Editing Child marriage (section)

==Effects on global regions==
A UNFPA report stated: "For the period 2000–2011, just over one third (an estimated 34 percent) of women aged 20 to 24 years in developing regions were married or in union before their eighteenth birthday. In 2010 this was equivalent to almost 67 million women. About 12 percent of them were married or in union before age 15."<ref name="too young"/> The prevalence of child marriage varies substantially among countries.<ref name="too young"/> Around the world, girls from rural areas are twice as likely to marry as children as those from urban areas.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://data.unicef.org/resources/a-profile-of-child-marriage-in-africa/|title=A Profile of Child Marriage in Africa|date=23 November 2015|website=UNICEF DATA}}</ref>

===Africa===
[[File:RUN.webm|thumb|''RUN'', a short documentary film focusing on [[child marriage in Nigeria]]]]
[[File:Girl_Summit_-_22nd_July_in_London_(14498368279).jpg|thumb|Poster against child and forced marriage]]

According to [[UNICEF]], [[Africa]] has the highest incidence rates of child marriage, with over 50% of girls marrying under the age of eighteen in five nations.<ref name=unicef12a/> Girls in West and [[Central Africa]] have the highest risk of marrying in childhood. Niger has one of the highest rates of early marriage in sub-Saharan Africa.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Giwa |first=Audee T. |last2=Hamza |first2=Sha'awanatu |date=2021-12-15 |title=Interrogating the Spectre of Child Marriage in the Selected Works of Zaynab Alkali and Abubakar Gimba |url=https://www.ejlls.com/paper/interrogating-the-spectre-of-child-marriage-in-the-selected-works-of-zaynab-alkali-and-abubakar-gimba |journal=Ebonyi Journal of Language and Literary Studies |volume=4 |issue=1}}</ref> Among Nigerien women between the ages of twenty and twenty-four, 76% reported marrying before the age of eighteen, and 28% reported marrying before the age of fifteen.<ref name=autogenerated4/> This UNICEF report is based on data that is derived from a small sample survey between 1995 and 2004, and the current rate is unknown given the lack of infrastructure and in some cases, regional violence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Early_Marriage_12.lo.pdf|title=Child Marriage|publisher=UNICEF|year=2005|volume=Table 1|access-date=12 August 2013|archive-date=28 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828013412/http://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Early_Marriage_12.lo.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

UNICEF stated in 2018 that although the number of child marriages has declined on a worldwide scale, the problem remains most severe in Africa, despite the fact that Ethiopia cut child marriage rates by one third.<ref>{{Cite news |date=6 March 2018 |title=Child marriages declining, says Unicef |language=en-GB |publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43297085 |access-date=2018-03-06}}</ref>

African countries have enacted marriageable age laws to limit marriage to a [[minimum age]] of 16 to 18, depending on the jurisdiction. In Ethiopia, Chad and Niger, the legal marriage age is 15, but local customs and religious courts have the power to allow marriages below 12 years of age.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irinnews.org/report/82419/|title=IRIN Africa – NIGER: Early marriage – from rural custom to urban business – Niger – Children – Economy – Education – Gender Issues – Human Rights|newspaper=Irinnews |agency=The New Humanitarian|date=16 January 2009}}</ref> Child marriages of girls in West Africa, Central Africa and Northeast Africa are widespread.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://esaro.unfpa.org/public/cache/offonce/pid/12340;jsessionid=335EEB85D3DDF28D04E3D82F7753FC83.jahia01|title=Africa – Child marriage|author=Lbarnes|work=unfpa.org|access-date=2013-08-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131014172929/http://esaro.unfpa.org/public/cache/offonce/pid/12340;jsessionid=335EEB85D3DDF28D04E3D82F7753FC83.jahia01|archive-date=2013-10-14|url-status=dead}}</ref> Additionally, poverty, religion, tradition, and conflict make the rate of child marriage in Sub-Saharan Africa very high in some regions.<ref name="nourreport">{{citation |last=Nour |first=Nawal M. |title=Health Consequences of Child Marriage in Africa |journal=Emerging Infectious Diseases |volume=12 |issue=11 |pages=1644–1649 |year=2006 |url=http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/12/11/06-0510_article | issn = 1080-6059 |pmid=17283612 |doi=10.3201/eid1211.060510 |pmc=3372345}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.plan-uk.org/early-and-forced-marriage/ |title=Ending Forced Child Marriage |access-date=2025-01-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111108051310/https://plan-uk.org/resources/documents/Breaking-Vows-Early-and-Forced-Marriage-and-Girls-Education/ |archive-date=2011-11-08 }}</ref>

In many traditional systems, a man pays a [[bride price]] to the girl's family to marry her (comparable to the customs of dowry and [[dower]]). In many parts of Africa, this payment, in cash, cattle, or other valuables, decreases as a girl gets older. Even before a girl reaches puberty, it is common for a married girl to leave her parents to be with her husband. Many marriages are related to poverty, with parents needing the bride price of a daughter to feed, clothe, educate, and house the rest of the family. In Mali, the female-to-male ratio of marriage before age 18 is 72:1; in Kenya, 21:1.<ref name="nourreport" />

