Ages of consent in Europe
Encyclopedia
The ages of consent for sexual activity vary by jurisdiction across Europe
. Spain
(age 13) has the lowest age of consent, while Malta
and Turkey
are at the highest end (both age 18). The laws can also stipulate the specific activities that are permitted and/or differentially specify the age at which a given sex can participate. Below is a discussion of the various laws dealing with this subject. The highlighted age is that at which, or above which, an individual can engage in unfettered sexual relations with another who is also at or above that age. The self-declared state of the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
' is the only jurisdiction in Europe that still has a sodomy law
that bans gay sex. Other variables may exist, for close-in-age exceptions, for defences in Greece
(applicable to heterosexual and lesbian sexual conduct only, not for gay male sexual conduct), however the age of consent in Greece
is mostly 15 for all, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender (as shown below in more detail). All other jurisdictions in Europe have an equal and gender-neutral
age of consent.
The below is a list of all jurisdictions in Europe as listed in List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Europe.
is 14, regardless of gender and sexual orientation, and in the case of a girl, sex is also illegal if she is older than 14, but has not reached "sexual maturity", as provided by article 100 of the criminal code.
is 16, as specified by Article 206, which reads: "Whoever, without violence or intimidation, has had a carnal relationship with a minor older than fourteen years and less than sixteen years will be punished by a maximum penalty of imprisonment of six years."
is 16.
Article 141. Sexual acts with a person under 16.
Sexual intercourse or other sexual acts with a person obviously under 16, by a person who reached 18 years of age, in the absence of elements of crime envisaged in Articles 138, 139 or 140 of this Code, is punished with correctional labor for the term of up to 2 years, or with imprisonment for the term of up to 2 years.
is 14, as specified by Section 206 of the penal code. (The term unmündig is specified in Section 74 of the penal code.) Paragraph 4 of Section 206 defines a close-in-age exception of max. three years.
However, Section 207b of the penal code contains an exception to the general age of consent: if one of the partners is younger than 16 years of age and “not sufficiently mature to understand the significance of the act”, then the act is punishable.
On 24 June 2002, the Austrian Constitutional Court ruled that Section 209 was unconstitutional. The Section was later repealed on 14 August 2002. On 9 January 2003, the European Court of Human Rights held, in L & V v Austria, that Section 209 violated Articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights
.
is 16.
Article 152
Sexual intercourse with the person below the age of 16 years-old, as well as the same offences linked with satisfaction of sexual passion in perverted forms shall be
punished by imprisonment up to 3 years.
is 16, as specified by Articles 168 and 169, which read: "Sexual relations, sodomy, lesbian acts or other actions of sexual character of an adult, reached eighteen years of age, with a person who obviously has not reached sixteen years of age, at absence of attributes of the crimes stipulated by articles 166 and 167 present codes, are punished by restriction of freedom of two years to four years or by imprisonment of two years to five years." and "Dissolute actions accomplished by a person, reached eighteen years of age, concerning a person who obviously has not reached sixteen years of age, at absence of attributes of the crimes stipulated by articles 166, 167 and 168 present codes, are punished by arrest of about six months or imprisonment of one year to three years."
is 16, as specified by Article 372, which reads:
"All indecent assaults on modesty committed without violence or threat, by a person or by aiding the person, of a child of either sex, aged less than sixteen, will be punished by imprisonment (of five years to ten years).
Article 207
Sexual Intercourse with a Child
(1) Whoever performs sexual intercourse or equivalent sexual act on a child, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term between one and eight years.
Article 2
Meaning of Terms as Used in This Code
(8) A child, as referred to in this Code, is a person who has not reached fourteen years of age.
Article 209
Satisfying Lust in the Presence of a Child or Juvenile
Whoever, in the presence of a child or juvenile, performs acts aimed at satisfying his own lust or the lust of a third person, or whoever induces a child to submit to such acts in his presence or in the presence of a third person, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term between three months and three years.
Article 205(2) prohibits sexual intercourse with a juvenile (defined as a person under 18) by "abuse of position".
is 14, as specified by Articles 149 and 151 (1). However Article 151(2) has a provision for those who are over 14 and do "not understand the characteristics or the importance of the act."
Art. 151. (1) Who copulates with a person who has not accomplished 14 years of age,
inasmuch as the act does not constitute a crime according to art. 152, shall be punished by
imprisonment of two to five years.'
Art. 149. (1) Who commits an act in order to arouse or satisfy a sexual desire without a copulation regarding a person who has not accomplished 14 years of age shall be punished for fornication by imprisonment of up to five years.
is 14 as specified by the Croatian Criminal Code. The acts themselves ban "sexual relations with a child" while it is later defined that a child is a person under the age of 14.
under the 2002 Criminal Code is 17, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender.
In 2002, under pressure from the EU the parliament finally ended the disparate provisions and changed the age of consent to 17 for both hetero and homosexual acts, under a new Criminal Code.
has the age of consent for females at 16 as designated in the Penal Code (Ceza Yasası, Art. 154). Sexual contact with a female between 13 and 16 years of age is considered a misdemeanour (Ceza Yasası, Art. 153). There is no age of consent for males and Northern Cyprus maintains sodomy law
s abolished in the Republic of Cyprus, making sexual contact between males illegal and perpetrators of "sexual acts against the order of nature" (both penetrating and receiving) are punished with up to 5 years of imprisonment.
is 15, as specified by the Czech Penal Code, Section 242, which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child under fifteen (15) years of age or who sexually abuses such a person by other way shall be sentenced to imprisonment for at least one and at most eight years."
is 15 as specified by Section 222, part 1, which reads: "Any person who has sexual intercourse with any child under the age of fifteen will be liable to imprisonment for any term not exceeding eight years."
Section 223, part 1, reads: "Any person who has sexual intercourse with any child under 18, who is said person's adopted child, stepchild or foster child, or who is entrusted to said person for education or upbringing, will be liable to imprisonment for any term not exceeding four years." This applies e.g. to teachers.
Until 1866, interaction "against nature" [anal intercourse] was punishable with the stakes. However, until the late 18th century the rule was never used, and, when it came into rule, the convicts were always pardoned to 7 years in jail: exactly the punishment introduced in the Penal Code 1866 but now only for homosexual acts.
is 15 §222, which reads;
(Translated: "The person, who has sexual intercourse with a child under 15 years [of age], will be punished with imprisonment up to 6 years.")
However it is 18 for those in a position of trust (E.g. teachers) §223, which reads;
("The person, who has sexual intercourse with a person under 18 years [of age], who is an adopted child, a stepchild, or a foster child; or whose teaching or upbringing they have been trusted with, will be punished with imprisonment up to 4 years.")
is 14, as specified by Section 145 (Sexual intercourse with a child), which reads: "An adult person who engages in sexual intercourse with a person of less than 14 years of age shall be punished by up to 5 years’ imprisonment."
is 16, as specified by Section 6(1) (Sexual abuse of a child), which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child younger than sixteen years of age ... shall be sentenced for sexual abuse of a child to imprisonment for at most four years."
The sexual act may not be punishable if "there is no great difference in the ages or the mental and physical maturity of the persons involved".
The age is 18 when in connection with a person who has some formal power over the young person, like a school teacher.
is 15, as specified by Article 227-25, which reads: "The commission without violence, constraint, threat or surprise of a sexual offence by an adult on the person of a child under fifteen years of age is punished by five years' imprisonment and a fine of €75,000."
Article 227-22 prohibits the "organisation by an adult of meetings involving indecent exposure or sexual relations in which minors are present or participating". (Minors refers to under 18s; the text of the article can be subject to interpretation).
Article 227-27 prohibits sexual relations with minors over age 15 (aged 15, 16 or 17) " 1° where they are committed by a legitimate, natural or adoptive ascendant or by any other person having authority over the victim; 2° where they are committed by a person abusing the authority conferred by his functions."
is 16 as per Georgian Penal Code Art. 140, and Art. 141.
is 14, as long as a person over the age of 21 does not exploit a 14–15 year-old person's lack of capacity for sexual self-determination. In this rare and special case, a conviction on an individual over the age of 21 requires a complaint from the younger individual; being over 21 and engaging in sexual relations with a minor of that age does not constitute an offense in and of itself. Otherwise the age of consent is 14, although provisions protecting minors against coercion apply until the age of 18.
As specified by Sections 176 (Sexual abuse of children) and 182 (Sexual abuse of youths), which read:
§ 176: "(1) Whoever commits sexual acts on a person under fourteen (14) years of age (a child) or allows them to be committed on himself by the child, shall be punished by imprisonment from six months to ten years [...]"
§ 180: "(1) Whoever abets the commission of sexual acts of a person under sixteen years of age on or in front of a third person or sexual acts of a third person on a person under sixteen years of age:
1. by acting as an intermediary; or
2. by furnishing or creating an opportunity,
shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine. [...]
§ 182: "(2) A person over twenty-one years of age who abuses a person under sixteen years of age, in that he: 1. commits sexual acts on the person or allows them to be committed on himself by the person; or 2. induces the person to commit sexual acts on a third person or to allow them to be committed on the person by a third person, and thereby exploits the victim's lack of capacity for sexual self-determination, shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine. [..] the act shall only be prosecuted upon complaint, unless the prosecuting authority considers ex officio that it is required to enter the case because of the special public interest therein. [..] the court may dispense with punishment pursuant to these provisions if , in consideration of the conduct of the person against whom the act was directed, the wrongfulness of the act is slight."
§ 176, § 182 of the German criminal code, including decisions of higher courts, legislative process, etc.
English translation: § 176 Sexual abuse of children, § 182 Sexual abuse of juveniles
penal law reform in 1994. The ages of 14 and 16 had been relevant since the coming into force of the Criminal Code for the German Empire in 1872: Under § 176, sexual acts with children under 14 were illegal and have been always since. Under § 182, seduction of an unblemished girl under the age of 16 was prosecuted upon complaint of parents or legal guardian only. In West Germany
the latter rule was kept, with minor changes in 1973: Unblemishedness was no longer required, and the court could refrain from punishment if the offender was under 21 years of age. The German Democratic Republic
, by contrast, created a new socialist criminal code in 1968. Under § 149, sexual acts with persons of the opposite sex between the ages of 14 and 16 were punishable if the victim's moral immaturity was exploited by using gifts, the promise of benefits or similar methods of persuasion to initiate intercourse or actions similar to intercourse.
Male homosexuality had been illegal under § 175
regardless of age since 1872. Female homosexuality was not prosecuted. In West Germany, male homosexuality was legalized in 1969. The age of consent was set to 21 years and in 1973 reduced to 18 years. Offenders could be only men 18 or older, and courts could refrain from punishment if the offender was not yet 21. In East Germany, the criminal code was supplemented in 1957 by a provision that allowed the waiving of prosecution if no harm had been done to socialist society by the unlawful act. Concerning § 175, this meant that male homosexual acts were now almost prosecuted only if they involved minors, which meant persons under 18. The new criminal code of 1968 officially legalized homosexuality and in § 151, which now was gender-neutral, criminalized only homosexual acts of adults with minors. In 1987 the GDR supreme court ruled homosexuality was a variant of sexual behaviour just as heterosexuality. In 1989 § 151 was repealed and § 149 amended to include any sexual orientation.
After German reunification, according to the Unification Treaty of 1990, the § 149 code section stayed in force for the territory of the former GDR, and West German § 175 and § 182 were not enacted here. The need for gender- and sexual-orientation-neutrality and for a new balancing of sexual self-determination and youth protection was also being seen by West German lawmakers. In the ensuing 1994 reform, the minimum age of 14 for all of Germany was kept, and in building on legal traditions of both states, sexual acts committed by a person above 21 with a minor under 16 involving exploitation of the minor's individual lack of capacity for sexual self-determination were made punishable in new § 182. §175 was abolished. In general, the need for complaint of the former West German law was kept, but in case of special public interest the offence was made prosecutable ex officio as had been the case in East German law.
all older versions and changes of § 175 (Homosexual acts)
current and all older versions and changes of § 176 (Sexual abuse of children)
current and all older versions and changes of § 182 (Sexual abuse of juveniles; until 1994: Seduction)
Further reading:
is 15.
The general provision for age of consent in Greece
is 15 as specified by Section 339(1) of the Penal Code, which reads:
However, Article 347 holds a further prohibition of "seducing" a young male person if the actor is an adult (amongst other prohibitions regarding positions of authority and acts of lewdness). In Greek law the age of majority
is set at 18. This effectively sets the age of consent for male homosexual activity to 17, with a close in age exception for those older than 15 and younger than 18.
Further reading:
is 14 as specified by Section 201 (Seduction), which reads: "The person who has sexual intercourse with a person who has not yet completed his 14th year, as well as the person who has completed his 18th year and engages in fornication with a person who has not yet exceeded his 14th year of age, commits a felony and shall be punishable with imprisonment from 1 to 5 years."
