ChatGPT age verification: why it asks for your ID or a selfie, and what to do

ChatGPT asks for a live selfie or an identity document for one of two reasons. Either rules where you live require an age check, which OpenAI says is the case in Italy, or ChatGPT has guessed that you may be under 18 and switched on its teen protections, which an adult can remove with the check. A separate company called Persona does the check, and OpenAI says it receives only age information, such as your date of birth, not your photos. Start the check from the ChatGPT app or website you normally use, never from a link in a message.

This site is written with AI tools, including Claude by Anthropic. This page uses only what makers, public authorities and published studies say, with links. The pages cited were read on 31 October 2026 and change often. For the bigger picture, see AI for everyone.

Why is ChatGPT asking me to verify my age?

OpenAI’s page Why am I being asked to verify my age? says that “to comply with legal requirements, users in some locations are required to verify their age”. Italy is the only country it names.

The second reason is age prediction, an automatic guess about whether an account belongs to someone under 18. According to Age prediction in ChatGPT, it looks at signals such as the general topics you talk about, the times of day you use ChatGPT, and how long your account has existed. It can place you in the teen mode even if you gave an adult date of birth at sign-up. Your account stays active, and you get an email and a prompt asking you to verify.

The teen mode, which OpenAI calls ChatGPT for Teens, is the same ChatGPT, handling some topics with extra care and reducing sensitive content such as graphic violence, risky viral challenges, sexual, romantic or violent role play and unhealthy dieting. It can limit some features and shows no ads.

Why is this happening in Italy, and what does the law say?

OpenAI’s page mentions “Italy’s required age-verification deadline” but does not name the rule behind it.

Italian Law 132 of 23 September 2025 on artificial intelligence, in force since 10 October 2025, says in Article 4, paragraph 4 that children under 14 need the consent of a parent or guardian to use AI technologies and to have their data processed for it. From 14 to 17 they can agree themselves to the use of their data, if the information they are given is easy to find and understand. The law does not name ChatGPT and does not say how age must be checked.

The Garante, Italy’s data protection authority, ordered OpenAI on 11 April 2023 to present a plan for age verification that would keep out children under 13, and minors without a parent’s consent, with the system in place from 30 September 2023 at the latest. A later Garante decision of 2 November 2024, which fined OpenAI 15 million euros and found it had no age checks, has been temporarily removed from the Garante’s site after a Court of Rome judgment, published on 18 March 2026, upheld the appeal against it. No official text found for this page says which rule requires the check ChatGPT uses today.

Who sees my ID and selfie, and for how long?

Persona, a separate company, does the check. Depending on your country, it may ask for a live selfie (a photo taken in real time with your phone or webcam), a government ID, or both; in Italy, it may ask for both. Persona checks your date of birth and that your face matches the ID photo. OpenAI says you may cover ID numbers before uploading.

According to OpenAI’s age prediction page:

Persona deletes your uploaded ID or selfie within 7 days after verification.
OpenAI does not receive the ID or the selfie, only your date of birth or an age prediction.
After you verify, OpenAI stops running age prediction on your account.

Persona’s own help page on deleting your data says the business you verify with decides how long your data is kept, and that deletion requests start with that business, here OpenAI. Questions about age prediction go to [email protected]. For your chats, see What happens to what you type.

What if I miss the deadline, and how do I get my account back?

OpenAI’s page gives no fixed number of days: follow the deadline shown for your account. If you miss it, access may be restricted, and in Italy accounts can be deactivated. Waiting does not help: OpenAI’s page on deleting your account says waiting 30 days does not reactivate a deactivated account.

To recover an account deactivated after Italy’s deadline:

Try signing in, and select Verify your age on the deactivation screen.
Or restart verification through Stripe, a payments company, without signing in, using your OpenAI account’s email address (an Apple “Hide My Email” address too, if you used one).
When verification has finished processing, sign in again. If the link does not work, contact OpenAI Support.