The various reports indicate that in many Sub-Saharan countries, there is a high incidence of marriage among girls younger than 15. Many governments have tended to overlook the particular problems resulting from child marriage, including [[obstetric fistula]]e, [[premature birth]]s, [[stillbirth]], [[sexually transmitted diseases]] (including [[cervical cancer]]), and [[malaria]].<ref name="nourreport" />

In parts of Ethiopia and Nigeria, many girls are married before the age of 15, some as young as 7.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-16 |title=FEATURE {{!}} 'Living as orphan': The story of Nigerian girls running away from child marriage |url=https://theinformant247.com/feature-living-as-orphan-the-story-of-nigerian-girls-running-away-from-early-marriage/ |access-date=2022-06-08 |website=The Informant247 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=autogenerated4>{{cite web|url=http://www.unfpa.org/swp/2005/presskit/factsheets/facts_child_marriage.htm|title=Child marriage – UNFPA – United Nations Population Fund|work=unfpa.org}}</ref> In parts of Mali, 39% of girls are married before the age of 15. In Niger and Chad, over 70% of girls are married before the age of 18.<ref name="nourreport" /> Over fifty million women in Africa were married before the age of 18.<ref name="i538">{{cite web | last=Hassfurter | first=Karoline | title=Child marriage in Eastern and Southern Africa: A statistical overview and reflections on ending the practice | website=UNICEF DATA | date=2022-06-16 | url=https://data.unicef.org/resources/child-marriage-in-eastern-and-southern-africa-a-statistical-overview-and-reflections-on-ending-the-practice/ | access-date=2024-10-27}}</ref>

====The Gambia====
In 2016, during a feast ending the [[Muslim]] holy month of [[Ramadan]], [[the Gambia|Gambia]]n President [[Yahya Jammeh]] announced that child and forced marriages were banned.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://bigstory.ap.org/article/cb97e2220e2d4ced8046032c8387606f/gambias-leader-says-ban-child-marriage-today |title=Gambia's leader says ban on child marriage 'as from today' |agency=Associated Press |access-date=2016-07-11 |archive-date=20 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220123839/http://bigstory.ap.org/article/cb97e2220e2d4ced8046032c8387606f/gambias-leader-says-ban-child-marriage-today |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="autogenerated5">{{cite web |date=16 December 2015 |title=Gambia and Tanzania outlaw child marriage – BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36746174 |access-date=2016-07-11 |publisher=BBC}}</ref>

====Kenya====
In [[Kenya]], 23% of girls are married before age 18, including 4% by age 15.<ref>{{citation|url=https://www.girlsnotbrides.org/child-marriage/kenya/|title=Child marriage around the world: KENYA|work=[[Girls Not Brides]] |last1=Brides |first1=Girls Not }}</ref>

==== Malawi ====
In 2015, [[Malawi]] passed a law banning child marriage, which raises the minimum age for marriage to 18.<ref>{{cite news |last=Batha |first=Emma |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-malawi-childmarriage-law-idUSKBN0LK1Z020150217 |title=Malawi bans child marriage, lifts minimum age to 18 |work=Reuters|date=9 February 2009 |access-date=2015-02-18 |archive-date=18 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018234916/http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/17/us-malawi-childmarriage-law-idUSKBN0LK1Z020150217 |url-status=live }}</ref> This major accomplishment came following years of effort by the Girls Empowerment Network campaign, which ultimately led to tribal and traditional leaders banning the cultural practice of child marriage.<ref>{{cite web |title=United Nations General Assembly. Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights: Preventing and eliminating child, early and forced marriage |url=https://www.unodc.org/res/e4j/data/_university_uni_/preventing_and_eliminating_child_early_and_forced_marriage_html/english.pdf}}</ref>

