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Ages of majority and license by country (Ajax)

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Worldwide, the various ages at which persons are considered to be officially adults for different purposes can vary widely.


Age of political majority

Political majority refers to the ages at which persons become able to participate in political and civil life, whether that is in exercising whatever level of sufferage is open to the country's citizenry, holding public or elected office, or engaging in national service.

Voting age

The worldwide voting age varies by country. The age is usually between 16 and 21. In some countries, the voting age may differ by state or the type of vote.

Nation Voting age Details
South Ottonia Draakur 21 All natural-born or naturalized persons (excluding felons) in South Ottonia over the age of 21 are permitted to vote in elections for the Diet and for lower-polity elections.
 Erishlands 17, 21 All Erish citizens at least 17 years old can vote in elections for the People’s Assembly. Those at least 21 years old can also vote in elections for the National Convention. These ages were lowered from 21 and 25 respectively in 1971. State legislatures generally follow similar limits for voting age.
 Gelonia 16
 Ghant 16 Lowered from 21 to 18 in 1970, and from 18 to 16 in 2010.
 Gristol-Serkonos 18 Under the Section 58 of the Federal Constitution Act of 1925 and the Voting Rights Act of 1899 (rev. 1999), native-born or naturalized Gristo-Serkonan citizens are granted the right to vote at the age of 18. Section 59 of the Federal Constitution Act also grants the right for inmates to vote, upheld in Maxwell v Gristol-Serkonos (Chief Electoral Officer) [1999].
 Kayahallpa None The right to elect ones Local Councillor(s) is granted upon completing the Kayahallpan initiation ceremonies and receiving the blessing of an Elder, which typically takes place at age 15. Persons without an Elder's blessing do not have voting rights.
 Latium 17 Before 1961, the only requirements for voter eligibility were to be a land-owning, male citizen of Latium with no restrictions or mentions of age. Under the Voting Rights Edict of 1961, all Latin citizens, not felons, and even qualifying Belisarian citizens are eligible to vote in national and local elections.
 Mniohuta 16 Much like the age of maturity, the age of voting is 16 in Mniohuta as per traditional cultural practices and tribal law. Depending on the age at which they were naturalised, there are certain instances where naturalised citizens may only vote after the age of 18 to ensure familiarity with the Mniohutan democratic process. Felons are typically allowed to vote even while imprisoned, though those awaiting execution are typically not afforded this right.
 Ottonia 16/20 All Class B & Class A citizens are permitted to vote from the time they pass the Basic Civics Assessment. Citizenship exams can be taken beginning at the age of 16, making this functionally the voting age in North Ottonia. If a person opts against taking the BCA, they are permitted to vote in municipal and prefectural-level elections beginning at the age of 20.
 Sante Reze 15 Land-owners were granted voting rights since 1502 under the Ecclesiastical Republic, which inherently included Church leaders and merchant guilds, as well as the nobility. When the Noble Republic was established in 1702, the voting rights were granted to all titled adults, where the age of adulthood was considered fifteen - this barred commons from voting even if they owned land. In 18xx, universal suffrage was enacted for all adults.
 Sydalon 20 From the introduction of national elections in 1911 until 1946 only male, Catholic land or property owners were eligible to vote in elections, with limited sufferage for women in Petra. It wasn't until the Voting Rights Act of 1946 that suffrage was extended to include all female Catholics. Universal suffrage was later extended to include all citizens in 2004, though religious minorities still face difficulty at polling places.
 Talahara 16 Lowered from 20 to 16 in 1895 to match the minimum working age.
 Tyreseia 16 Lowered from 20 in 1970, further lowered from 18 in 1993.
 Untsangasar 18 The voting age was set at 21 until 1981, when the Franchise Expansion Act broadened the right to vote to all legal adults, setting the age at 18.
 Vannois 17 As of the 2002 Voting Rights Act Amendment, lowered from 20.
 Vardana 18 The Constitution of Vardana calls for universal suffrage for all citizens over the age of 18.
 Yisrael 21 Set from the 1954 Vote Franchise Act; lowered from 23 before 1954.

Eligibility for public office

While the requirements to hold public or government office often vary depending on the job, many countries set a minimum age at which a person becomes eligible to hold public office, regardless of the other qualifications called for by specific jobs or duties.

Nation Minimum Age for Public Office Details
South Ottonia Draakur
25
In order to hold elected public office in South Ottonia and then Draakur, a person must be at least 25. The Emergency Transitional Authority is currently reviewing proposed measures that would lower this age to 20 as part of a suite of proposed reforms.
 Ottonia
20
To hold any public office in the Federation, a person must be at least 20 years of age; certain high positions, such as Premier of the FOR, have higher age limits. Additionally, for all public and elected offices above the municipal level, a person must have passed the Basic Civics Assessment, and for all federal offices they must have passed the Advanced Civics Assessment.
 Untsangasar
None/21
Despite the 1981 expansion of the right to vote to 18 year-olds, all national public and elected offices remain barred to those under the age of 21, as do most high-level Banner public offices. However, many local elected positions have no statutory age restriction on them, with some even being open to people who are not even eligible to vote.

National service and conscription

Many countries operate a system of national service, often including military service, for which persons may either volunteer or be conscripted. These are the minimum (and maximum) ages at which a person may volunteer or be conscripted for national service, if such systems exist in the relevant country.

Nation Minimum Age to Volunteer Maximum Age to Volunteer Minimum Age to be Conscripted Maximum Age to be Conscripted Details
South Ottonia Draakur
18
50
18
40
National service was a common requirement for most of South Ottonia's history, although in recent years it had started to wane in favor of a more professional military. Since the South Ottonian Revolution, conscription has been reinstated on the Draakur-based remnant of the UKO.
 Ottonia
16/18/20
46/46/46
20/20/20
32/32/40
Ages for enlistment or conscription into the Service Corps and Guard Corps are represented by the first two values respectively, while the same values for the OFDS are represented by the third value. In peacetime, conscription does not take place for the OFDS, and conscription is only used to make up recruitment shortfalls into the Service Corps and Guard Corps.
 Untsangasar
16
48
18
48
The Untsangasari military mostly uses conscription to make up enlistment shortfalls, with the result that very few people are conscripted in any given year. That said, the provisions for conscription are expansive, based on the potential need to rapidly expand the Imperial military in a short period of time.

Ages of consent and responsibility

The following age milestones denote when a person is considered to be legally an adult for the purposes of making their own decisions socially and legally.

Age of legal adulthood and responsibility

This denotes the age at which a person is considered, for the purposes of the legal system, to be legally responsible for their own actions, in matters of criminal and civil liability, as well as their ability to enter into contracts and binding agreements without the assent of a parent or guardian. In regards to criminal responsibility and civil liability, while statutes or laws may either establish a presumption of non-liability or non-responsibility for those under a certain age, this can at times conflict with precedents by which minors have been found to be responsible for crimes or held liable in civil matters.

Country Criminal Civil Legal capability Details
Full Qualified Full Qualified Full Qualified
 Ottonia
20
16
20
16
20
16
Under Ottonian statutes, persons under the age of 20 are not considered adults, and cannot be tried as such or found civilly liable in the same way that adults can be. Moreover, contracts signed with persons under the age of 20 are considered to be made from a position of unequal power and are handled differently than contracts signed with those over that age.
 Talahara
18
12
18
16

Working age

This denotes the age at which a person can legally enter the workforce, either part-time or full-time, without incurring legal penalties.

Country Part-Time Employment Full-Time Employment Since Details
South Ottonia Draakur
14
14
1934 Youths under the age of 14 are not permitted to engage in any wage-earning work or formally be part of the laborforce. In practice, children in rural areas often assist in agricultural labor on smaller family farms. Notably, as soon as a youth becomes eligible to enter the laborforce at 14, there are not restrictions on how many hours they can work, a holdover from wartime labor laws in the 1930's.
 Ottonia
13
20
1990
Starting at the age of 13, Ottonian children can legally work as much as 10 hours per week in a family-owned business. Beginning at the age of 16, Ottonian youths can work as much as 20 hours per week. Ottonians are not permitted to work full-time (35+ hours per week) until they reach 20 years of age.
 Untsangasar
14
16
1947
By statute, youths under the age of 14 cannot be part of the employment pool, nor paid an official wage. In practice, due to relatively light oversight of more traditional communities and the importance of traditional agriculture and pastoralism to the nation's economy, as well as traditional family and clan structures, it is very common for children to assist their families in animal husbandry, agriculture, or other economic activities 'off the books.'

Age of consent

Age of consent indicates the age at which a person can consent to sexual activity and/or marriage.