Click on Criminal Code of the Republic of Hungary (English version)
is 15, as specified by Section 202 of the Icelandic Penal Code, which reads: "Anyone who has carnal intercourse or other sexual intimacy with a child younger than 15 years shall be subject to imprisonment for at least 1 year and up to 16 years."
. However, the age of consent in the Nordic countries of Norway and Finland is 16.
is 17. Sex with a minor over the age of 15 carries a lower sentence than that for when the minor is below 15, although the punishments were raised in the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006.
in Norris v. Ireland
with the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993.
is 14 years, with a close-in-age exception that allows those aged 13 to engage in sexual activity with partners who are less than 3 years older. The age of consent rises to 16 if one of the participants has some kind of influence on the other (e.g. teacher, tutor, adoptive parent). Not knowing the fact that the victim is underage is not a legal defence. It is also illegal to perform sexual acts in the presence of a minor aged less than 14 with the intent of allowing the minor to witness the acts, even if they do not take an active part.
See also related Wikisource articles from the Italian Criminal Code (in Italian). See also more related articles from Interpol website (in French).
is 16.
The main legislation is specified by the Latvian Criminal Law, Section 161 (Sexual Intercourse, Pederasty and Lesbianism with a Person who has not Attained the Age of Sixteen Years), which translated reads: "For a person who commits an act of sexual intercourse, or pederastic, lesbian or other unnatural sexual acts of gratification, with a person who has not attained the age of sixteen years and who is in financial or other dependence on the offender, or if such offence has been committed by a person who has attained the age of majority, the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding four years."
However, Section 162 prohibits "immoral acts with a minor" although it is not made clear what the definition of "immoral acts" is.
Section 162. Immoral Acts With a Minor
(1) For a person who commits immoral acts with a minor against the will of the minor or if such have been committed by a person who has attained the age of majority, the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding three years, or custodial arrest.
(2) For a person who commits immoral acts with a juvenile,the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding six years.'
Sections 159 and 160 provide harsher penalties for rape and forcible sexual assault of juveniles.
Latvia Criminal Code
is 14. Sexual activity with 14-15 year olds is generally legal, but it can still be punished if sexual access to these children has been obtained by exploiting their lack of sexual self-determination.
is 16, as specified by the Lithuanian Criminal Code §151.1, introduced by the bill of 2 July 2010.
Previously the age of consent was set to 14 according to the Lithuanian Criminal Code §153 prohibiting any sexual molestation or sexual relationships with a minor under 14 years. The age of consent (14) was not set directly in this article of the Lithuanian criminal code, though. It has been established by the Lithuanian case law. This meant that both heterosexual and homosexual acts were allowed once a child had reached the age of 14. There was (and remains) an exception to this rule: §151.1(3) of the Lithuanian Criminal Code prohibits parents, guardians, or other people who are ex officio directly responsible for the upbringing and supervision of a child to have any relationships of sexual kind with the child, if he or she has not yet reached the age of 18.
Lithuanian Criminal Code = Lietuvos Respublikos baudžiamasis kodeksas (in Lithuanian)
is 16, as specified by the Luxembourgish Penal Code, Article 372, which reads: "All indecent assaults on modesty committed without violence or threat, by a person or by aiding the person, of a child of either sex, aged less than sixteen, will be punished by imprisonment of one to five years.
The penalty will be imprisonment of five to ten years if the child was less than eleven years old."
Luxembourgish Penal Code (in French)
prohibits sexual conduct with a "child" and a "child" is defined by Article 71 as a person under 14.
(1) A person who commits statutory rape or some other sexual act upon a child shall be punished with imprisonment of six months to five years.
However, Article 197 prohibits an adult living in an extra-marital community with a Juvenile under 16.
Article 197
(1) An adult who lives in an extra-marital community with a juvenile who has reached the age of fourteen years, but not the age of sixteen, shall be punished with imprisonment of three months to three years.
-Article 189(2) prohibits sexual acts with a Juvenile under 18 "who was entrusted to" the offender "for study, education, custody or care".
-Article 192 prohibits both procuring a Juvenile for sexual acts and enabling the performance of sexual acts with a juvenile. This could effectively make the age of consent at 18.
-Article 71 defines "Child" as a person under 14, while article 72 defines "Juvenile" as a person under 18.
Macedonia Criminal Code
is 18. Sexual activity - typically by people over 18 - with people between 12 and 18 can be considered defilement of minors by lewd acts or corruption of a minor, which, at the discretion of prosecutors and the courts, depending on the circumstances, may result in a conviction.
Art 201 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta (Presumption of violence in cases of carnal knowledge and indecent assault) states:
The punishment is imprisonment from three to nine years, with or without solitary confinement, as described in Art. 198 (Rape or carnal knowledge with violence). The punishment can be increased in certain cases described in Art. 202, such as when the person has not attained the age of nine years.
Art. 204 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta (Defilement of minors) reads:
A number of aggravating circumstances exist to this blanket provision including: Abuse of parental authority or tutorship, where the victim is under the age of 12 and if the offence is committed by means of threats or deceit. There is no definition of how old the offender must be: Even another minor can be guilty of this crime, although there is no evidence that any such case has ever been prosecuted.
The age of majority is defined in Art 188 of Chapter 16 of the Civil Laws of Malta:
To apply Art. 203, there are requirements:
The term "defile" must be put in context. In example: If a person is sexually mature (even if minor) then he/she cannot be defiled. In 2008 two brothers, aged 19 and 20, were found not guilty of defiling a girl, then aged 16. Their sexual encounters were consensual, and it was clear that the girl had had several previous sexual adventures with several youths. In 2007 a man of 30 was found guilty of defiling a boy, then aged 14. He had set up a situation in which the boy came to his apartment; as a result of both childish curiosity and what the court deemed to be the guile of the adult man, the boy remained in the apartment even while man first showered and then committed the lewd acts. There are also other cases, where offenders have been found guilty even though the circumstances were not clear, such as the case of a hotel manager aged 35 with a 14 year old girl on holiday, three boys aged 18, 19 and 20 with three 14-year-old girls or another hotel manager of 46 and a boy of 14, who had encounters over a longer time.
In the wording of the law there is no discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. However, discrimination can result from selective enforcement with regard to individual cases. "This may therefore lead to a higher incidence of cases in which the minor and the perpetrator are of the same sex, given that there may be parents who would not resort to legal proceedings should their 17-year old child have sexual relations with another person of the opposite sex but would do so if the person is of the same sex."
Marriage is allowed as early as the age of 16, which would, in theory, allow a case to arise in which a wife (or husband) they press charges under this article. In practice, this problem has never arisen.
The concept of age-banding employed in for example Canada is not present in the Maltese legal system and sexual activity between one partner who is 17 years old and another who is 18 years old can constitute defilement of minors, depending on the circumstances, with no exception being allowed purely on the basis of the proximity of their ages.
is 16, per Article 174- "Sexual intercourse with a person under 16", and Article 175- "Perverted Actions".
Articles 171 and 172 provide harsher penalties for Rape and Violent Sexual Actions (including physical or mental coercion) against juveniles.
is 14, as set out in Article 206 of the Criminal Code. Article 207 makes it illegal for a teacher, instructor, guardian, adoptive parent, stepfather, stepmother or other person with a similar position to abuse one's position or authority in order to perform sexual intercourse or an equal act with a minor (under 18) entrusted for teaching, education, custody and care. Article 209 (2) makes it illegal for a person to "provide for performing debauchery, an act equal to it or some other sexual act to a minor". Article 216 prohibits "Extramarital community with a minor"
Article 216 reads: (1) An adult person who lives in an extramarital community with a minor, shall be punished by an imprisonment sentence of three months to three years.
(2) A parent, adoptive parent or a guardian who enables a minor to live in an extramarital community with another person or incites him/her into it shall be punished by a penalty referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article.' .
is 16, as specified by the Dutch Criminal Code, Articles 245 and 247, which read:
Art 245: "A person who, out of wedlock, with a person who has reached the age of twelve but has not reached sixteen, performs indecent acts comprising or including sexual penetration of the body is liable to a term of imprisonment of not more than eight years or a fine of the fifth category."
Art 247: "A person who, with a person whom he knows to be unconscious or physically unable to resist or to be suffering from such a degree of mental defect or mental disease that he is incapable or not sufficiently capable of exercising or expressing his will in the matter or of offering resistance, performs indecent acts, or who, with a person who has not yet reached the age of sixteen (16) years, out of wedlock, performs indecent acts, or by whom the latter is enticed into performing, or submitting to such acts, out of wedlock, with a third party, is liable to a term of imprisonment of not more than six years or a fine of the fourth category."
Consensual sexual relations between adolescents who are close in age are not punished: sexual acts between persons who have reached the age of 12 years are widely tolerated by the courts and the Dutch Public Prosecution Service if the difference in age between the two partners is not too great. The latter is determined at the discretion of the court, though usually three years is deemed acceptable.
Article 245, Article 247 (in Dutch)
is 16, as specified by the 1902 Civil penal Code §196: which reads: "Any person who commits or is accessory to another person's committing an act of indecency with any person who is under 16 years of age shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years."
The penalization for sexual abuse is two-tierd, according to §195 of the same penal code: Aggravating circumstances such as the victim being under 14 years of age, recidivism, multiple perpetrators, and unusual degree of degradation and pain, or physical harm may raise the maximum penalty to 15 years.
Even though one may be found guilty of violating the age of consent rules, if those involved are of a "similar age or development", the court can exercise its own discretion to suspend passing a sentence.
History
The age of consent for heterosexual sex has changed from the Viking age where it was from the onset of first menstruation, to after the Lutheran reformation from 20 years down to 16 years (enacted in the 60's).
Sexual relations between two women has never been a criminal offence.
In 1951 a Norwegian ministry of justice white paper recommended de-criminalization of homosexual acts in the 1903 Civil Penal Code §213, but this was rejected by the Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget).
The ban on sex between men, which also outlawed sex with animals, was repealed only in 1972.
Norwegian General Civil Code (in Norwegian)
is 15, as specified by the Polish Criminal Code, Article 200, which reads:
"Article 200. § 1. Whoever subjects a minor under 15 years of age to sexual intercourse or makes him/her submit to another sexual act or to perform such an act shall be subject to the penalty of the deprivation of liberty for a term of between 2 and 12 years."
"§ 2. The same punishment shall be imposed on anyone, who records pornographic material with the participation of such a person."
Polish Criminal Code (in Polish)
ARTICLE 200b
Propagation of pedophilia
Whoever publicly propagates or approves behavior of pedophiliac character
shall be subject to a fine, the penalty of restriction of liberty or the penalty of deprivation
of liberty for up to two years'.
). In 1932 the first Polish Criminal Code after regaining independence was introduced, making the age of consent of 15 for all sexual acts, regardless of sexual orientation
.
states 14, regardless of sexual behaviour, gender and/or sexual orientation, as a result of the constitutional court of Portugal
ruling on constitutional protection that explicitly includes "sexual orientation
", formally into the Constitution of Portugal
back in 2004. Since September 2007, the age of consent was formally equalised as part of the Penal Code of September 2007. Although the age of consent is stipulated at 14 in Portugal, the legality of a sexual acts with a minor between 14 and 16 is open to legal interpretation since the law states that it is illegal to perform a sexual act with an adolescent between 14 and 16 years old "by taking advantage of their inexperience" http://www.avert.org/aofconsent.htm.
See also: LGBT rights in Portugal
is 15, as specified by the Romanian Criminal Code, Article 218 (Sexual intercourse with a minor), which reads: "Sexual intercourse, of any nature, with a person of the other sex or of the same sex, who has not reached the age of 15, shall be punished by strict imprisonment from 3 to 10 years and the prohibition of certain rights."
Having sex with a minor over the age of 15 until the age of 18 is statutory rape if the sexual act is done by two categories:
I. The person abused his or her authority or influence over the victim or the victim's trust.
II. The person is the tutor, curator, supervisor, providing care, medication or education and using that capacity over the victim to gain consent.
Romanian Criminal Code
is 16. The age of consent changed several times in Russia
n history: the Criminal Code of RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic) stated "sexual maturity" as the age of consent; when the Criminal Code of Russia was adopted in 1996, the age of consent was proclaimed to be the same regardless of sexual orientation
and was set to 16 years old; http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=18831;p=5#p1073 in 1998 it was lowered to 14 years; http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=45566#p29 and in 2003 it was returned again to 16 years http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=57610;p=1#p243 (which is the current age of consent in Russia).
