The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a package of amendments to the Civil Code that would lower the age of majority from 20 to 18, which, if passed by the Legislative Yuan, is expected to take effect in 2023.
The package includes 38 legal amendments involving 14 central government agencies, Minister Without Portfolio Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) told a news conference at the Executive Yuan in Taipei.
The proposals were made to bring the nation in line with the international trend, as the age of majority in the US, the UK, France and Germany are all 18, Lo said, adding that Japan in 2018 also passed legislation that lowered the legal age to 18.
Photo: CNA
The age of criminal responsibility is 18, but the legal age defined by the code is 20, which has resulted in incongruities, he said.
Furthermore, the legal age of marriage for men is 18, but 16 for women, which runs counter to the values of gender equality, he said.
International experts have said that the nation’s marriageable age for women contravenes the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and that allowing women to marry at the age of 16 is tantamount to condoning child marriage, he said.
The legal age in the code was defined in 1929, which no longer fits today’s needs, considering how much more mature young people are today than in the past, he said.
If passed, Taiwanese who have turned 18 would be able to do a list of things that they would otherwise have had to wait, including renting a house, signing a contract, opening a bank account, starting a company or serving as a company director, filing a lawsuit or becoming members of commercial or education groups, he said.
The lowering of the legal age would have a profound impact on the nation and usher in a new era, he said, adding that it is imperative that all agencies affected adjust their administrative work accordingly.
Society today is far more advanced from 91 years ago in that people are more educated and enlightened, which merits the lowering of the legal age, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said.
There are 110 nations in the world that set their age of majority at 18, he said.
Academics, civic groups and students have long called for the age to be lowered, and the changes have been proposed in response to public expectations, he said.
Government agencies should communicate extensively with legislative caucuses so that the proposals could swiftly be passed into law, he said.
National Alliance of Parents Organizations chairman Hsieh Kuo-ching (謝國清) said he welcomed the amendments, but added that the government should improve education on students’ problem solving skills and help them learn to be responsible for their decisions.
Additional reporting by Rachel Lin
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS