Age of consent by country
Age of consent by country
The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts and is thus the minimum age of a person with whom another person is legally permitted to engage in sexual activity. The distinguishing aspect of the age of consent laws is that the person below the minimum age is regarded as the victim, and their sex partner is regarded as the offender, unless both are underage.
Definitions
The data below reflects what each jurisdiction's legislation actually means, rather than what it states on the surface.
Australia
<table><thead><tr><th>State/territory</th><th>By age</th><th>By authority</th><th>Unrestricted</th><th>Ref.</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> Australian Capital Territory</td><td>10</td><td>16</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> New South Wales</td><td>14</td><td>16</td><td>17</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Northern Territory</td><td>—</td><td>16</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Queensland</td><td>—</td><td>—</td><td>16</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> South Australia</td><td>16</td><td>17</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Tasmania</td><td>12</td><td>17</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Victoria</td><td>12</td><td>16</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Western Australia</td><td>13</td><td>16</td><td>18</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>
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