Article 134. Illicit Sexual Relations or Other Sexual Actions with a Person Who Has Not Reached 16 Years of Age http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1697/file/0cc1acff8241216090943e97d5b4.htm/preview
Illicit sexual relations, pederasty, or lesbianism, committed by a person who has reached 18 years of age with a person who obviously has not reached 16 years of age,
shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to three years or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to four years.
Article 135. Depraved Actions http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1697/file/0cc1acff8241216090943e97d5b4.htm/preview
Commission of depraved actions without the use of violence by the person who has reached the age of 18 years in relations to a person who obviously has not reached 16 years of age,
shall be punishable by a fine in the amount up to 300 thousand roubles, or in the amount of the wage or salary, or any other income of the convicted person for a period up to two years, or by restraint of liberty for a term of up to two years, or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to three years.
However, only a person over 18 can be charged. Charges are relatively low (up to 4 years of prison), regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender and "obscene actions" (with even less charges). {Art 134 and 135} If the victim is proved not to understand the nature and consequences of the act (due to their age or mental abilities), it will be considered rape and charged much more severely (up to 10 years of prison, or up to 15 if the victim is under 14). {Art 131 and 132}.
Further reading:
is 14, per Article 173. It is also illegal, under Article 177, to "incite a minor under 18 years to sexual corruption".
is 14, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender. This is regulated by Chapter 18 (Sexual Offences) of the Penal Code of the Republic of Serbia and especially Article 180 (prohibiting sexual intercourse with a child). Article 112 defines a child as a person under 14 years of age.
Article 181 prohibits sexual intercourse with a juvenile (defined in Article 112 as a person under 18) if the juvenile is entrusted for learning, tutoring, guardianship or care. Article 190 furthermore forbids cohabitation with a minor (person under 18) unless a marriage is conducted.
Serbian Criminal Code in English (translated by the OSCE mission to Serbia in February 2006)
The province of Vojvodina
, a northern province of Serbia, had decriminalized homosexuality
in 1978, thus effectively making an equal age of consent for any sexual practice regardless of sex and/or gender. This lasted until Vojvodina lost its law-making power in 1990.
is 15, as specified by the Slovak Criminal Code, Section 201.
§ 201 Sexual abuse
1. Any person, who has sexual intercourse with a person less than fifteen years
of age or who subjects such person to other sexual abuse, shall be liable to a
term of imprisonment of three to ten years.
is 15, as specified by the Slovenian Penal Code, Article 183, Section 1, which reads: "(1) Whoever has sexual intercourse or performs any lewd act with a person of the same or opposite sex under the age of fifteen (15) years where there is a marked discrepancy between the maturity of the perpetrator and that of the victim shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than six (6) months and not more than five (5) years.
"
Slovenian Penal Code
is 13, as specified by the Spanish Penal Code, Article 181(2). However, if deceit is used in gaining the consent of a minor under 16 years an individual can be charged under Article 183(1) upon parental complaint.
's regime, which created a specific law against them (Ley de Peligrosidad Social - Law Against Social Danger). A new Criminal Code was introduced in 1995, which specified an age of consent of 12 under Article 181f for all sexual acts; and this was raised to 13 in 1999.
Further reading:
is 15, as specified by the Swedish Penal Code, Chapter 6 (On Sexual Crimes). The age of fifteen is referred to several times, for example in Section 4, which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child under fifteen years of age or who with such a child carries out another sexual act that, having regard to the nature of the violation and the circumstances in general, is comparable to sexual intercourse, shall be sentenced for rape of a child to imprisonment for at least two and at most six years."
There is a position of trust rule in which the age of consent is raised to 18. The section mentioned above continues:"The same applies to the person who carries out an act referred to in the first paragraph to a child more than fifteen years of age but less than eighteen years of age and who is offspring to the perpetrator or in the perpetrator's care or in a similar relationship to the perpetrator, or for whose care or guardianship the perpetrator is responsible due to the decision of a government agency."
It's not legal to have sexual intercourse with adult offspring either, but the sentences for that (up to two years) are considerably milder than those for rape of a child (two to six years, four to ten years if rough).
There is also a close in age exception (Chapter 6, Section 14) "...not sentenced if it is obvious that the act is no violation of the child considered the small difference in age between the person who carries out the act and the child and other circumstances." In a verdict of March 30, 2007, the Supreme Court
found that a 17 year old boy had not committed a criminal act by having sexual intercourse with a girl 14 years and 7 months old. (Case B 415-07)
Swedish Criminal Code
The Swedish age of consent also applies if the act takes place outside Sweden but the elder person later goes to Sweden. The elder person doesn't have to be a Swedish citizen or resident, but could be a tourist on a temporary visit. This is regardless of the age of consent in the country where the act took place.
is 16, as specified by the Swiss Federal Criminal Code, Article 187(1). However, there exists a close in age exception if the difference between the ages of the participants is three years or less (Article 187(2)).
is the age of majority (set at 18 as per Article 11 of the Turkish Civil Code).
According to Article 104 of the Turkish Penal Code (Türk Ceza Kanunu), if the minor is 15, 16 or 17 and the age gap is less than 5 years, the acts can be prosecuted only upon a complaint.
ARTICLE 104 – (1) Any person who is in sexual intercourse with a child who completed the age of fifteen without using force, threat and fraud, is sentenced to imprisonment from six months to two years upon filing of a complaint.
(2) If the offender is older than the victim more than five years, the punishment to be imposed is doubled without seeking raise of a complaint.
Article 103 regulates sex with minors under 15 or minors who lack the ability to understand the act as child sexual abuse
, stipulating imprisonment from three to eight years. Penalties may be heavier depending on the identity of the perpetrator and other circumstances.
Criminal Code (in English)
.
appears to be 16, although it is not specifically set in any one statute.
Article 155 states that sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person shall be punishable. Immaturity is irrefutably presumed in those under 14 {Art. 120CC and court rulings}. Those under 14 are considered children in Ukrainian law, additionally those under 16 are considered minors (generally read from all articles and court rulings).
However, sexual acts with those under 16 that are considered debauchery can also be prosecuted under Article 156.
Article 155 – Sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person
1. Sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person, –
shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term up to three years or imprisonment for the same term.'
2. The same actions committed by a parent or surrogate parent, or where they caused sterility or other grave consequences, –
shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of three to five years.http://www.legislationline.org/documents/id/7069
Article 156 – Debauchery of minors
1. Debauched actions committed in regard of a person under 16 years of age, – shall be punishable by arrest for a term up to six months, or restraint of liberty for a term up to three years.
2. The same actions committed in regard of a young child, or by a parent or surrogate parent, – shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term up to five years, or imprisonment for a term up to three years. http://www.legislationline.org/documents/id/7069
Ukrainian Criminal Code
consists of the jurisdictions of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. UK national age of consent legislation does not apply to its dependencies.
is 16 regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender, as specified by the Sexual Offences Act 2003
. However, if person A is over the age of 18 and in a position of trust over person B who is under the age of 18, it is illegal for A to engage in sexual activity with B.
Further reading:
. It was lowered to 10 in the latter part of the 16th century. The wording was along the lines of "It shall be deemed illegal to ravage a maiden who is not of age" - at the time "of age" being 12. Therefore, there was, and is, technically no age of consent for the male participant - unless the female participant is an adult in which case laws pertaining to sex with a minor and so on come into force. The English law became applicable in Wales following the Acts of Union (1536 and 1543). In medieval Welsh law
there was no actual equivalent of the concept of the age of consent as such, but a girl was marriagable at 12-14 (the onset of puberty) and a fine was payable for the taking of a girl's maidenhood by force; the rules varied according to status and may not have been applied rigidly to commoners.
A concern that young girls were being sold into brothels led Parliament to raise the age of consent to 13 in 1875 under the Offences against the Person Act 1875
. After W. T. Stead's Maiden Tribute articles, the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
raised the age of consent to 16.
Male-male homosexual activity had been illegal since the Buggery Act 1533
and this was reinforced in the Offences against the Person Act 1861
and the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
extended buggery laws to include any kind of sexual activity between males. It is common folklore
that an amendment that would have criminalised lesbian acts was rejected by Queen Victoria because she refused to believe that some women did such things; but it is likelier that those presenting the amendment excluded it (as did the House of Lords
40 years later) on the assumption that it would give women ideas.
Male homosexual acts were decriminalised under the Sexual Offences Act 1967
, Section 1, although the age of consent for such acts was set at 21, whereas the age of consent for heterosexual acts was 16. However, the legislation applied only in England and Wales.
In 1994, on the second reading of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
, the Conservative
Member of Parliament
Edwina Currie
introduced an amendment to lower the age of consent for homosexual acts to 16, in line with that for heterosexual acts; the amendment was defeated by 308 votes to 280. A compromise amendment that lowered the age of consent to 18 was accepted by 427 votes to 162. Also during the readings were motions to equalise the age of consent to 17 for all, to maintain the age of consent for homosexual acts to 21, and a further attempt to lower the age of consent to 16, all of which were rejected.
In 1997, the European Court of Human Rights case of Sutherland v the United Kingdom held that a higher age of consent for homosexuals than for heterosexuals was a breach of Article 14 in conjunction with Article 8 of the Convention. In response, the Government introduced the Crime and Disorder Bill that contained a provision lowering the age of consent for homosexual acts to 16. Though accepted by the House of Commons, the provision was rejected by the House of Lords. The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill, introduced in 1998, contained a similar provision, but once again it was rejected by the House of Lords. The Bill was reintroduced in 2000 and, despite opposition from the House of Lords, was passed under the Parliament Act 1911
(which allows the House of Commons to overrule the House of Lords under certain circumstances). As the Scottish Parliament had been established prior to the reintroduction of the Bill, and the relevant legislation was a devolved issue, the consent of that Parliament under the Sewel Convention was required – had that consent not been granted, the Scottish provisions would have had to be removed and it would not have been possible to use the Parliament Act. The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000
thus equalised the age of consent at 16 for all sexual acts (including, for the first time, lesbian acts), except those taking place between a child and someone "in a position of trust" (e.g. a teacher), where the age of consent was raised to 18.
As lesbians and homosexuals are allowed to follow their own inclinations at age 16 it is an offence under Articles 3, 8, 12 and 14 of their human rights to require a young transsexual to have to wait to 18 to commence hormone and puberty blockers.
is 16, regardless of sexual orientation
and/or gender
. Before that date, it was 16 for girls (under a statutory offence) and 14 for boys (the common law age of puberty
). However, consensual sex with a girl aged between 13 and 16 is not rape
, but a lesser offence; on 1 December 2010 this has been given the specific name of "having intercourse with an older child".
lowered the age of consent of 18 and this was further lowered to 16 by the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000 described above. Male rape will be recognised along with a complete overhaul of sexual offences legislation under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009
(in force from the 1 December 2010, except for sections 52 and 53).
is 16, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender, as specified by the Sexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 2008. The reason the age of consent was lowered from 17 to 16 in 2008 with the Order was to bring it in line with the rest of the UK; Criminal Justice Minister Paul Goggins said there was no compelling reason for the age to be different in Northern Ireland than elsewhere.
in which the ECHR held that a prohibition on homosexual acts was a breach of Article 8 of the Convention. The age of consent for gay male sexual conduct was lowered to 18 in 1994 when the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 was implemented (as to be in line with England and Wales). The age of consent in 2001 was then lowered to 17 for gay male sexual conduct - so that was in line with heterosexual and lesbian sexual conduct, by the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000, Section 1. Then in 2008 the age of consent for all individuals under an Order (mentioned above) was lowered to 16 so it was inline with the rest of the UK. Prior to 2008, the age of consent in Northern Ireland was always 17 for heterosexuals and lesbian sexual conduct.
is equal and gender-neutral
at 16 in Gibraltar
(a British overseas territory
). The gender-neutral Crimes Bill 2011 passed the Gibraltar Parliament and got assent
ed - implementing the April 2011 Supreme Court of Gibraltar decision and by repealing and updating 140 year old criminal laws of Gibraltar.
since 1993, where the age of consent was higher at 18 for gay men, 16 for lesbians and heterosexuals. Anal sex was illegal for heterosexuals regardless. An equal age of consent set at 16 and legalising heterosexual anal sex happened because of a recent Supreme Court decision in April 2011, then in August 2011, under the gender-neutral Crimes Act 2011 implemented an equal and gender-neutral age of consent of 16 and legalised anal sex for heterosexuals - reflecting the Supreme Court of Gibraltar decision and by repealing and updating 140 year old criminal laws of Gibraltar.
(a Crown Dependency including Alderney
, Herm
and Sark
) is 16, regardless of gender and/or sexual orientation, by a law that was passed in March 2010.
, a Crown Dependency, is 16, last amended on September 1, 2006 http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/GAY-SEX-AGE-LOWERED-TO.1689805.jp.
See also:
, a Crown Dependency, is 16, last amended in 2007.
and/or gender
.