Country Earliest Marriagable Age Consent to Sexual Activity Since Details
With Parent or Guardian Approval Without Parent or Guardian Approval
South Ottonia Draakur
14
15
16
1963
I'll write this when it's not almost 2 am.
 Ottonia
15
16
14-16
17-20
20+
1986 (last revision)
While consent to marriage is simple enough within Ottonia, age of consent is more complicated due to the sliding nature of the age; until a youth turns sixteen, they are only considered able to consent to intimate contact with a person within two years of their age (as long as neither age is lower than 14). Once a person turns 17, until they reach the age of 20, the range expands to three years in either direction (in practice, 16-year olds that have begun A-level or secondary schooling are treated as 17 year olds for these purposes). Once a person turns 20, they are considered fully able to consent to intimate contact. Note that in the event an age range is violated, the party that incurs any penalty will be, by default, the older person.
 Untsangasar
13
15
16
1983
TBR

Ages of intoxication

This indicates the age or ages at which a person is considered an adult for the purposes of consuming intoxicating or controlled substances in daily life.

Country Alcohol Tobacco Cannabis Other Controlled Substances (Please Specify) Since Details
To Consume To Purchase To Consume To Purchase To Consume To Purchase
South Ottonia Draakur
18
18
18
18
Not Legal
Not Legal
Not Legal
1944
 Ottonia
14 (ABV <15%)
20 (ABV >5%)
20 (Any)
20
20
20
20
20 (Hallucinogens)
1948
1980
1977
1991
Most drugs outside of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, and certain hallucinogens are illegal but decriminalized. There is active debate around the possibility of stricter legislation regarding tobacco.
 Untsangasar
14 (ABV <5%)
18 (ABV <20%)
21 (All)
18 (ABV <20%)
21 (Any)
18
14
21
21
21 (certain hallucinogenic compounds)
1916
1937
1971
1956
Hallucinogenic compounds may be used for religious purposes only by those as young as 14 with adult supervision.

School leaving age

The age at which a person is allowed to end their involvement in (compulsory) public education.

  School leaving age higher   Employment age higher   Both ages synchronized   Age[s] vary by province   No information or No age set
# Country De jure Years of Nonmandatory Schooling As of Details
Minimum School Leaving Age End of Secondary School
 Ghant
0
0
0
1873 Since education varies from province to province, there is wide variance in this area. Generally speaking, there are no restrictions on working part-time, while full-time employment can be gained when one is out of school.
 Latium
17
0
1977 Until 1977, the leaving age and employment age were each set at 14. It wasn't until the enactment of Education Reform and Improvement Act that both categories were raised to 17. This, however, does not create a prohibition on employment of minors, only requires those over the age of 17 to complete their secondary education, enter full-time employment, or enlist in the Latin Armed Forces. There is no requirement to obtain a post-secondary or tertiary degree, though many individuals do.
 Lyncanestria
17*
(15)*
2
1986 Until 1986, leaving age and employment age were both set at 15; the school leaving age was raised to 17 on the federal level with the School and Education Reform Act. Employment for children at 15 is confined to part-time work with eligibility for full-time employment acquired upon reaching 17, the age of majority.
*States are still able to set a higher age in their jurisdiction.
 Ottonia
16
20
4
1956 Because persons are considered to reach partial majority at 16 in Ottonia, the compulsory phase of schooling ends at 16. Secondary school continues until the age of 20; students who do not have a specific reason to leave education are strongly encouraged to complete Standard Education, and there are penalties for failing to do so, including an increased chance of being conscripted into either the Federal Guard or Service Corps.

Children between the ages of 13 and 16 can be employed in a business owned by their family for no more than 10 hours per week. At 16, a youth can seek part-time employment (no more than 20 hours per week) outside of a family business; they can apply for an exemption for full-time employment if they have terminated their schooling.

 Sydalon
18
0
1921 Compulsory education is enforced from the age of 6, with school leaving age set at 18.
 Vannois
17
(16)
17
-1
1980 Education is regulated by the Imperial Government, and as such these ages are status for all Vannois.
 Velikoslavia
16
0
1965 Velikoslavia has a nationally unified education system with both school leaving age and working age set to 16. Pupils who leave at 16 may take an apptitude test to graduate early. Velikoslavia offers reduced to free secondary school that pupils may remain in until 19 which allows them to gain significant credit towards a university degree.