====Morocco====
In [[Morocco]], child marriage is a common practice. Over 41,000 marriages every year involve child brides.<ref name=almo2012>{{cite web|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2012/12/outlawing-child-marriage-in-morocco.html|title=Outlawing Child Marriage in Morocco – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East|work=Al-Monitor|date=27 December 2012}}</ref> Before 2003, child marriages did not require a court's or state's approval. In 2003, Morocco passed the family law (''Moudawana'') that raised the minimum age of marriage for girls from 14 to 18, with the exception that underage girls may marry with the permission of the government-recognized official/court and girl's guardian.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://magharebia.com/fr/articles/awi/reportage/2009/10/09/reportage-01|title=Les marocains évaluent les progrès de la Moudawana Siham Ali, Magharebia à Rabat (October 9, 2009)|access-date=2018-03-03}}</ref><ref>[http://www.crin.org/resources/infodetail.asp?ID=23980 Morocco: Underage marriages increase] CRIN, Rabat (28 January 2011)</ref> Over the 10 years preceding 2008, requests for child marriages have been predominantly approved by Morocco's Ministry for Social Development, and have increased (c. 29% of all marriages).<ref name=almo2012/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/CultureAndMedia/?id=1.0.2375314024|title=Morocco: Child marriages continue despite law to curb practice – Adnkronos Culture And Media|work=adnkronos.com|access-date=28 September 2013|archive-date=22 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822123838/http://www1.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/CultureAndMedia/?id=1.0.2375314024|url-status=dead}}</ref> Some child marriages in Morocco are a result of Article 475 of the Moroccan penal code, a law that allows rapists to avoid punishment if they marry their underage victims.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/policyanalysis/morocco_62113.html|title=In Morocco, the rape and death of an adolescent girl prompts calls for changes to the penal code|date=28 March 2012|work=UNICEF|access-date=28 September 2013|archive-date=28 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180828035630/https://www.unicef.org/policyanalysis/morocco_62113.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://arabia.msn.com/news/middle-east/1357449/morocco-eyes-law-on-rape-and-child-marriage/|title=Morocco eyes law on rape and child marriage |publisher=[[MSN]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002161705/http://arabia.msn.com/news/middle-east/1357449/morocco-eyes-law-on-rape-and-child-marriage/|archive-date=2013-10-02}}</ref> Article 475 was amended in January 2014 after much campaigning, and rapists can legally no longer avoid sentencing by marrying their victims.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-25855025 | publisher=BBC News | title=Morocco amends controversial rape marriage law | date=23 January 2014}}</ref>

====Mozambique====
In 2019, [[Mozambique|Mozambique's]] national assembly passed a law prohibiting child marriage. This law came after national movements condemning Mozambique's high rate of child marriage, with 50% of girls marrying under the age of 18.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/19/mozambique-passes-law-end-child-marriage|title=Mozambique Passes Law to End Child Marriage|date=19 July 2019|publisher=Human Rights Watch|language=en|access-date=2019-07-28}}</ref>

====Nigeria====
As of 2006, 15–20% of school dropouts in Nigeria were the result of child marriage.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nguyen, Minh Cong and Quentin Wodon. 2012. "Child Marriage and Education: A Major Challenge". |url=http://www.ungei.org/files/Child_Marriage_Edu_Note.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190818222110/http://www.ungei.org/files/Child_Marriage_Edu_Note.pdf |archive-date=18 August 2019 |access-date=8 May 2015}}</ref> In 2013, Nigeria attempted to change Section 29, Subsection 4 of its laws and thereby prohibit child marriages. Christianity and Islam are each practiced by roughly half of its population, and the country continues with personal laws from its [[Colonial Nigeria|British colonial-era]] laws, in which child marriages are forbidden for its Christians and allowed for its Muslims.<ref>{{cite news |title=Nigeria: Senate Denies Child Marriage Wrongdoing, Says Law May Be Revisited |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201307240287.html |work=[[AllAfrica]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=More on child brides: After a political fight, Nigeria will continue allowing them |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/07/24/more-on-child-brides-after-a-political-fight-nigeria-will-continue-allowing-them/}}</ref> In Nigeria, child marriage is a divisive topic and widely practiced. In northern states, which are predominantly Muslim, over 50% of the girls marry before the age of 15.<ref>{{cite news |date=4 September 2013 |title=Nigeria – Child Not Bride |work=[[AllAfrica]] |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201309040944.html}}</ref>

==== South Africa ====
In [[South Africa]], the law provides for respecting the marriage practices of traditional marriages, whereby a person might be married as young as 12 for females and 14 for males.<ref name="nourreport" /> Early marriage is cited as "a barrier to continuing education for girls (and boys)". This includes ''absuma'' ([[arranged marriage]]s set up [[cousin marriage|between cousins]] at birth in a local Islamic ethnic group), [[bride kidnapping]], and elopement decided on by the children.<ref>{{cite web |title=Learning from Children, Families and Communities to Increase Girls' Participation in Primary School |url=http://www.positivedeviance.org/projects/ethopedu/Ethiopia_girls_ed.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217053046/http://www.positivedeviance.org/projects/ethopedu/Ethiopia_girls_ed.pdf |archive-date=2008-12-17 |work=Save the Children USA report}}</ref>

==== Tanzania====
In 2016, the [[High Court of Tanzania|Tanzanian High Court]] – in a case filed by the ''Msichana Initiative'', a lobbying group that advocates for girls' right to education – ruled in favor of protecting girls from the harms of early marriage.<ref name="autogenerated5" /><ref name="Tanzania">{{cite web |date=8 July 2016 |title=Dispatches: Tanzanian High Court Rules Against Child Marriage &#124; Human Rights Watch |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/07/08/dispatches-tanzanian-high-court-rules-against-child-marriage |access-date=2016-07-11 |publisher=Human Rights Watch}}</ref> It is now illegal for anyone younger than 18 to marry in Tanzania.<ref name="Tanzania" />