Further reading
does not have its own separate criminal code. Instead, in matters of criminal law, as per Article 3 of the "Law of the Source of Law" (one of the six fundamental laws adopted upon ratification of the Lateran Treaty in 1929) the Vatican State generally uses current Italian national law, as well as regional and municipal laws for Rome, as long as they do not conflict with ecclesiastical law or laws specifically promulgated by Pope for the Vatican. As a result, the age of consent is 14, the same as Italy's. Before January 1, 2009, the adoption by the Vatican of changes made by Italy in its laws was automatic. After this date, the Vatican adoption of changes in Italian law is no longer automatic but comes into effect only after a review. However, as Italy adopted its present age of consent before January 1, 2009, this change in Vatican policy does not affect the age of consent in Vatican City, which remains the same as Italy's.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(age 13) has the lowest age of consent, while Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
are at the highest end (both age 18). The laws can also stipulate the specific activities that are permitted and/or differentially specify the age at which a given sex can participate. Below is a discussion of the various laws dealing with this subject. The highlighted age is that at which, or above which, an individual can engage in unfettered sexual relations with another who is also at or above that age. The self-declared state of the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Northern Cyprus or North Cyprus , officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus , is a self-declared state that comprises the northeastern part of the island of Cyprus...
' is the only jurisdiction in Europe that still has a sodomy law
Sodomy law
A sodomy law is a law that defines certain sexual acts as crimes. The precise sexual acts meant by the term sodomy are rarely spelled out in the law, but are typically understood by courts to include any sexual act deemed unnatural. It also has a range of similar euphemisms...
that bans gay sex. Other variables may exist, for close-in-age exceptions, for defences in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
(applicable to heterosexual and lesbian sexual conduct only, not for gay male sexual conduct), however the age of consent in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
is mostly 15 for all, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender (as shown below in more detail). All other jurisdictions in Europe have an equal and gender-neutral
Gender-neutral
Gender neutrality describes the idea that language and other social institutions should avoid distinguishing people by their gender, in order to avoid discrimination arising from the impression that there are social roles for which one gender is more suited than the other...
age of consent.
The below is a list of all jurisdictions in Europe as listed in List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Europe.
Albania
Since 2001, the age of consent in AlbaniaAlbania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
is 14, regardless of gender and sexual orientation, and in the case of a girl, sex is also illegal if she is older than 14, but has not reached "sexual maturity", as provided by article 100 of the criminal code.
Andorra
The age of consent in AndorraAndorra
Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, , is a small landlocked country in southwestern Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. It is the sixth smallest nation in Europe having an area of...
is 16, as specified by Article 206, which reads: "Whoever, without violence or intimidation, has had a carnal relationship with a minor older than fourteen years and less than sixteen years will be punished by a maximum penalty of imprisonment of six years."
Armenia
The age of consent in ArmeniaArmenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
is 16.
Article 141. Sexual acts with a person under 16.
Sexual intercourse or other sexual acts with a person obviously under 16, by a person who reached 18 years of age, in the absence of elements of crime envisaged in Articles 138, 139 or 140 of this Code, is punished with correctional labor for the term of up to 2 years, or with imprisonment for the term of up to 2 years.
Austria
The general age of consent in AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
is 14, as specified by Section 206 of the penal code. (The term unmündig is specified in Section 74 of the penal code.) Paragraph 4 of Section 206 defines a close-in-age exception of max. three years.
However, Section 207b of the penal code contains an exception to the general age of consent: if one of the partners is younger than 16 years of age and “not sufficiently mature to understand the significance of the act”, then the act is punishable.
History
The Austrian Criminal Code previously specified 18 as the age of consent for homosexual sex in which the other partner was aged 14–18, while no equivalent provision existed for heterosexual sexual conduct; this was Section 209 of the Criminal Code. In November 1996, an amendment was put before the Austrian Parliament to remove Section 209; but the vote ended in a draw, and the amendment failed to pass. In July 1998, a similar amendment was put forward; it was voted down by the conservative majority. Section 209 came into force when homosexuality between males became legal in 1971.On 24 June 2002, the Austrian Constitutional Court ruled that Section 209 was unconstitutional. The Section was later repealed on 14 August 2002. On 9 January 2003, the European Court of Human Rights held, in L & V v Austria, that Section 209 violated Articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
.
Azerbaijan
The age of consent in AzerbaijanAzerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
is 16.
Article 152
Sexual intercourse with the person below the age of 16 years-old, as well as the same offences linked with satisfaction of sexual passion in perverted forms shall be
punished by imprisonment up to 3 years.
Belarus
The age of consent in BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
is 16, as specified by Articles 168 and 169, which read: "Sexual relations, sodomy, lesbian acts or other actions of sexual character of an adult, reached eighteen years of age, with a person who obviously has not reached sixteen years of age, at absence of attributes of the crimes stipulated by articles 166 and 167 present codes, are punished by restriction of freedom of two years to four years or by imprisonment of two years to five years." and "Dissolute actions accomplished by a person, reached eighteen years of age, concerning a person who obviously has not reached sixteen years of age, at absence of attributes of the crimes stipulated by articles 166, 167 and 168 present codes, are punished by arrest of about six months or imprisonment of one year to three years."
Belgium
The age of consent in BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
is 16, as specified by Article 372, which reads:
"All indecent assaults on modesty committed without violence or threat, by a person or by aiding the person, of a child of either sex, aged less than sixteen, will be punished by imprisonment (of five years to ten years).
History
The Belgian Criminal Code previously specified an age of consent of 18 for homosexual sex. This provision - Article 372(2) - was repealed in 1985.Bosnia and Herzegovina
Sexual activity with children younger than 14 is illegal under Article 207, which prohibits sexual acts with a "child", and a "child" is defined in Article 2(8) as a person under 14. However, Article 209 mentions a "juvenile" who is defined in Article 2(9) as a person under 18, although it is not clear if this article refers only to sexual acts performed in view of a minor under 18 or if it can be used also to punish sexual acts performed with the minor. (see below).Article 207
Sexual Intercourse with a Child
(1) Whoever performs sexual intercourse or equivalent sexual act on a child, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term between one and eight years.
Article 2
Meaning of Terms as Used in This Code
(8) A child, as referred to in this Code, is a person who has not reached fourteen years of age.
Article 209
Satisfying Lust in the Presence of a Child or Juvenile
Whoever, in the presence of a child or juvenile, performs acts aimed at satisfying his own lust or the lust of a third person, or whoever induces a child to submit to such acts in his presence or in the presence of a third person, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term between three months and three years.
Article 205(2) prohibits sexual intercourse with a juvenile (defined as a person under 18) by "abuse of position".
Bulgaria
The age of consent in BulgariaBulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
is 14, as specified by Articles 149 and 151 (1). However Article 151(2) has a provision for those who are over 14 and do "not understand the characteristics or the importance of the act."
Art. 151. (1) Who copulates with a person who has not accomplished 14 years of age,
inasmuch as the act does not constitute a crime according to art. 152, shall be punished by
imprisonment of two to five years.'
Art. 149. (1) Who commits an act in order to arouse or satisfy a sexual desire without a copulation regarding a person who has not accomplished 14 years of age shall be punished for fornication by imprisonment of up to five years.
Croatia
The age of consent in CroatiaCroatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
is 14 as specified by the Croatian Criminal Code. The acts themselves ban "sexual relations with a child" while it is later defined that a child is a person under the age of 14.
History
Homosexual acts were illegal until 1977, when Croatia, then as a Yugoslav Federal Republic, changed its Penal Code. Age of consent was equalised in 1998.Cyprus
The age of consent for all sexual conduct in CyprusCyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
under the 2002 Criminal Code is 17, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender.
History
Until 1998, homosexual acts between men were entirely forbidden under Section 171 (1929). In 1989, Alecos Modinos, president of the Cypriot Gay Liberation Movement, brought a case to the European Court of Human Rights. In 1993, the Court held that the prohibition of homosexual acts was a violation of Article 8. In January 1995, the Cypriot Government introduced a Bill in the Cypriot Parliament that would have abolished the ban. Strong opposition from the Church meant the Bill stalled when referred to the Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee. The European Commission repeated its warning that Cyprus must follow the Court's ruling. In May 1997, again a government measure to repeal the ban failed because of the strength of the opposition. In April 1998, the Council of Europe set a deadline for compliance of 29 May 1998 and on 21 May 1998, the House of Representatives voted 36 to 8 in favour legalising homosexual acts. However it was set at 18 while heterosexual acts remained at 16.In 2002, under pressure from the EU the parliament finally ended the disparate provisions and changed the age of consent to 17 for both hetero and homosexual acts, under a new Criminal Code.
Northern Cyprus
The unrecognised entity, self-proclaimed as Turkish Republic of Northern CyprusTurkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Northern Cyprus or North Cyprus , officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus , is a self-declared state that comprises the northeastern part of the island of Cyprus...
has the age of consent for females at 16 as designated in the Penal Code (Ceza Yasası, Art. 154). Sexual contact with a female between 13 and 16 years of age is considered a misdemeanour (Ceza Yasası, Art. 153). There is no age of consent for males and Northern Cyprus maintains sodomy law
Sodomy law
A sodomy law is a law that defines certain sexual acts as crimes. The precise sexual acts meant by the term sodomy are rarely spelled out in the law, but are typically understood by courts to include any sexual act deemed unnatural. It also has a range of similar euphemisms...
s abolished in the Republic of Cyprus, making sexual contact between males illegal and perpetrators of "sexual acts against the order of nature" (both penetrating and receiving) are punished with up to 5 years of imprisonment.
Czech Republic
The age of consent in the Czech RepublicCzech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
is 15, as specified by the Czech Penal Code, Section 242, which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child under fifteen (15) years of age or who sexually abuses such a person by other way shall be sentenced to imprisonment for at least one and at most eight years."
History
Until 1961, homosexual acts were illegal. The new Penal Code, introduced in that year, decriminalised homosexual acts but specified an age of consent for such acts of 18. In 1990, this, and other discrepancies, were removed and the age of consent was reduced to 15, in line with heterosexual acts.Denmark
The age of consent in The Kingdom of DenmarkDenmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
is 15 as specified by Section 222, part 1, which reads: "Any person who has sexual intercourse with any child under the age of fifteen will be liable to imprisonment for any term not exceeding eight years."
Section 223, part 1, reads: "Any person who has sexual intercourse with any child under 18, who is said person's adopted child, stepchild or foster child, or who is entrusted to said person for education or upbringing, will be liable to imprisonment for any term not exceeding four years." This applies e.g. to teachers.
History
Male homosexual acts were legalised in Denmark (lesbianism was never illegal) with an age of consent set at 18, after a major reform of the Penal Code in 1930; At the same time the age of consent for heterosexual acts were raised from 12 to 15. In 1976, the age of consent was equalised at 15 for all acts . But sex with a child under the age of 12 gives double punishment, and sex with a minor at 15, 16 and 17 is illegal for a person in charge of this child.Until 1866, interaction "against nature" [anal intercourse] was punishable with the stakes. However, until the late 18th century the rule was never used, and, when it came into rule, the convicts were always pardoned to 7 years in jail: exactly the punishment introduced in the Penal Code 1866 but now only for homosexual acts.
Faroe Islands
The age of consent in the Faroe IslandsFaroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
is 15 §222, which reads;
- "Den, som har samleje med et barn under 15 år, straffes med fængsel indtil 6 år."
(Translated: "The person, who has sexual intercourse with a child under 15 years [of age], will be punished with imprisonment up to 6 years.")
However it is 18 for those in a position of trust (E.g. teachers) §223, which reads;
- "
("The person, who has sexual intercourse with a person under 18 years [of age], who is an adopted child, a stepchild, or a foster child; or whose teaching or upbringing they have been trusted with, will be punished with imprisonment up to 4 years.")
Estonia
The age of consent in EstoniaEstonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
is 14, as specified by Section 145 (Sexual intercourse with a child), which reads: "An adult person who engages in sexual intercourse with a person of less than 14 years of age shall be punished by up to 5 years’ imprisonment."
History
Until 1992, male homosexual sex was illegal, the Estonian Penal Code, Article 118, forbidding "anal intercourse between men". Due to regaining independence from USSR in 1991, the age of consent for male homosexual intercourse was fixed at 16, whereas the age for heterosexual intercourse was 14. The age of consent was equalised in 2001 when the law was amended, specifying an age of 14 for sexual intercourse.Finland
The age of consent in FinlandFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
is 16, as specified by Section 6(1) (Sexual abuse of a child), which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child younger than sixteen years of age ... shall be sentenced for sexual abuse of a child to imprisonment for at most four years."
The sexual act may not be punishable if "there is no great difference in the ages or the mental and physical maturity of the persons involved".
