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A question we are often asked is; what is the age of consent?
This question does not have a simple answer.  Bill C-22 has been passed to increase the general age of protection to 16. Please read their summary.

Media Relations
Department of Justice Canada
(613) 957-4207

Backgrounder – Bill C-22

Age of Protection Legislation

As part of its Speech from the Throne commitment to tackle crime and its pledge to protect Canadian families and communities against sexual predators, the Government has introduced “age of protection” legislation. The legislation raises the age of consent from 14 to 16 years old, in order to help stop adults from sexually exploiting vulnerable young people.

Understanding “Age of Protection”

The age of protection, or age of consent as it is also called, refers to the age at which the criminal law recognizes the legal capacity of a young person to consent to sexual activity. Below this age, all sexual activity with a young person, ranging from sexual touching to sexual intercourse, is prohibited. The current age of consent is 18 years old when the sexual activity involves exploitative activity. This applies to such cases as prostitution, pornography, or where there is a relationship of trust, authority, dependency or any other situation that is otherwise exploitative of a young person. Under the current law, the age of consent for non-exploitative sexual activity is 16 years old.

Building in Reasonable Exceptions

The Government equally recognizes that Canadian youth, like all youth around the world, are sexually active. Close-in-age exceptions have been included in the legislation to protect against the criminalization of consensual teenage sex. This exception would apply to 14 and 15 year old youth who engage in non-exploitative sexual activity with a partner who is less than five years older.

The bill maintains an existing close-in-age exception that exists for 12 or 13 year olds who engage in sexual activity with a peer who is less than 2 years older, provided the relationship is not exploitative. The legislation also maintains the existing age of protection of 18 years old for exploitative sexual activity.

*underlined text has been underlined by ARCC to highlight legislated ages at a glance.