==== Zimbabwe ====
A 2015 Human Rights Watch report stated that in [[Zimbabwe]], one-third of women aged between 20 and 49 years old had married before reaching the age of 18.<ref>{{cite web|title = Zimbabwe's top court outlaws child marriage {{!}} News {{!}} DW.COM {{!}} 20.01.2016|url = http://www.dw.com/en/zimbabwes-top-court-outlaws-child-marriage/a-18994890|publisher = Deutsche Welle|access-date = 2016-01-23|first = Deutsche Welle|last = (www.dw.com)}}</ref> In January 2016, two women who had been married as children brought a court case requesting a change in the legal age of marriage to the Constitutional Court,<ref>{{cite web|title = Zimbabwe's Constitutional Court Outlaws Child Marriages|url = https://www.voanews.com/a/zimbabwe-constitutional-court-oulaws-child-marriages/3154549.html|website = VOA|access-date = 2016-01-23|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160224001425/http://www.voanews.com/content/zimbabwe-constitutional-court-oulaws-child-marriages/3154549.html|archive-date = 2016-02-24|url-status = live}}</ref> with the result that the court declared that 18 is to be the minimum age for a legal marriage for both men and women (previously the legal age had been 16 for women and 18 for men). The law took effect immediately and was hailed by several human rights, women's rights, medical, and legal groups as a landmark ruling for the country.<ref>{{cite web|title = Landmark ruling hailed {{!}} The Herald|url = http://www.herald.co.zw/landmark-ruling-hailed/|website = herald.co.zw|access-date = 2016-01-23}}</ref>

===Americas===
====Latin America====
Child marriage is common in [[Latin America]] and the [[Caribbean]] island nations. About 29% of girls were married before age 18 (as of 2007).<ref name="pbs2010" /> The [[Dominican Republic]], [[Honduras]], [[Brazil]], [[Guatemala]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Haiti]], and [[Ecuador]] report some of the highest rates in the [[Americas]],<ref name="unfpa.org" /> while [[Bolivia]] and [[Guyana]] have shown the sharpest decline in child marriage rates as of 2012.<ref>{{cite web|title=Marrying Too Young: End Child Marriage|url=http://www.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/MarryingTooYoung.pdf|publisher=[[United Nations Population Fund|UNFPA]]|page=24}}</ref> Brazil is ranked fourth in the world in terms of absolute numbers of girls married or cohabitating by age 15.<ref name="blogs.cfr.org">{{cite web|title = Women Around the World » Child Marriage in Latin America|url = http://blogs.cfr.org/women-around-the-world/2015/08/04/child-marriage-in-latin-america/|website = Council on Foreign Relations – Women Around the World|access-date = 2015-12-10|language = en-US|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151211000316/http://blogs.cfr.org/women-around-the-world/2015/08/04/child-marriage-in-latin-america/|archive-date = 2015-12-11|url-status = dead}}</ref>

Poverty and lack of laws mandating minimum age for marriage have been cited as reasons for child marriage in Latin America.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/digest7e.pdf|title=Early Marriages – Child Spouses|publisher=UNICEF|year=2010|pages=5–9}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.plan-uk.org/resources/documents/Breaking-Vows-Early-and-Forced-Marriage-and-Girls-Education|title=Breaking Vows: Early and Forced Marriage and Girls' Education|first1=Juliette|last1=Myers|first2=Rowan|last2=Harvey|publisher=Plan UK|location=London|page=24|access-date=14 September 2013|archive-date=22 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180922121241/https://plan-uk.org/resources/documents/Breaking-Vows-Early-and-Forced-Marriage-and-Girls-Education|url-status=dead}}</ref> In an effort to combat the widespread belief among poor, rural, and indigenous communities that child marriage is a route out of poverty, some NGOs are working with communities in Latin America to shift norms and create safe spaces for adolescent girls.<ref name="blogs.cfr.org" />

In Guatemala, early marriage is most common among indigenous Mayan communities.<ref>{{cite web |title=What's Next in the Fight to End Child Marriage in Guatemala? |url=https://riseuptogether.org/whats-next-in-the-fight-to-end-child-marriage-in-guatemala/#:~:text=According%20to%20Unicef%2C%2030%20percent,boys%20and%2014%20for%20girls |website=Rise Up |access-date=23 May 2022 |date=10 October 2017}}</ref> In southeastern Colombia, historically the indigenous [[Paez people|Nasa]] sometimes married at early ages to dissuade colonizers from coercively taking girls.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Llano Quintero|first=Alejandra|title=HemBRujaS: Muchas voces de una lucha en la que faltan hombres|publisher=Planeta|year=2019|isbn=9789584283924|editor-last=Palacios|editor-first=Claudia|location=Bogotá|page=507|chapter=Feminismo indígena es volver al origen de nuestra cultura – entrevista por Claudia Palacios}}</ref> In 2024, Colombia's congress voted to change the minimum age from 14 (with parental consent) to 18.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Alvarado |first1=Abel |last2=Torres |first2=Mauricio |date=2024-11-15 |title='They're girls, not wives': Colombia votes to outlaw child marriage |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/14/americas/colombia-child-marriage-law-intl-latam/index.html |access-date=2025-01-03 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref>