The age is 18 when in connection with a person who has some formal power over the young person, like a school teacher.
History
Until 1971, homosexual acts were prohibited. After decriminalisation, the age of consent was set at 18 for homosexual acts, and 16 for heterosexual acts. In 1999, the age of consent was equalised to 16 for all sexual actsFrance
The age of consent in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
is 15, as specified by Article 227-25, which reads: "The commission without violence, constraint, threat or surprise of a sexual offence by an adult on the person of a child under fifteen years of age is punished by five years' imprisonment and a fine of €75,000."
Article 227-22 prohibits the "organisation by an adult of meetings involving indecent exposure or sexual relations in which minors are present or participating". (Minors refers to under 18s; the text of the article can be subject to interpretation).
Article 227-27 prohibits sexual relations with minors over age 15 (aged 15, 16 or 17) " 1° where they are committed by a legitimate, natural or adoptive ascendant or by any other person having authority over the victim; 2° where they are committed by a person abusing the authority conferred by his functions."
History
Male homosexual acts were illegal until 1791, when the ancient sodomy laws were dropped from the Criminal Code of that year. This continued to be the case under the Napoleonic Code of 1810. In 1942, the age of consent for homosexual acts was set at 21, while that for heterosexual acts was 13. The latter was increased to 15 in 1945. In 1978, the age for homosexual acts was lowered to 18. In 1981, it was lowered to 15, in line with that for heterosexual acts.Georgia
The age of consent in GeorgiaGeorgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
is 16 as per Georgian Penal Code Art. 140, and Art. 141.
Germany
The age of consent in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
is 14, as long as a person over the age of 21 does not exploit a 14–15 year-old person's lack of capacity for sexual self-determination. In this rare and special case, a conviction on an individual over the age of 21 requires a complaint from the younger individual; being over 21 and engaging in sexual relations with a minor of that age does not constitute an offense in and of itself. Otherwise the age of consent is 14, although provisions protecting minors against coercion apply until the age of 18.
As specified by Sections 176 (Sexual abuse of children) and 182 (Sexual abuse of youths), which read:
§ 176: "(1) Whoever commits sexual acts on a person under fourteen (14) years of age (a child) or allows them to be committed on himself by the child, shall be punished by imprisonment from six months to ten years [...]"
§ 180: "(1) Whoever abets the commission of sexual acts of a person under sixteen years of age on or in front of a third person or sexual acts of a third person on a person under sixteen years of age:
1. by acting as an intermediary; or
2. by furnishing or creating an opportunity,
shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine. [...]
§ 182: "(2) A person over twenty-one years of age who abuses a person under sixteen years of age, in that he: 1. commits sexual acts on the person or allows them to be committed on himself by the person; or 2. induces the person to commit sexual acts on a third person or to allow them to be committed on the person by a third person, and thereby exploits the victim's lack of capacity for sexual self-determination, shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine. [..] the act shall only be prosecuted upon complaint, unless the prosecuting authority considers ex officio that it is required to enter the case because of the special public interest therein. [..] the court may dispense with punishment pursuant to these provisions if , in consideration of the conduct of the person against whom the act was directed, the wrongfulness of the act is slight."
§ 176, § 182 of the German criminal code, including decisions of higher courts, legislative process, etc.
English translation: § 176 Sexual abuse of children, § 182 Sexual abuse of juveniles
History
The current rules for age of consent in Germany were set following a post-reunificationGerman reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
penal law reform in 1994. The ages of 14 and 16 had been relevant since the coming into force of the Criminal Code for the German Empire in 1872: Under § 176, sexual acts with children under 14 were illegal and have been always since. Under § 182, seduction of an unblemished girl under the age of 16 was prosecuted upon complaint of parents or legal guardian only. In West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
the latter rule was kept, with minor changes in 1973: Unblemishedness was no longer required, and the court could refrain from punishment if the offender was under 21 years of age. The German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
, by contrast, created a new socialist criminal code in 1968. Under § 149, sexual acts with persons of the opposite sex between the ages of 14 and 16 were punishable if the victim's moral immaturity was exploited by using gifts, the promise of benefits or similar methods of persuasion to initiate intercourse or actions similar to intercourse.
Male homosexuality had been illegal under § 175
Paragraph 175
Paragraph 175 was a provision of the German Criminal Code from 15 May 1871 to 10 March 1994. It made homosexual acts between males a crime, and in early revisions the provision also criminalized bestiality. All in all, around 140,000 men were convicted under the law.The statute was amended several...
regardless of age since 1872. Female homosexuality was not prosecuted. In West Germany, male homosexuality was legalized in 1969. The age of consent was set to 21 years and in 1973 reduced to 18 years. Offenders could be only men 18 or older, and courts could refrain from punishment if the offender was not yet 21. In East Germany, the criminal code was supplemented in 1957 by a provision that allowed the waiving of prosecution if no harm had been done to socialist society by the unlawful act. Concerning § 175, this meant that male homosexual acts were now almost prosecuted only if they involved minors, which meant persons under 18. The new criminal code of 1968 officially legalized homosexuality and in § 151, which now was gender-neutral, criminalized only homosexual acts of adults with minors. In 1987 the GDR supreme court ruled homosexuality was a variant of sexual behaviour just as heterosexuality. In 1989 § 151 was repealed and § 149 amended to include any sexual orientation.
After German reunification, according to the Unification Treaty of 1990, the § 149 code section stayed in force for the territory of the former GDR, and West German § 175 and § 182 were not enacted here. The need for gender- and sexual-orientation-neutrality and for a new balancing of sexual self-determination and youth protection was also being seen by West German lawmakers. In the ensuing 1994 reform, the minimum age of 14 for all of Germany was kept, and in building on legal traditions of both states, sexual acts committed by a person above 21 with a minor under 16 involving exploitation of the minor's individual lack of capacity for sexual self-determination were made punishable in new § 182. §175 was abolished. In general, the need for complaint of the former West German law was kept, but in case of special public interest the offence was made prosecutable ex officio as had been the case in East German law.
all older versions and changes of § 175 (Homosexual acts)
current and all older versions and changes of § 176 (Sexual abuse of children)
current and all older versions and changes of § 182 (Sexual abuse of juveniles; until 1994: Seduction)
Further reading:
- Recht, was ist erlaubt? (What is permitted?) Comparison of AOC laws in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. (In German)
- Schutzalter German Wikipedia Article
Greece
The age of consent in GreeceGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
is 15.
The general provision for age of consent in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
is 15 as specified by Section 339(1) of the Penal Code, which reads:
- "One who commits an indecent act with a person
However, Article 347 holds a further prohibition of "seducing" a young male person if the actor is an adult (amongst other prohibitions regarding positions of authority and acts of lewdness). In Greek law the age of majority
Age of majority
The age of majority is the threshold of adulthood as it is conceptualized in law. It is the chronological moment when minors cease to legally be considered children and assume control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thereby terminating the legal control and legal responsibilities of...
is set at 18. This effectively sets the age of consent for male homosexual activity to 17, with a close in age exception for those older than 15 and younger than 18.
Further reading:
Hungary
The age of consent in HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
is 14 as specified by Section 201 (Seduction), which reads: "The person who has sexual intercourse with a person who has not yet completed his 14th year, as well as the person who has completed his 18th year and engages in fornication with a person who has not yet exceeded his 14th year of age, commits a felony and shall be punishable with imprisonment from 1 to 5 years."
Click on Criminal Code of the Republic of Hungary (English version)
History
Until 1961 homosexual acts were illegal. After decriminalisation the age of consent for homosexual acts was 20 and remained so until 1978. From then until 1999 the age of consent for such acts was 18, as specified by Section 199. In 2002 the Hungarian Constitutional Court repealed Section 199 and the age of consent for homosexual acts was lowered to 14 in line with heterosexual acts.Iceland
The age of consent in IcelandIceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
is 15, as specified by Section 202 of the Icelandic Penal Code, which reads: "Anyone who has carnal intercourse or other sexual intimacy with a child younger than 15 years shall be subject to imprisonment for at least 1 year and up to 16 years."
History
Before the year 2007, the legal age of consent in Iceland was 14. It was considered very low, so it was decided to revise it upward, to the age of 15, in line with other Scandinavian countriesScandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. However, the age of consent in the Nordic countries of Norway and Finland is 16.
Ireland
The age of consent in IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
is 17. Sex with a minor over the age of 15 carries a lower sentence than that for when the minor is below 15, although the punishments were raised in the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006.
History
The heterosexual age of consent was set in the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1935. Buggery was decriminalised in 1993, following the ruling of the European CourtEuropean Court
European Court could mean:* the European Court of Justice , an institution of the European Union for the resolution of disputes under EU law, based in Luxembourg....
in Norris v. Ireland
Norris v. Ireland
Norris v. Ireland was a 1988 case decided by the European Court of Human Rights. The case was brought against the Republic of Ireland by Senator David Norris, and his Senior Counsel was fellow member of the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform, Mary Robinson, who later became the first female...
with the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993.
Italy
The age of consent in ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
is 14 years, with a close-in-age exception that allows those aged 13 to engage in sexual activity with partners who are less than 3 years older. The age of consent rises to 16 if one of the participants has some kind of influence on the other (e.g. teacher, tutor, adoptive parent). Not knowing the fact that the victim is underage is not a legal defence. It is also illegal to perform sexual acts in the presence of a minor aged less than 14 with the intent of allowing the minor to witness the acts, even if they do not take an active part.
See also related Wikisource articles from the Italian Criminal Code (in Italian). See also more related articles from Interpol website (in French).
Latvia
The age of consent in LatviaLatvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
is 16.
The main legislation is specified by the Latvian Criminal Law, Section 161 (Sexual Intercourse, Pederasty and Lesbianism with a Person who has not Attained the Age of Sixteen Years), which translated reads: "For a person who commits an act of sexual intercourse, or pederastic, lesbian or other unnatural sexual acts of gratification, with a person who has not attained the age of sixteen years and who is in financial or other dependence on the offender, or if such offence has been committed by a person who has attained the age of majority, the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding four years."
However, Section 162 prohibits "immoral acts with a minor" although it is not made clear what the definition of "immoral acts" is.
Section 162. Immoral Acts With a Minor
(1) For a person who commits immoral acts with a minor against the will of the minor or if such have been committed by a person who has attained the age of majority, the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding three years, or custodial arrest.
(2) For a person who commits immoral acts with a juvenile,the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term not exceeding six years.'
Sections 159 and 160 provide harsher penalties for rape and forcible sexual assault of juveniles.
Latvia Criminal Code
History
Until 1992, male homosexual acts were illegal under Section 124.1 of the Latvian Criminal Code. This provision was repealed by the Latvian Parliament in 1992 and the age of consent for male homosexual acts was set at 18. In 1998, the Latvian Parliament adopted a new Criminal Code that contained a complex system of sexual offences: the age of consent for all sexual acts other than vaginal intercourse was 14; for vaginal intercourse it was 16 (with a close in age exemption that allowed 14 and 15 year olds to have sex with a person under 18). In 2001, the law was amended to clarify the situation and confirm that the age of consent was 16 for all acts (only a person aged 18 or older can be punished for having sex with a 14-15 year old).Liechtenstein
The age of consent in LiechtensteinLiechtenstein
The Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...
is 14. Sexual activity with 14-15 year olds is generally legal, but it can still be punished if sexual access to these children has been obtained by exploiting their lack of sexual self-determination.
Lithuania
The age of consent in LithuaniaLithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
is 16, as specified by the Lithuanian Criminal Code §151.1, introduced by the bill of 2 July 2010.
Previously the age of consent was set to 14 according to the Lithuanian Criminal Code §153 prohibiting any sexual molestation or sexual relationships with a minor under 14 years. The age of consent (14) was not set directly in this article of the Lithuanian criminal code, though. It has been established by the Lithuanian case law. This meant that both heterosexual and homosexual acts were allowed once a child had reached the age of 14. There was (and remains) an exception to this rule: §151.1(3) of the Lithuanian Criminal Code prohibits parents, guardians, or other people who are ex officio directly responsible for the upbringing and supervision of a child to have any relationships of sexual kind with the child, if he or she has not yet reached the age of 18.
Lithuanian Criminal Code = Lietuvos Respublikos baudžiamasis kodeksas (in Lithuanian)
History
Until 1993, male homosexual acts were prohibited under the Lithuanian Criminal Code, Article 1221, which was repealed in that year. The new law set an age of consent of 17 for male oral and anal intercourse, 16 for other male homosexual acts, and 14 for lesbian and heterosexual acts. In 2004, the law was amended to equalise the age of consent at 14 for all sexual acts.Luxembourg
The age of consent in LuxembourgLuxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
is 16, as specified by the Luxembourgish Penal Code, Article 372, which reads: "All indecent assaults on modesty committed without violence or threat, by a person or by aiding the person, of a child of either sex, aged less than sixteen, will be punished by imprisonment of one to five years.
