Under-18s will no longer be able to get Botox and dermal lip fillers for cosmetic reasons under a new law in England.

The Botulinum Toxin and Cosmetic Fillers (Children) Act comes into force today and makes it illegal to administer the products or book appointments for people under 18.

The Department of Health and Social Care said failure to comply with the law “could result in a criminal prosecution and an unlimited fine”.

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The law also applies to those visiting from outside England or who have the permission of someone aged over 18.

But treatments can still be approved by a medical practitioner where there is a clinical need, to be carried out by a doctor, nurse, dentist, or pharmacist.

Former health minister Nadine Dorries announced the law last month after a spike in the number of young people attempting to achieve an “Instagram face”.

Writing in the Mail on 5 September, Ms Dorries, who was appointed as the culture secretary in Boris Johnson’s recent cabinet reshuffle, wrote: “No child needs cosmetic procedures unless for medical reasons. Their physical and mental development is not complete.”

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The change comes after MPs said a “complete absence” of regulation of beauty treatments such as Botox and fillers is putting the public at risk – and “maintaining the status quo is not an option”.

There wasn’t any legal framework addressing standards around non-surgical aesthetic treatments, which left consumers at risk and undermined the industry’s ability to develop, an all-party parliamentary group on beauty, aesthetics, and wellbeing found.

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