert—
“Online Safety Act 2023
52AAn offence under any of the following provisions of the Online Safety Act 2023—
(a)section 179 (false communications);
(b)section 181 (threatening communications);
(c)section 183 (sending or showing flashing images).”
Commencement Information
I9Sch. 14 para. 5 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 240(1)
I10Sch. 14 para. 5 in force at 31.1.2024 by S.I. 2024/31, reg. 2
Options/Help
Print Options
PrintThe Whole Act
PrintThe Whole Schedule
PrintThis Part only
You have chosen to open The Whole Act
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
You have chosen to open The Whole Act as a PDF
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
You have chosen to open the Whole Act
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
You have chosen to open the Whole Act without Schedules
The Whole Act without Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
You have chosen to open Schedules only
The Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Legislation is available in different versions:
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
See additional information alongside the content
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Opening Options
Different options to open legislation in order to view more content on screen at once
Explanatory Notes
Text created by the government department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Public Acts except Appropriation, Consolidated Fund, Finance and Consolidation Acts.
More Resources
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as enacted version that was used for the print copy
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- correction slips
- links to related legislation and further information resources
Timeline of Changes
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
More Resources
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as enacted version that was used for the print copy
- correction slips
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including:
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- links to related legislation and further information resources
All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. This site additionally contains content derived from EUR-Lex, reused under the terms of the Commission Decision 2011/833/EU on the reuse of documents from the EU institutions. For more information see the EUR-Lex public statement on re-use.