The penalty will be imprisonment of five to ten years if the child was less than eleven years old."
Luxembourgish Penal Code (in French)
Macedonia
Article 188(1) of the Criminal Code of MacedoniaRepublic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
prohibits sexual conduct with a "child" and a "child" is defined by Article 71 as a person under 14.
(1) A person who commits statutory rape or some other sexual act upon a child shall be punished with imprisonment of six months to five years.
However, Article 197 prohibits an adult living in an extra-marital community with a Juvenile under 16.
Article 197
(1) An adult who lives in an extra-marital community with a juvenile who has reached the age of fourteen years, but not the age of sixteen, shall be punished with imprisonment of three months to three years.
-Article 189(2) prohibits sexual acts with a Juvenile under 18 "who was entrusted to" the offender "for study, education, custody or care".
-Article 192 prohibits both procuring a Juvenile for sexual acts and enabling the performance of sexual acts with a juvenile. This could effectively make the age of consent at 18.
-Article 71 defines "Child" as a person under 14, while article 72 defines "Juvenile" as a person under 18.
Macedonia Criminal Code
Malta
The age of consent in MaltaMalta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
is 18. Sexual activity - typically by people over 18 - with people between 12 and 18 can be considered defilement of minors by lewd acts or corruption of a minor, which, at the discretion of prosecutors and the courts, depending on the circumstances, may result in a conviction.
Art 201 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta (Presumption of violence in cases of carnal knowledge and indecent assault) states:
- 201. Unlawful carnal knowledgeCarnal knowledgeCarnal knowledge is an archaic or legal euphemism for sexual intercourse. The term derives from the Biblical usage of the verb know/knew, as in the King James and other versions, a euphemism for sexual conduct...
and any other indecent assaultIndecent assaultIndecent assault is an offence of aggravated assault in many jurisdictions. It is characterised as a sex crime.Indecent assault was an offence in England and Wales under sections 14 and 15 the Sexual Offences Act 1956...
, shall be presumed to be accompanied with violence -
(a) when it is committed on any person under twelve years of age;
(b) when the person abused was unable to offer resistance owing to physical or mental infirmity, or for any other cause independent of the act of the offender, or in consequence of any fraudulent device used by the offender.
The punishment is imprisonment from three to nine years, with or without solitary confinement, as described in Art. 198 (Rape or carnal knowledge with violence). The punishment can be increased in certain cases described in Art. 202, such as when the person has not attained the age of nine years.
Art. 204 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta (Defilement of minors) reads:
- 203. (1) Whosoever, by lewd acts, defiles a minor of either sex, shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, with or without solitary confinement: [...]
A number of aggravating circumstances exist to this blanket provision including: Abuse of parental authority or tutorship, where the victim is under the age of 12 and if the offence is committed by means of threats or deceit. There is no definition of how old the offender must be: Even another minor can be guilty of this crime, although there is no evidence that any such case has ever been prosecuted.
The age of majority is defined in Art 188 of Chapter 16 of the Civil Laws of Malta:
- 188. (1) Majority is fixed at the completion of the eighteenth year of age.
To apply Art. 203, there are requirements:
- For the completed offence and apart from the formal element of the offence, there must be the lewd act (atto di libidine) and the actual defilement. The lewd act may be committed either on the person or in the presence of the minor. All acts which, either by their very nature or of the circumstances in which they are performed, either are directed to the indulgence of the sexual appetite, either of the agent or of the victim, and are capable of arousing sexual interest of the victim, are lewd acts for the purposes of the offence in question.
The term "defile" must be put in context. In example: If a person is sexually mature (even if minor) then he/she cannot be defiled. In 2008 two brothers, aged 19 and 20, were found not guilty of defiling a girl, then aged 16. Their sexual encounters were consensual, and it was clear that the girl had had several previous sexual adventures with several youths. In 2007 a man of 30 was found guilty of defiling a boy, then aged 14. He had set up a situation in which the boy came to his apartment; as a result of both childish curiosity and what the court deemed to be the guile of the adult man, the boy remained in the apartment even while man first showered and then committed the lewd acts. There are also other cases, where offenders have been found guilty even though the circumstances were not clear, such as the case of a hotel manager aged 35 with a 14 year old girl on holiday, three boys aged 18, 19 and 20 with three 14-year-old girls or another hotel manager of 46 and a boy of 14, who had encounters over a longer time.
In the wording of the law there is no discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. However, discrimination can result from selective enforcement with regard to individual cases. "This may therefore lead to a higher incidence of cases in which the minor and the perpetrator are of the same sex, given that there may be parents who would not resort to legal proceedings should their 17-year old child have sexual relations with another person of the opposite sex but would do so if the person is of the same sex."
Marriage is allowed as early as the age of 16, which would, in theory, allow a case to arise in which a wife (or husband) they press charges under this article. In practice, this problem has never arisen.
The concept of age-banding employed in for example Canada is not present in the Maltese legal system and sexual activity between one partner who is 17 years old and another who is 18 years old can constitute defilement of minors, depending on the circumstances, with no exception being allowed purely on the basis of the proximity of their ages.
Moldova
The age of consent in MoldovaMoldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
is 16, per Article 174- "Sexual intercourse with a person under 16", and Article 175- "Perverted Actions".
Articles 171 and 172 provide harsher penalties for Rape and Violent Sexual Actions (including physical or mental coercion) against juveniles.
Montenegro
The age of consent in MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
is 14, as set out in Article 206 of the Criminal Code. Article 207 makes it illegal for a teacher, instructor, guardian, adoptive parent, stepfather, stepmother or other person with a similar position to abuse one's position or authority in order to perform sexual intercourse or an equal act with a minor (under 18) entrusted for teaching, education, custody and care. Article 209 (2) makes it illegal for a person to "provide for performing debauchery, an act equal to it or some other sexual act to a minor". Article 216 prohibits "Extramarital community with a minor"
Article 216 reads: (1) An adult person who lives in an extramarital community with a minor, shall be punished by an imprisonment sentence of three months to three years.
(2) A parent, adoptive parent or a guardian who enables a minor to live in an extramarital community with another person or incites him/her into it shall be punished by a penalty referred to in Paragraph 1 of this Article.' .
History
Montenegro decriminalized homosexual sex in 1977, with an equal age of consent, set at 14.Netherlands
The age of consent in the NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
is 16, as specified by the Dutch Criminal Code, Articles 245 and 247, which read:
Art 245: "A person who, out of wedlock, with a person who has reached the age of twelve but has not reached sixteen, performs indecent acts comprising or including sexual penetration of the body is liable to a term of imprisonment of not more than eight years or a fine of the fifth category."
Art 247: "A person who, with a person whom he knows to be unconscious or physically unable to resist or to be suffering from such a degree of mental defect or mental disease that he is incapable or not sufficiently capable of exercising or expressing his will in the matter or of offering resistance, performs indecent acts, or who, with a person who has not yet reached the age of sixteen (16) years, out of wedlock, performs indecent acts, or by whom the latter is enticed into performing, or submitting to such acts, out of wedlock, with a third party, is liable to a term of imprisonment of not more than six years or a fine of the fourth category."
Consensual sexual relations between adolescents who are close in age are not punished: sexual acts between persons who have reached the age of 12 years are widely tolerated by the courts and the Dutch Public Prosecution Service if the difference in age between the two partners is not too great. The latter is determined at the discretion of the court, though usually three years is deemed acceptable.
Article 245, Article 247 (in Dutch)
Norway
The age of consent in NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
is 16, as specified by the 1902 Civil penal Code §196: which reads: "Any person who commits or is accessory to another person's committing an act of indecency with any person who is under 16 years of age shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years."
The penalization for sexual abuse is two-tierd, according to §195 of the same penal code: Aggravating circumstances such as the victim being under 14 years of age, recidivism, multiple perpetrators, and unusual degree of degradation and pain, or physical harm may raise the maximum penalty to 15 years.
Even though one may be found guilty of violating the age of consent rules, if those involved are of a "similar age or development", the court can exercise its own discretion to suspend passing a sentence.
History
The age of consent for heterosexual sex has changed from the Viking age where it was from the onset of first menstruation, to after the Lutheran reformation from 20 years down to 16 years (enacted in the 60's).
Sexual relations between two women has never been a criminal offence.
In 1951 a Norwegian ministry of justice white paper recommended de-criminalization of homosexual acts in the 1903 Civil Penal Code §213, but this was rejected by the Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget).
The ban on sex between men, which also outlawed sex with animals, was repealed only in 1972.
Norwegian General Civil Code (in Norwegian)
Svalbard
According to the Svalbard Treaty, Norwegian law is applied as the minimum standard. The age of consent is therefore 16.Poland
The age of consent in PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
is 15, as specified by the Polish Criminal Code, Article 200, which reads:
"Article 200. § 1. Whoever subjects a minor under 15 years of age to sexual intercourse or makes him/her submit to another sexual act or to perform such an act shall be subject to the penalty of the deprivation of liberty for a term of between 2 and 12 years."
"§ 2. The same punishment shall be imposed on anyone, who records pornographic material with the participation of such a person."
Polish Criminal Code (in Polish)
Prohibition of public advocacy of pedophilia
In Poland it is illegal for anybody to publicly advocate pedophiliac behavior.ARTICLE 200b
Propagation of pedophilia
Whoever publicly propagates or approves behavior of pedophiliac character
shall be subject to a fine, the penalty of restriction of liberty or the penalty of deprivation
of liberty for up to two years'.
History
Poland never imposed laws against homosexuality. However, in 1876 homosexuality was criminalised by the laws of occupying countries (see Partitions of PolandPartitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
). In 1932 the first Polish Criminal Code after regaining independence was introduced, making the age of consent of 15 for all sexual acts, regardless of sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
.
Portugal
Since September 2007, the age of consent laws of PortugalPortugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
states 14, regardless of sexual behaviour, gender and/or sexual orientation, as a result of the constitutional court of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
ruling on constitutional protection that explicitly includes "sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
", formally into the Constitution of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
back in 2004. Since September 2007, the age of consent was formally equalised as part of the Penal Code of September 2007. Although the age of consent is stipulated at 14 in Portugal, the legality of a sexual acts with a minor between 14 and 16 is open to legal interpretation since the law states that it is illegal to perform a sexual act with an adolescent between 14 and 16 years old "by taking advantage of their inexperience" http://www.avert.org/aofconsent.htm.
History
Homosexual acts were legalised for the first time in Portugal in 1852, with an equal age of consent at that time - although homosexuality was again re-criminalised in 1912. They were decriminalised a second time in 1945 and an age of consent was set at 16, in line with heterosexual activities. In 1995, a new Penal Code was introduced with "different circumstances" for different sexual behaviours. Since September 2007 the age of consent regardless of sexual behaviour, gender and/or sexual orientation is 14 .See also: LGBT rights in Portugal
Romania
The age of consent in RomaniaRomania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
is 15, as specified by the Romanian Criminal Code, Article 218 (Sexual intercourse with a minor), which reads: "Sexual intercourse, of any nature, with a person of the other sex or of the same sex, who has not reached the age of 15, shall be punished by strict imprisonment from 3 to 10 years and the prohibition of certain rights."
Having sex with a minor over the age of 15 until the age of 18 is statutory rape if the sexual act is done by two categories:
I. The person abused his or her authority or influence over the victim or the victim's trust.
II. The person is the tutor, curator, supervisor, providing care, medication or education and using that capacity over the victim to gain consent.
Romanian Criminal Code
Russia
The age of consent in RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
is 16. The age of consent changed several times in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n history: the Criminal Code of RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic) stated "sexual maturity" as the age of consent; when the Criminal Code of Russia was adopted in 1996, the age of consent was proclaimed to be the same regardless of sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
and was set to 16 years old; http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=18831;p=5#p1073 in 1998 it was lowered to 14 years; http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=45566#p29 and in 2003 it was returned again to 16 years http://www.consultant.ru/online/base/?req=doc;base=LAW;n=57610;p=1#p243 (which is the current age of consent in Russia).
Article 134. Illicit Sexual Relations or Other Sexual Actions with a Person Who Has Not Reached 16 Years of Age http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1697/file/0cc1acff8241216090943e97d5b4.htm/preview
Illicit sexual relations, pederasty, or lesbianism, committed by a person who has reached 18 years of age with a person who obviously has not reached 16 years of age,
shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to three years or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to four years.
Article 135. Depraved Actions http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1697/file/0cc1acff8241216090943e97d5b4.htm/preview
Commission of depraved actions without the use of violence by the person who has reached the age of 18 years in relations to a person who obviously has not reached 16 years of age,
shall be punishable by a fine in the amount up to 300 thousand roubles, or in the amount of the wage or salary, or any other income of the convicted person for a period up to two years, or by restraint of liberty for a term of up to two years, or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to three years.