The Stripe check restores access but does not change the age status used for the teen mode; adults who want teen protections removed verify with Persona afterwards. OpenAI’s page does not say what the Stripe check asks for, and its promise that OpenAI never receives your ID is written for Persona only. Stripe’s FAQ on Stripe Identity, its identity-checking service, says it captures images of you and your photo ID, that the business which asked for the check can see them, that Stripe removes face data within one year, and that it keeps other data for 7 years, which the business can delete sooner. You can withdraw consent to the use of your face data at [email protected].

I’m an adult and ChatGPT treats me as a teenager: what do I do?

Sign in to ChatGPT on the web, iPhone or Android.
Open Settings, then Account, then Age, and select Verify age.
Follow the steps with Persona.

OpenAI warns of a temporary problem: on phones Verify age may appear even when your account cannot use it. On the web, if the Persona screen opens, you can go ahead. If the screen closes in the Android app, update the app, allow camera access or use a web browser. Without a camera, use another device or an ID. If the check fails, the teen protections may stay.

How do I tell a real request from a scam?

OpenAI’s pages tell you to sign in and follow the instructions shown for your account, so the safe route is to open ChatGPT yourself.

Do not use the link in an email or text. For messages that seem to come from a bank, Italy’s Polizia Postale advises typing the address you know into the browser and checking that the site is the real one, not a copy. The same habit works here.
Be wary of pressure. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre lists warning signs such as a message claiming to come from someone official or giving you little time, and advises contacting the organisation through its official website.
On 31 October 2026, OpenAI’s pages name only Persona for the age check and Stripe for account recovery, and say you may cover ID numbers on your document. A message naming another company is a reason to check inside ChatGPT first.

If you think you clicked a fake link or gave data away, the Polizia Postale website has a “Segnala online” service for reporting online crimes.

Where to go next

AI for everyone: what AI is and how to start using it safely.
What happens to what you type: how ChatGPT and the other assistants store and use your chats.
Is ChatGPT free?: what the free version gives and when the paid plans make sense.

Common questions

Is it safe to send my ID or a selfie to Persona for ChatGPT?

OpenAI's help page says Persona deletes the uploaded ID or selfie within 7 days after the check, and that OpenAI receives only age information such as your date of birth, not the images. You may cover ID numbers before uploading. No check is free of risk, so the safest habit is to start it only from inside ChatGPT, never from a link in an email or text.

Is the Stripe verification for ChatGPT real?

Yes, OpenAI's help page says that if your account was deactivated for missing Italy's age-verification deadline, you can restart verification through Stripe without signing in. Stripe's own FAQ on its identity service says the business that asked for the check can see the captured images, that Stripe removes face data within one year and keeps other data for 7 years, which the business can delete sooner. Reach the Stripe step from OpenAI's help page or the deactivation screen, not from a message you did not expect.

How many days do I have to verify my age on ChatGPT?

OpenAI's help page, as read on 31 October 2026, gives no fixed number of days. It says to follow the deadline shown for your account. If you miss a required deadline, access may be restricted until the check is complete.

Does ChatGPT use Yoti to check age?

On 31 October 2026 OpenAI's help pages name Persona for the age check, including in Italy, and Stripe for recovering an account deactivated after Italy's deadline. They do not mention Yoti. If a message names another company, open ChatGPT yourself and check what your account actually asks.

Can I keep using ChatGPT without verifying my age?

It depends on why you were asked. If age prediction moved you into ChatGPT for Teens, your account stays active with teen protections, and verifying is optional. If ChatGPT shows a required age-verification notice, as in Italy, access may be restricted after the deadline until you complete the check.

Does OpenAI see my ID document?

OpenAI says it does not. For Persona checks, it receives only what it needs to set up the right experience for your account, such as whether you are 18 or older and your date of birth. OpenAI's page makes this statement for Persona, not for the Stripe recovery check.

Topics: ChatGPT, age verification, privacy, teens, Italy, phishing