In 2023, 300,000 girls under the age of 18 were sold into marriage in the Mexican state of [[Guerrero]] alone.<ref name="auto6">{{cite web | url=https://www.newsendip.com/mexico-senate-reform-end-child-marriages/ | title=Mexican Senate approves constitutional reform to end child marriages | date=15 February 2024 }}</ref> In 2024, the Mexican Senate voted unanimously to abolish the practices of child marriage in indigenous communities in Mexico, considering children's rights to be more important than tradition and customs.<ref name="auto6"/>

====Canada====
Since 2015, the minimum marriageable age throughout [[Canada]] is 16. In Canada, the [[age of majority]] is set by province/territory at 18 or 19, so minors under this age have additional restrictions (i.e. parental and court consent). Under the Criminal Code, Art. 293.2 Marriage under the age of 16 years reads: "Everyone who celebrates, aids or participates in a marriage rite or ceremony knowing that one of the persons being married is '''under the age of 16 years''' is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years."<ref name="laws-lois.justice.gc.ca"/> The Civil Marriage Act also states: "2.2 No person who is '''under the age of 16 years''' may contract marriage."<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

According to a study from [[McGill University]], from 2000 to 2018, 3,600 marriage certificates were issued to children (mostly girls) under 18 in Canada.<ref>{{cite web|date=2021-01-12|title=Child marriage is legal and persists across Canada|url=https://reporter.mcgill.ca/child-marriage-is-legal-and-persists-across-canada/|access-date=2021-05-21|website=McGill Reporter|language=en-US}}</ref>

====United States====
{{main|Child marriage in the United States|Age of marriage in the United States}}
Child marriage, as defined by [[Committee on the Rights of the Child]] and UNICEF, is observed in the United States.<ref name=HRWSeptember2023>{{cite news|title=How Do US States Measure Up on Child Rights?|work=[[Human Rights Watch]]|url=https://www.hrw.org/feature/2022/09/13/how-do-states-measure-up-child-rights|date=7 September 2023|access-date=13 October 2024}}</ref> The UNICEF definition of child marriage includes couples who are formally married, or who live together as a sexually active couple in an informal union, with at least one member – usually the girl – being less than 18 years old.<ref name="Child Marriage"/> The latter practice is more common in the United States, and it is officially called [[cohabitation]]. According to a 2010 report by the United States' [[National Center for Health Statistics]], 2.1% of all girls in the 15–17 age group were either in a child marriage or in an informal union. In the age group of 15–19, 7.6% of all girls in the United States were formally married or in an informal union. The child marriage rates were higher for certain ethnic groups and states. In Hispanic groups, for example, 6.6% of all girls in the 15–17 age group were formally married or in an informal union, and 13% of the 15–19 age group were.<ref name=cohabitation>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_23/sr23_028.pdf|title=Marriage and Cohabitation in the United States: A Statistical Portrait Based on Cycle 6 (2002) of the National Survey of Family Growth|publisher=US Department of Health and Human Services}}</ref> Over 350,000 babies are born to teenage mothers every year in the United States, and over 50,000 of these are second babies to teen mothers.<ref name=cdcteen>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/features/vitalsigns/teenpregnancy/|title=Breaking the Cycle of Teen Pregnancy CDC, US Government (April 2013)|access-date=2018-03-03}}</ref>

Laws regarding child marriage vary in the different states of the United States. Generally, children 16 and over may marry with parental consent, with the age of 18 being the minimum in all but two states to marry without parental consent. However, all states but 13 have exceptions for child marriage within their laws,<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":10" /> and although those under 16 generally require a court order in addition to parental consent,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tahirih.org/pubs/understanding-state-statutes-on-minimum-marriage-age-and-exceptions/|title=Understanding State Statutes on Minimum Marriage Age and Exceptions « Tahirih Justice Center|website=tahirih.org}}</ref> when those exceptions are taken into account, four states have no minimum age requirement.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |title=Child marriage traps girls in an inescapable legal hell. But it is still legal in 46 US states. |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/child-marriage-us-traps-girls-still-legal-in-46-states-2021-4 |website=[[Business Insider]]}}</ref><ref name=":9" /> It is the only [[Member states of the United Nations|UN member state]] [[U.S. ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child|that has not yet ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child]].<ref name=HRWSeptember2023/>