However, only a person over 18 can be charged. Charges are relatively low (up to 4 years of prison), regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender and "obscene actions" (with even less charges). {Art 134 and 135} If the victim is proved not to understand the nature and consequences of the act (due to their age or mental abilities), it will be considered rape and charged much more severely (up to 10 years of prison, or up to 15 if the victim is under 14). {Art 131 and 132}.
Further reading:
- Criminal Code of the Russian Federation — (English translation)
- Criminal Code of the Russian Federation — Chapter 18 (in Russian)
- LGBT rights in Russia
History
The penalty for having sex with a minor is not always applied. For example in 2005, Valentina Isaeva gave birth to a girl in Moscow, Russia at the age of 11 years, 10 months. The father was 19-year-old Habibula Patahonov from Tajikistan, who rented a room in a flat where Valentina was living with her grandmother. The child's father was sentenced conditionally for child abuse but was not jailed because he was willing to support Valentina and their daughter.San Marino
The age of consent in San MarinoSan Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino , is a state situated on the Italian Peninsula on the eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. It is an enclave surrounded by Italy. Its size is just over with an estimated population of over 30,000. Its capital is the City of San Marino...
is 14, per Article 173. It is also illegal, under Article 177, to "incite a minor under 18 years to sexual corruption".
Serbia
The age of consent in SerbiaSerbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
is 14, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender. This is regulated by Chapter 18 (Sexual Offences) of the Penal Code of the Republic of Serbia and especially Article 180 (prohibiting sexual intercourse with a child). Article 112 defines a child as a person under 14 years of age.
Article 181 prohibits sexual intercourse with a juvenile (defined in Article 112 as a person under 18) if the juvenile is entrusted for learning, tutoring, guardianship or care. Article 190 furthermore forbids cohabitation with a minor (person under 18) unless a marriage is conducted.
Serbian Criminal Code in English (translated by the OSCE mission to Serbia in February 2006)
History
From 1977 to 1994, sexual acts between men of any age was a criminal offence in Serbia, although the law has never been applied. Then in 1994, the age of consent was 18 just for anal sex between males; any male performing anal sexual conduct with another male, is punishable by up to 1 year in prison, 14 for all other sexual conduct. Since 2006, an equal age of consent came into force, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender - This is regulated by the section 110 of the Penal Code of the Republic of Serbia stating that "lewd acts" between a male adult and a male under the age of 14 is punishable by imprisonment from 1 to 8 years. There is no specific reference to "lewd acts" between two females of the same offence.The province of Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
, a northern province of Serbia, had decriminalized homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
in 1978, thus effectively making an equal age of consent for any sexual practice regardless of sex and/or gender. This lasted until Vojvodina lost its law-making power in 1990.
Slovakia
The age of consent in SlovakiaSlovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
is 15, as specified by the Slovak Criminal Code, Section 201.
§ 201 Sexual abuse
1. Any person, who has sexual intercourse with a person less than fifteen years
of age or who subjects such person to other sexual abuse, shall be liable to a
term of imprisonment of three to ten years.
History
Until 1961, homosexual acts were prohibited, however the new Criminal Code of that year decriminalised such behaviour. However, under Paragraph 244, the age of consent for homosexual acts was set at 18, whereas it remained 15 for heterosexual acts. In 1990, the Penal Code was amended to treat hetero- and homosexual acts equally; Paragraph 244 was repealed and the age of consent became 15 for all.Slovenia
The age of consent in SloveniaSlovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
is 15, as specified by the Slovenian Penal Code, Article 183, Section 1, which reads: "(1) Whoever has sexual intercourse or performs any lewd act with a person of the same or opposite sex under the age of fifteen (15) years where there is a marked discrepancy between the maturity of the perpetrator and that of the victim shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than six (6) months and not more than five (5) years.
"
Slovenian Penal Code
History
Until 1959, male homosexual acts were prohibited, as was the case in all of former Yugoslavia. A new Penal Code was introduced in 1977, which decriminalised homosexual acts and all discriminatory provisions were removed. In 1995, the age of consent was set at 14 for all acts. In 1999, the code was amended to raise the age of consent to 15 years and added the condition for "a marked discrepancy between the maturity of the perpetrator and that of the victim'".Spain
The age of consent in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
is 13, as specified by the Spanish Penal Code, Article 181(2). However, if deceit is used in gaining the consent of a minor under 16 years an individual can be charged under Article 183(1) upon parental complaint.
- "181(1) El que, interviniendo engaño, cometiere abuso sexual con persona mayor de trece años y menor de dieciséis, será castigado con la pena de prisión de uno a dos años, o multa de doce a veinticuatro meses.
- (Approximate translation: An individual who, by use of deceit, commits sexual abuse with a person over thirteen years and under sixteen years, will be punished with imprisonment for one or two years, or a fine equivalent to twelve to twenty-four months...)
- (2) A los efectos del apartado anterior, se consideran abusos sexuales no consentidos los que se ejecuten sobre menores de trece años, sobre personas que se hallen privadas de sentido o de cuyo trastorno mental se abusare."
- (Approximate translation: For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, the following are considered non-consensual sexual abuse, sexual abuse of children below thirteen years, people who are bereft of capacity or having a mental disorder which is abused)"
History
Homosexual acts had been legal in Spain from 1822 to 1933, (with the exception of the offence of “habitual homosexual acts" in the years 1928-32) and even not specifically mentioned there, some homosexuals were arrested under the "Ley de Vagos y Maleantes" (Vagrants and Common Delinquents Law) during the 2nd Spanish republic. Homosexual acts were illegal during Francisco FrancoFrancisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
's regime, which created a specific law against them (Ley de Peligrosidad Social - Law Against Social Danger). A new Criminal Code was introduced in 1995, which specified an age of consent of 12 under Article 181f for all sexual acts; and this was raised to 13 in 1999.
Further reading:
- Interpol Entry on Spain (In Spanish)
Sweden
The age of consent in SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
is 15, as specified by the Swedish Penal Code, Chapter 6 (On Sexual Crimes). The age of fifteen is referred to several times, for example in Section 4, which reads: "A person who has sexual intercourse with a child under fifteen years of age or who with such a child carries out another sexual act that, having regard to the nature of the violation and the circumstances in general, is comparable to sexual intercourse, shall be sentenced for rape of a child to imprisonment for at least two and at most six years."
There is a position of trust rule in which the age of consent is raised to 18. The section mentioned above continues:"The same applies to the person who carries out an act referred to in the first paragraph to a child more than fifteen years of age but less than eighteen years of age and who is offspring to the perpetrator or in the perpetrator's care or in a similar relationship to the perpetrator, or for whose care or guardianship the perpetrator is responsible due to the decision of a government agency."
It's not legal to have sexual intercourse with adult offspring either, but the sentences for that (up to two years) are considerably milder than those for rape of a child (two to six years, four to ten years if rough).
There is also a close in age exception (Chapter 6, Section 14) "...not sentenced if it is obvious that the act is no violation of the child considered the small difference in age between the person who carries out the act and the child and other circumstances." In a verdict of March 30, 2007, the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Sweden
The Supreme Court of Sweden is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in Sweden. Before a case can be decided by the Supreme Court, leave to appeal must be obtained, and with few exceptions, leave to appeal can be granted only when the case is of...
found that a 17 year old boy had not committed a criminal act by having sexual intercourse with a girl 14 years and 7 months old. (Case B 415-07)
Swedish Criminal Code
The Swedish age of consent also applies if the act takes place outside Sweden but the elder person later goes to Sweden. The elder person doesn't have to be a Swedish citizen or resident, but could be a tourist on a temporary visit. This is regardless of the age of consent in the country where the act took place.
History
Homosexual acts between men were prohibited in Sweden since 1864, then in 1944 homosexual acts between men became legal - but with a higher age of consent of 20 than for heterosexual/lesbian acts, which was always set at 15. The age of consent for gay men got lowered again in 1966 to 18 (still 15 for lesbians and heterosexuals). Then the age of consent was finally equalized to 15 regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender in 1978.Switzerland
The age of consent in SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
is 16, as specified by the Swiss Federal Criminal Code, Article 187(1). However, there exists a close in age exception if the difference between the ages of the participants is three years or less (Article 187(2)).
Turkey
The age of consent in TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
is the age of majority (set at 18 as per Article 11 of the Turkish Civil Code).
According to Article 104 of the Turkish Penal Code (Türk Ceza Kanunu), if the minor is 15, 16 or 17 and the age gap is less than 5 years, the acts can be prosecuted only upon a complaint.
ARTICLE 104 – (1) Any person who is in sexual intercourse with a child who completed the age of fifteen without using force, threat and fraud, is sentenced to imprisonment from six months to two years upon filing of a complaint.
(2) If the offender is older than the victim more than five years, the punishment to be imposed is doubled without seeking raise of a complaint.
Article 103 regulates sex with minors under 15 or minors who lack the ability to understand the act as child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
, stipulating imprisonment from three to eight years. Penalties may be heavier depending on the identity of the perpetrator and other circumstances.
Criminal Code (in English)
History
The former Turkish Penal Code of 1927 punished having sex with a minor as statutory rapeStatutory rape
The phrase statutory rape is a term used in some legal jurisdictions to describe sexual activities where one participant is below the age required to legally consent to the behavior...
.
Ukraine
The age of consent in UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
appears to be 16, although it is not specifically set in any one statute.
Article 155 states that sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person shall be punishable. Immaturity is irrefutably presumed in those under 14 {Art. 120CC and court rulings}. Those under 14 are considered children in Ukrainian law, additionally those under 16 are considered minors (generally read from all articles and court rulings).
However, sexual acts with those under 16 that are considered debauchery can also be prosecuted under Article 156.
Article 155 – Sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person
1. Sexual intercourse with a sexually immature person, –
shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term up to three years or imprisonment for the same term.'
2. The same actions committed by a parent or surrogate parent, or where they caused sterility or other grave consequences, –
shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of three to five years.http://www.legislationline.org/documents/id/7069
Article 156 – Debauchery of minors
1. Debauched actions committed in regard of a person under 16 years of age, – shall be punishable by arrest for a term up to six months, or restraint of liberty for a term up to three years.
2. The same actions committed in regard of a young child, or by a parent or surrogate parent, – shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term up to five years, or imprisonment for a term up to three years. http://www.legislationline.org/documents/id/7069
Ukrainian Criminal Code
United Kingdom (and dependencies)
The United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
consists of the jurisdictions of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. UK national age of consent legislation does not apply to its dependencies.
England and Wales
The age of consent in England and WalesEngland and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
is 16 regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender, as specified by the Sexual Offences Act 2003
Sexual Offences Act 2003
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland that was passed in 2003 and became law on 1 May 2004.It replaced older sexual offences laws with more specific and explicit wording...
. However, if person A is over the age of 18 and in a position of trust over person B who is under the age of 18, it is illegal for A to engage in sexual activity with B.
Further reading:
History
The age of consent for heterosexual acts in England was set at 12 in 1275 during the reign of Edward IEdward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
. It was lowered to 10 in the latter part of the 16th century. The wording was along the lines of "It shall be deemed illegal to ravage a maiden who is not of age" - at the time "of age" being 12. Therefore, there was, and is, technically no age of consent for the male participant - unless the female participant is an adult in which case laws pertaining to sex with a minor and so on come into force. The English law became applicable in Wales following the Acts of Union (1536 and 1543). In medieval Welsh law
Welsh law
Welsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh...
there was no actual equivalent of the concept of the age of consent as such, but a girl was marriagable at 12-14 (the onset of puberty) and a fine was payable for the taking of a girl's maidenhood by force; the rules varied according to status and may not have been applied rigidly to commoners.
A concern that young girls were being sold into brothels led Parliament to raise the age of consent to 13 in 1875 under the Offences against the Person Act 1875
Offences against the Person Act 1875
The Offences against the Person Act 1875 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
. After W. T. Stead's Maiden Tribute articles, the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
The Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 , or "An Act to make further provision for the Protection of Women and Girls, the suppression of brothels, and other purposes", was the latest in a 25-year series of legislation in the United Kingdom beginning with the Offences against the Person Act 1861 that...
raised the age of consent to 16.
