Unable to change age for under 13 account on iPhone

I set up my grandsons phone to under 13. Now I want to change it to a normal phone since he is not climbing out of his car seat and does fine playing with a toy instead. The phone won't let me change the age so I can use it as my house phone again. 


I went to setting change age but it doesn’t allow it. I logged into iCloud for that phone specifically and I can’t seem to change it from my iPhone either.

he is 3 he isn’t trying to change the age and I want my phone back to normal.



[Edited by Moderator]

iPhone 13 mini

Posted on Aug 24, 2025 11:28 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Aug 24, 2025 1:44 PM

Read this support article about updating the birth date for a child Apple Account to a non-child status: Update the birth date associated with your Apple Account - Apple Support

“To change a birth date of any child account set to an age below 13*, you might have to wait for the account to naturally age up. If you see ‘your birth date cannot be changed to this date’, you can’t change to a birth date that would no longer be a child account.”

Without actually trying to change ages on an account myself to test what is possible, the second sentence suggests to me it may be possible to change to a younger age but not to an older one.

Apple says, “Might have to wait.” Earlier versions of the article said, "If you need to change the birth date for someone below age 13, contact Apple Support,” but that was removed from the support article late 2024. Apple’s wording in its support articles is sometimes open to interpretation and they dislike using definite terms, particularly if it has a negative context. Since “might” also leaves open the possibility ”might not”, I wonder if contacting Apple and asking them to do this is still an option? This page has telephone numbers for contacting Apple for support and service ➔ Contact Apple Support - Apple Support

An alternative would be to create a new Apple Account (losing some things done with the previous one) . If this is going from a younger child to an older child, but still a child according to Apple, use this method ➔ Create an Apple Account for your child - Apple Support If this is for a child to an adult aged account, use this method ➔ How to create a new Apple Account - Apple Support


3 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 24, 2025 1:44 PM in response to MichaelaY1

Read this support article about updating the birth date for a child Apple Account to a non-child status: Update the birth date associated with your Apple Account - Apple Support

“To change a birth date of any child account set to an age below 13*, you might have to wait for the account to naturally age up. If you see ‘your birth date cannot be changed to this date’, you can’t change to a birth date that would no longer be a child account.”

Without actually trying to change ages on an account myself to test what is possible, the second sentence suggests to me it may be possible to change to a younger age but not to an older one.

Apple says, “Might have to wait.” Earlier versions of the article said, "If you need to change the birth date for someone below age 13, contact Apple Support,” but that was removed from the support article late 2024. Apple’s wording in its support articles is sometimes open to interpretation and they dislike using definite terms, particularly if it has a negative context. Since “might” also leaves open the possibility ”might not”, I wonder if contacting Apple and asking them to do this is still an option? This page has telephone numbers for contacting Apple for support and service ➔ Contact Apple Support - Apple Support

An alternative would be to create a new Apple Account (losing some things done with the previous one) . If this is going from a younger child to an older child, but still a child according to Apple, use this method ➔ Create an Apple Account for your child - Apple Support If this is for a child to an adult aged account, use this method ➔ How to create a new Apple Account - Apple Support


Aug 24, 2025 2:03 PM in response to Limnos

+1


Re: “…. Apple’s wording in its support articles is sometimes open to interpretation and they dislike using definite terms, particularly if it has a negative context …


Another example on this very same subject:


Create an Apple Account for your child - Apple Support currently reads:


”… Be sure to enter the correct birth date — you’re limited in what you can change it to later … “


While previous versions of this same article read much more definitively, “… you can’t change it later …”






This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Unable to change age for under 13 account on iPhone

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.