Until 2008, the [[Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints]] practiced child marriage through the concept of "[[Celestial marriage|spiritual marriage]]" as soon as it was possible for girls to bear children, as part of its [[polygamy]] practice, but laws have raised the age of legal marriage in response to criticism of the practice.<ref>{{Citation |last=D'Onofrio |first=Eve |title=Child Brides, Inegalitarianism, and the Fundamentalist Polygamous Family in the United States |journal=International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family |volume=19 |issue=3 |pages=373–394 |year=2005 |postscript=. |doi=10.1093/lawfam/ebi028}}</ref> In 2007, church leader [[Warren Jeffs]] was convicted of being an accomplice to [[statutory rape]] of a [[Minor (law)|minor]] due to arranging a marriage between a 14-year-old girl and a 19-year-old man.<ref>Dobner, Jennifer. [https://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/wireStory?id=3645951 Polygamist Leader Convicted in Utah]. Associated Press. ABC News. 2007-09-25.</ref> In March 2008, officials of the state of Texas believed that children at the [[YFZ Ranch|Yearning For Zion Ranch]] were being married to adults and were being abused.<ref name="Blumenthal">Blumenthal, Ralph. "[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/us/23raid.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin Court Says Texas Illegally Seized Sect's Children]". ''The New York Times''. 2008-05-23. Retrieved 2008-05-24.</ref> The state of Texas removed all 468 children from the ranch and placed them into temporary state custody.<ref name="Blumenthal" /> After the Austin's 3rd Court of Appeals and the [[Supreme Court of Texas]] ruled that Texas acted improperly in removing them from the YFZ Ranch, the children were returned to their parents or relatives.<ref>{{Citation |last=Winslow |first=Ben |title=All FLDS children returned to parents |date=5 June 2008 |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700231922/All-FLDS-childrenreturned-to-parents.html|work=Deseret News |location=San Angelo, Texas}}{{dead link|date=November 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> In 2008, the Church changed its policy in the United States to no longer marry individuals younger than the local legal age.<ref>{{cite news |last=Anthony |first=Paul A. |date=2 June 2008 |title=Sect renounces underage marriage as children return |newspaper=Standard Times – San Angelo |publisher=Scripps Newspaper Group |url=http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2008/jun/02/flds-children-heading-home-today/?print=1 |url-status=dead |access-date=2013-07-09 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130710024402/http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2008/jun/02/flds-children-heading-home-today/?print=1 |archive-date=10 July 2013}}</ref><ref>{{citation |last1=Winslow |first1=Ben |title=FLDS official: No more underage marriages, reunifications begin with the children |date=2 June 2008 |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700231225/FLDS-official-No-more-underage-marriages-reunifications-begin-with-the-children.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012064054/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700231225/FLDS-official-No-more-underage-marriages-reunifications-begin-with-the-children.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 October 2013 |newspaper=[[Deseret News]] |access-date=2013-09-10 |last2=O'Donoghue |first2=Amy Joi}}</ref>

{{As of|2024|June}}, child marriage is legal in [[List of states and territories of the United States|37 states]].<ref name=HRWSeptember2023/><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-08 |title=Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signs bill to ban child marriages |url=https://www.koin.com/news/washington/washington-child-marriage-ban-03082024/ |access-date=2024-04-09 |website=KOIN.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Writer |first=Katherine Fung Senior |date=2024-04-09 |title=Map shows 12 states that allow child marriage after Virginia passes law |url=https://www.newsweek.com/child-marriage-ban-state-map-virginia-law-1888471 |access-date=2024-04-09 |website=Newsweek |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=New Hampshire law raises marriage age |url=http://wcax.com/2024/06/14/new-hampshire-law-raises-marriage-age/ |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=WCAX |date=June 14, 2024 |language=en}}</ref> Thirteen states have banned underage marriages, with no exception: Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, Michigan, Washington and New Hampshire.

In 2018, Delaware became the first state to ban child marriage without exceptions,<ref name="reuters.com">{{cite news |last=Thomsen |first=Jacqueline |date=10 May 2018 |title=Delaware becomes first state to ban child marriage |newspaper=The Hill |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/387212-delaware-becomes-first-state-to-ban-child-marriage/}}</ref> followed by New Jersey the same year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-06-22 |title=New Jersey governor signs law banning underage marriage |url=https://apnews.com/general-news-f4ab94a0b9444a01b803750491220983 |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref> Pennsylvania<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-11 |title=Pennsylvania just became the third state to ban child marriage – CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pennsylvania-child-marriage-ban-third-state/ |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}</ref> and Minnesota<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rep. Kaohly Vang Her – Governor Walz signs bill to end child marriages |url=https://www.house.mn.gov/members/profile/news/15532/29817 |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=www.house.mn.gov |language=en}}</ref> ended child marriage in 2020, followed by Rhode Island<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-08 |title=Rhode Island Is the Fifth US State to Officially Ban Child Marriage |url=https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/rhode-island-bans-child-marriage/ |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=Global Citizen |language=en}}</ref> and New York<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pietsch |first=Bryan |date=July 23, 2021 |title=New York becomes sixth state in U.S. to ban child marriages |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/07/23/child-marriage-ban-new-york/ |access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> in 2021, Massachusetts<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ibraj |first=Alba |date=August 4, 2022 |title=Massachusetts Becomes 7th State to Ban Child Marriage |url=https://www.unicefusa.org/stories/massachusetts-becomes-7th-state-end-child-marriage |access-date=October 29, 2023 |website=UNICEF USA}}</ref> in 2022, Vermont,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-21 |title=Vermont governor signs bill raising marriage age to 18 |url=https://apnews.com/article/marriage-age-18-vermont-child-f79af8798cd4f5adfa96fdb15f297275 |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref> Connecticut,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-02 |title=Connecticut bans child marriage |url=https://www.courant.com/2023/06/02/connecticut-bans-child-marriage/ |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=Hartford Courant |language=en-US}}</ref> and Michigan<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 27, 2023 |title=Gov. Whitmer Signs Final Bill in Package Protecting Children, Officially Banning Child Marriage in Michigan |url=https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/news/press-releases/2023/09/27/whitmer-signs-final-bill-in-package-protecting-children-officially-banning-child-marriage |access-date=October 29, 2023 |website=Governor Gretchen Whitmer}}</ref> in 2023 and Washington,<ref name="auto7">{{Cite web |date=2024-03-08 |title=Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signs bill to ban child marriages |url=https://www.koin.com/news/washington/washington-child-marriage-ban-03082024/ |access-date=2024-04-09 |website=KOIN.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Virginia<ref name=":9" /> and New Hampshire<ref name=":10" /> in 2024.

