Steam can now automatically verify the age of users in Australia based on account age, as explained on the Steam Support page about Age Assurance in Australia. Steam will automatically consider an account’s age verified if that account has existed for at least nine years and has a consistent email address or billing information.
For users in Australia, the Age-Restricted Material Online Safety Codes require Steam to verify that a user is over 18 years of age before they can view store and community pages for games rated R18+. Age verification only needs to be completed once for each Steam account. Games that have already been purchased can still be played.
If an account does not qualify for automatic verification, the user can verify manually by adding a credit card to the Steam account, with no obligation to make a purchase. Steam says a debit card cannot be used for age verification under those codes.
The eSafety Commissioner, Australia’s independent regulator for online safety, noted in a transparency report on online game services that Valve began requiring credit-card verification for users in Australia to access R18+ games on 9 September 2026. The obligation to prevent children in Australia from buying or downloading games classified R18+ is set out in the App Distribution Services Online Safety Code (Class 1C and Class 2 Material), which the eSafety Commissioner explains on its FAQ page about the Age-Restricted Material Codes.
Steam says it understands that not all Australians can verify their age with the options now available, and is looking into other ways to comply with Australia’s age verification rules while limiting the user data it collects and stores. Users who have trouble adding a credit card to their account are asked to open a Steam Support ticket.
