Age of Consent in China

What is the China Age of Consent?

The Age of Consent in China is 14 years old. The age of consent is the minimum age at which an individual is considered legally old enough to consent to participation in sexual activity. Individuals aged 13 or younger in China are not legally able to consent to sexual activity, and such activity may result in prosecution for statutory rape or the equivalent local law.

China statutory rape law is violated when an individual has consensual sexual contact with a person under age 14, regardless of sexual orientation or gender. Pnnishment is more severe if younger party is both under age 14 and was acting as a prostitute.

China has two territories that have their own local age of consent laws. These territories are listed in the following table:

Territory of China	Region	Age Of Consent
Hong Kong	Asia	16
Macau	Asia	14

China does not have a close-in-age exemption. Close in age exemptions, commonly known as "Romeo and Juliet laws" in the United States, are put in place to prevent the prosecution of individuals who engage in consensual sexual activity when both participants are significantly close in age to each other, and one or both partners are below the age of consent.

Because there is no close-in-age exemption in China, it is possible for two individuals both under the age of 14 who willingly engage in intercourse to both be prosecuted for statutory rape, although this is rare. Similarly, no protections are reserved for sexual relations in which one participant is a 13 year old and the second is a 14 or 15 year old.

Age of Consent across the world

The Age of Consent ranges from as low as 11 to as high as 20 years old across the world. Click any country for details, or view countries with the highest & lowest ages of consent.

Age of Consent Map:

Must be married

< 13 years old

14 years old

15 years old

16 years old

17 years old

18 years old

> 19 years old

Back to list of international ages of consent View state ages of consent in the USA