Between 2000 and 2018, some 300,000 minors were legally married in the United States.<ref name="Unchained at Last">{{Cite web|title=United States' Child Marriage Problem: Study Findings (April 2021)|url=https://www.unchainedatlast.org/united-states-child-marriage-problem-study-findings-april-2021/|url-status=live|access-date=January 19, 2022|publisher=[[Unchained at Last]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412152603/https://www.unchainedatlast.org/united-states-child-marriage-problem-study-findings-april-2021/ |archive-date=April 12, 2021 }}</ref><ref name=HRWSeptember2023/> Some as young as 10.<ref name=HRWSeptember2023/> Most child marriages in the US are girls marrying adult men.<ref name=HRWSeptember2023/> In fact, many of these marriages occurred at an age or with a spousal age difference that would typically be considered sexual violence.<ref name=HRWSeptember2023/>

===Asia===
More than half of all child marriages occur in the South Asian countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal.<ref name=":2" /> There was a decrease in the rates of child marriage across the [[Indian subcontinent]] from 1991 to 2007, but the decrease was observed among young adolescent girls and not girls in their late teens. Some scholars<ref>{{Cite journal|title = Changes in Prevalence of Girl Child Marriage in South Asia|last = Raj|first = Anita|year = 2012|journal = JAMA|doi = 10.1001/jama.2012.3497|pmid = 22665097|volume=307|issue = 19|pages = 2027–9|pmc=4386922}}</ref> believe this age-specific reduction was linked to girls increasingly attending school until about age 15 and then marrying.

====Western Asia====
A 2013 report claims 53% of all married women in [[Afghanistan]] were married before age 18, and 21% of all were married before age 15.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/related_material/Afghanistan_brochure_0913_09032013.pdf|title=Afghanistan – Ending Child Marriage and Domestic Violence|publisher= Human Rights Watch|date=September 2013|pages=3–10}}</ref> Afghanistan's official minimum age of marriage for girls is 15 with her father's permission. In all 34 provinces of Afghanistan, the customary practice of ''[[Baad (practice)|ba'ad]]'' is another reason for child marriages; this custom involves village elders, or ''jirga'', settling disputes between families or unpaid debts or ruling punishment for a crime by forcing the guilty family to give their 5- to 12-year-old girls as wives. Sometimes a girl is forced into child marriage for a crime her uncle or distant relative is alleged to have committed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=44950|title=United Nations News Centre|date=20 May 2013|work=UN News Service Section}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.refworld.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?docid=49dc4b201c|title=Refworld – Afghan Girls Suffer for Sins of Male Relatives|author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees|work=Refworld}}</ref> Andrew Bushell claims the rate of marriage of 8- to 13-year-old girls exceeds 50% in Afghan refugee camps along the Pakistan border.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://americamagazine.org/issue/364/article/child-marriage-afghanistan-and-pakistan|title=Child Marriage in Afghanistan and Pakistan|work=America Magazine|date=11 March 2002}}</ref>

