It won’t be a holiday without the obligatory selfie in front of a landmark but a new European Union law banning photos containing public buildings on social media could be in force soon.

If the law is passed, travellers who post selfies of themselves in front of the Eiffel Tower and other landmarks on social sites such as Facebook, Instagram or Twitter can only do so with prior consent from the owner of the copyright or risk prosecution. 

Aimed to clamp down on commercial photographers, it’s possible that ordinary holidaymakers could face a fine or even jail time if the landmarks are not removed or blacked out in the picture.

Of course, not everyone is happy with the idea. Net activists and photographers are threatening to fight back with photo organisation Freelens saying: ‘Gaining permission for a photo of every building in Europe is unrealistic.’

We are not sure if the law is actually happening yet but hey, maybe it’s time to tour Europe and post as many pictures as possible on social media before this law actually come to pass!

Check out affordable Europe tour packages or self-tours here!

(Content and image source: TVNZ)