Male-male homosexual activity had been illegal since the Buggery Act 1533
Buggery Act 1533
The Buggery Act 1533, formally An Acte for the punysshement of the vice of Buggerie , was an Act of the Parliament of England that was passed during the reign of Henry VIII...
and this was reinforced in the Offences against the Person Act 1861
Offences Against The Person Act 1861
The Offences against the Person Act 1861 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It consolidated provisions related to offences against the person from a number of earlier statutes into a single Act...
and the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
The Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 , or "An Act to make further provision for the Protection of Women and Girls, the suppression of brothels, and other purposes", was the latest in a 25-year series of legislation in the United Kingdom beginning with the Offences against the Person Act 1861 that...
extended buggery laws to include any kind of sexual activity between males. It is common folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
that an amendment that would have criminalised lesbian acts was rejected by Queen Victoria because she refused to believe that some women did such things; but it is likelier that those presenting the amendment excluded it (as did the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
40 years later) on the assumption that it would give women ideas.
Male homosexual acts were decriminalised under the Sexual Offences Act 1967
Sexual Offences Act 1967
The Sexual Offences Act 1967 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom . It decriminalised homosexual acts in private between two men, both of whom had to have attained the age of 21. The Act applied only to England and Wales and did not cover the Merchant Navy or the Armed Forces...
, Section 1, although the age of consent for such acts was set at 21, whereas the age of consent for heterosexual acts was 16. However, the legislation applied only in England and Wales.
In 1994, on the second reading of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It introduced a number of changes to the existing law, most notably in the restriction and reduction of existing rights and in greater penalties for certain "anti-social" behaviours...
, the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Member of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
Edwina Currie
Edwina Currie
Edwina Jonesnée Cohen is a former British Member of Parliament. First elected as a Conservative Party MP in 1983, she was a Junior Health Minister for two years, before resigning in 1988 over the controversy over salmonella in eggs...
introduced an amendment to lower the age of consent for homosexual acts to 16, in line with that for heterosexual acts; the amendment was defeated by 308 votes to 280. A compromise amendment that lowered the age of consent to 18 was accepted by 427 votes to 162. Also during the readings were motions to equalise the age of consent to 17 for all, to maintain the age of consent for homosexual acts to 21, and a further attempt to lower the age of consent to 16, all of which were rejected.
In 1997, the European Court of Human Rights case of Sutherland v the United Kingdom held that a higher age of consent for homosexuals than for heterosexuals was a breach of Article 14 in conjunction with Article 8 of the Convention. In response, the Government introduced the Crime and Disorder Bill that contained a provision lowering the age of consent for homosexual acts to 16. Though accepted by the House of Commons, the provision was rejected by the House of Lords. The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill, introduced in 1998, contained a similar provision, but once again it was rejected by the House of Lords. The Bill was reintroduced in 2000 and, despite opposition from the House of Lords, was passed under the Parliament Act 1911
Parliament Act 1911
The Parliament Act 1911 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is constitutionally important and partly governs the relationship between the House of Commons and the House of Lords which make up the Houses of Parliament. This Act must be construed as one with the Parliament Act 1949...
(which allows the House of Commons to overrule the House of Lords under certain circumstances). As the Scottish Parliament had been established prior to the reintroduction of the Bill, and the relevant legislation was a devolved issue, the consent of that Parliament under the Sewel Convention was required – had that consent not been granted, the Scottish provisions would have had to be removed and it would not have been possible to use the Parliament Act. The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000
Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000
The Sexual Offences Act 2000 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It changed the age of consent for male homosexual sexual activities from 18 to that for heterosexual and lesbian sexual activities at 16, or 17 in Northern Ireland...
thus equalised the age of consent at 16 for all sexual acts (including, for the first time, lesbian acts), except those taking place between a child and someone "in a position of trust" (e.g. a teacher), where the age of consent was raised to 18.
As lesbians and homosexuals are allowed to follow their own inclinations at age 16 it is an offence under Articles 3, 8, 12 and 14 of their human rights to require a young transsexual to have to wait to 18 to commence hormone and puberty blockers.
Scotland
Since 1 December 2010, the age of consent in ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
is 16, regardless of sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
and/or gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
. Before that date, it was 16 for girls (under a statutory offence) and 14 for boys (the common law age of puberty
Puberty
Puberty is the process of physical changes by which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of reproduction, as initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads; the ovaries in a girl, the testes in a boy...
). However, consensual sex with a girl aged between 13 and 16 is not rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
, but a lesser offence; on 1 December 2010 this has been given the specific name of "having intercourse with an older child".
History
Male homosexual acts were illegal in Scotland until 1980 when they were decriminalised by the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1980, Section 80, which specified an age of consent of 21. The Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995
The Criminal Law Act 1995 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed to consolidate certain enactments creating offences and relating to the criminal law of Scotland.-Incest and related offences:...
lowered the age of consent of 18 and this was further lowered to 16 by the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000 described above. Male rape will be recognised along with a complete overhaul of sexual offences legislation under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009
Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009
The Sexual Offences Act 2009 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament. It creates a code of sexual offences that is said to be intended to reform that area of the law....
(in force from the 1 December 2010, except for sections 52 and 53).
Northern Ireland
The age of consent in Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
is 16, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender, as specified by the Sexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 2008. The reason the age of consent was lowered from 17 to 16 in 2008 with the Order was to bring it in line with the rest of the UK; Criminal Justice Minister Paul Goggins said there was no compelling reason for the age to be different in Northern Ireland than elsewhere.
- LGBT rights in the United Kingdom
History
Gay male sexual conduct was illegal in Northern Ireland until 1982, when they were decriminalised by the Homosexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 1982, which specified an age of consent of 21 - in line with the rest of the UK at the time. The change was a result of the judgement in the European Court of Human Rights case of Dudgeon v United Kingdom (1981)Dudgeon v. United Kingdom
Dudgeon v the United Kingdom was a European Court of Human Rights case, which held that legislation passed in the nineteenth century to criminalise male homosexual acts in England, Wales and Ireland - in 1980, still in force in Northern Ireland - violated the European Convention on Human Rights...
in which the ECHR held that a prohibition on homosexual acts was a breach of Article 8 of the Convention. The age of consent for gay male sexual conduct was lowered to 18 in 1994 when the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 was implemented (as to be in line with England and Wales). The age of consent in 2001 was then lowered to 17 for gay male sexual conduct - so that was in line with heterosexual and lesbian sexual conduct, by the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000, Section 1. Then in 2008 the age of consent for all individuals under an Order (mentioned above) was lowered to 16 so it was inline with the rest of the UK. Prior to 2008, the age of consent in Northern Ireland was always 17 for heterosexuals and lesbian sexual conduct.
Gibraltar
Since August 2011, the age of consentAge of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
is equal and gender-neutral
Gender-neutral
Gender neutrality describes the idea that language and other social institutions should avoid distinguishing people by their gender, in order to avoid discrimination arising from the impression that there are social roles for which one gender is more suited than the other...
at 16 in Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
(a British overseas territory
British overseas territories
The British Overseas Territories are fourteen territories of the United Kingdom which, although they do not form part of the United Kingdom itself, fall under its jurisdiction. They are remnants of the British Empire that have not acquired independence or have voted to remain British territories...
). The gender-neutral Crimes Bill 2011 passed the Gibraltar Parliament and got assent
Assent
Assent can refer to:* A Belgian village between Bekkevoort and Diest.* Offer and acceptance* Royal Assent...
ed - implementing the April 2011 Supreme Court of Gibraltar decision and by repealing and updating 140 year old criminal laws of Gibraltar.
History
Male homosexual acts have been decriminalised in GibraltarGibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
since 1993, where the age of consent was higher at 18 for gay men, 16 for lesbians and heterosexuals. Anal sex was illegal for heterosexuals regardless. An equal age of consent set at 16 and legalising heterosexual anal sex happened because of a recent Supreme Court decision in April 2011, then in August 2011, under the gender-neutral Crimes Act 2011 implemented an equal and gender-neutral age of consent of 16 and legalised anal sex for heterosexuals - reflecting the Supreme Court of Gibraltar decision and by repealing and updating 140 year old criminal laws of Gibraltar.
Guernsey (Including Alderney, Herm and Sark)
Since 2010, the age of consent in the Bailiwick of GuernseyGuernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
(a Crown Dependency including Alderney
Alderney
Alderney is the most northerly of the Channel Islands. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown dependency. It is long and wide. The area is , making it the third-largest island of the Channel Islands, and the second largest in the Bailiwick...
, Herm
Herm
Herm is the smallest of the Channel Islands that is open to the public and is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Cars are banned from the small island just like its Channel Island neighbour, Sark. Unlike Sark, bicycles are also banned...
and Sark
Sark
Sark is a small island in the Channel Islands in southwestern English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. It is a royal fief, geographically located in the Channel Islands in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of laws based on Norman law and its own parliament. It has a population...
) is 16, regardless of gender and/or sexual orientation, by a law that was passed in March 2010.
History
In 1983, male homosexual acts were decriminalised with the age of consent set at 21. In 1999 the age of consent for male homosexual acts was lowered to 18. http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/united_kingdom/uknews06.htm In 2010, the age of consent for male homosexual acts was equalised at 16 for everyone, by a recently passed law.Isle of Man
The age of consent in the Isle of ManIsle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, a Crown Dependency, is 16, last amended on September 1, 2006 http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/GAY-SEX-AGE-LOWERED-TO.1689805.jp.
History
Prior to September 1992, sodomy was illegal, then since 1 October 1992 under the Sexual Offences (Isle Of Man) Act 1992 (after assent) the age of consent was set at 21 for sodomy (in line with the UK at that time). Then in 2001, the age of consent for male homosexual acts was lowered to 18 under the Criminal Justice Act 2001http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/infocentre/acts/cja2001.pdf. In 2006, under the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2006http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/infocentre/acts/sexoffences.pdf the age of consent was lowered to 16, became gender-neutral for all sexual conduct, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender.See also:
- LGBT rights in the Isle of ManLGBT rights in the Isle of ManLesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights in the Isle of Man over the past couple of years have become more liberal after years of lobbying, LGBT people have made progress in getting legal recognition Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in the Isle of Man over the past...
Jersey
The age of consent in the Bailiwick of JerseyJersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
, a Crown Dependency, is 16, last amended in 2007.
History
Prior to 1990, sodomy was illegal in Jersey for both men and women until 1990 although the age of consent for homosexual acts other than sodomy was the same as for heterosexual acts. In 1990, the age of consent for sodomy between consenting males was set at 21 (the UK at that time maintained the age of consent of 21 for all homosexual acts between males) http://www.jerseylegalinfo.je/Law/display.aspx?URL=lawsinforce%5chtm%5cLawFiles%5c1990%2fJersey_Law_15-1990.htm. In 1995, the sodomy age of consent became 18 (under the Sexual Offences (Jersey) Law 1995). In 2007, the age of consent was lowered to 16, became gender-neutral for all sexual conduct (including sodomy); regardless of sexual orientationSexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
and/or gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
.
Further reading
- Sexual Offences (Jersey) Law 2007 (became gender-neutral for all sexual conduct, including sodomie; regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender at 16, effective since 2007)
Vatican State
The VaticanVatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
does not have its own separate criminal code. Instead, in matters of criminal law, as per Article 3 of the "Law of the Source of Law" (one of the six fundamental laws adopted upon ratification of the Lateran Treaty in 1929) the Vatican State generally uses current Italian national law, as well as regional and municipal laws for Rome, as long as they do not conflict with ecclesiastical law or laws specifically promulgated by Pope for the Vatican. As a result, the age of consent is 14, the same as Italy's. Before January 1, 2009, the adoption by the Vatican of changes made by Italy in its laws was automatic. After this date, the Vatican adoption of changes in Italian law is no longer automatic but comes into effect only after a review. However, as Italy adopted its present age of consent before January 1, 2009, this change in Vatican policy does not affect the age of consent in Vatican City, which remains the same as Italy's.
See also
- Age of consentAge of consentWhile the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
- Age of consent reformAge of consent reformAge of consent reform refers to efforts to change age of consent laws, whether to raise or lower or abolish the age of consent, or to change the ways in which the laws are applied. Another issue has been homosexual vs...
- Ages of consent in AfricaAges of consent in AfricaThe ages of consent for sexual activity vary by jurisdiction across Africa. The specific activity engaged in or the gender of its participants can also be affected by the law. Below is a discussion of the various laws dealing with this subject...
- Ages of consent in AsiaAges of consent in AsiaThe ages of consent for sexual activity vary by jurisdiction across Asia. The specific activity engaged in or the gender of its participants can also be affected by the law. Below is a discussion of the various laws dealing with this subject...
- Ages of consent in Oceania
- Ages of consent in North AmericaAges of consent in North AmericaThe ages of consent in North America for sexual activity vary by jurisdiction.The age of consent in Canada is 16 and all US states set their limits between 16 and 18.The ages of consent in the countries of Central America range from 15 to 18....
- Ages of consent in South AmericaAges of consent in South AmericaAges of consent in Latin America may refer to:*Ages of consent in Mexico *Ages of consent in North America*Ages of consent in South America...
External links
- Worldwide ages of consent (last updated August 23, 2010)