{{anchor|Saudi Arabia}}The widespread prevalence of child marriage in the [[Kingdom of Saudi Arabia]] has been documented by human rights groups.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://english.aawsat.com/2009/01/article55256323/saudi-human-rights-commission-tackles-child-marriages |title=Saudi Human Rights Commission Tackles Child Marriages |date=13 January 2009 |access-date=2015-10-19 |publisher=Asharq Al Awsat |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807031314/http://english.aawsat.com/2009/01/article55256323/saudi-human-rights-commission-tackles-child-marriages |archive-date=7 August 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Saudi clerics have justified the marriage of girls as young as 9, with sanction from the judiciary.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/17/saudi.child.marriage/ | publisher=CNN| title=Top Saudi cleric: OK for young girls to wed | date=17 January 2009}}</ref> No laws define a minimum age of consent in Saudi Arabia, though drafts for possible laws have been created since 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/07/25/159321.html|title=Saudi Arabia to set minimum marriage age following surge in such weddings|publisher=Al Arabiya|access-date=2018-03-03|date=25 July 2011}}</ref> Members of the Saudi Shoura Council in 2019 approved fresh regulations for minor marriages that will outlaw the marrying of 15-year-olds and force the need for court approval for those under 18. Chairman of the Human Rights Committee at the Shoura Council, Dr. Hadi Al-Yami, said that the introduced controls were based on in-depth studies presented to the body. He pointed out that the regulation, vetted by the Islamic Affairs Committee at the Shoura Council, has raised the age of marriage to 18 and prohibited it for those under 15.<ref name=":7" /> Saudi Arabia has officially updated the law, banning all marriages under the age of 18.<ref name=":8" />

Research by the [[United Nations Population Fund]] indicates that 28.2% of [[Marriage in Turkey|marriages in Turkey]] – almost one in three – involve girls under 18.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://unfpa.org/webdav/site/eeca/shared/documents/publications/Turkey%20English.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131001082934/http://unfpa.org/webdav/site/eeca/shared/documents/publications/Turkey%20English.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2013-10-01|title=Turkey – Child Marriage|publisher=[[United Nations Population Fund]]|access-date=2013-09-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Turkish-women-strive-for-gender-equality-323694|title= Turkish women strive for gender equality|work=[[The Jerusalem Post]]|date=20 August 2013}}</ref>

Child marriage was also found to be prevalent among Syrian and Palestinian-Syrian refugees in Lebanon, in addition to other forms of sexual and gender-based violence. Marriage was seen as a potential way to protect family honor and protect a girl from rape, given how common rape was during the conflict.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = Syrian and Palestinian Syrian Refugees in Lebanon: The Plight of Women and Children|last = Charles|first = Lorraine|year = 2013|journal = Journal of International Women's Studies|volume = 14|issue = 5|pages = 96–111|url = http://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol14/iss5/7}}</ref> Incidents of child marriages increased in Syria and among Syrian refugees over the course of the conflict. The proportion of Syrian refugee girls living in [[Jordan]] who were married increased from 13% in 2011 to 32% in 2014.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = The Syrian Refugee Crisis: Regional and Human Security Implications|last = Berti|first = Benedetta|year = 2015|journal = Strategic Assessment}}</ref> Journalists Magnus Wennman and Carina Bergfeldt documented the practice, and some of its results.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mashable.com/2016/03/31/syrian-child-brides/|title=He was 28, I was 13: The stories of Syrian child brides|first=Elizabeth|last=Pierson|website=[[Mashable]]|date=31 March 2016|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref>

====Southeast Asia====
[[Hill tribe]] girls are often married young. For the [[Karen people]], it is possible that two couples can arrange their children's marriage before the children are born.<ref>Marshall, H. I., (1922) ''The Karen of Burma''. Bangkok: White Lotus (Reprinted, 1997).</ref>

==== Indonesia ====
In a move to curb child marriage in [[Indonesia]], the minimum marriage age for girls in Indonesia was raised to 19 in 2019, equalizing it to that of males. Previously, under the 1974 marriage law, the marriage age for girls was 16, and there was no minimum with judicial consent.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/17/asia/indonesia-marriage-age-raise-intl-scli/index.html|title=Indonesia raises minimum age for marriage to curb child brides|first=Amy|last=Woodyatt|date=17 September 2019|website=CNN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-women-marriage-idUSKBN1W212M|title=Indonesia raises minimum age for brides to end child marriage|date=17 September 2019|work=Reuters|access-date=2019-09-17|language=en}}</ref>

There has been an increase in underage marriage which has been attributed to a rise in [[social networking]] sites like Facebook. It has been reported that in areas like Gunung Kidul, [[Yogyakarta]], couples become acquainted through Facebook and continue their relationships until girls become pregnant.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/08/04/facebook-blamed-sharp-increase-underage-marriage-g-kidul.html |title=Facebook blamed for sharp increase in underage marriage in G. Kidul |newspaper=The Jakarta Post |date=4 August 2011 |access-date=2015-02-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150108093744/http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/08/04/facebook-blamed-sharp-increase-underage-marriage-g-kidul.html |archive-date=2015-01-08 }}</ref> Under Indonesian law, underage marriage is prosecuted as sexual abuse, though unregistered marriages between young girls and older men are common in rural areas.<ref name=thejakartaglobe>{{cite web |url=http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/archive/cleric-with-child-bride-should-be-jailed-six-years-court-told/402657/|title=Cleric With Child Bride Should Be Jailed Six Years, Court Told|work=Jakarta Globe|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203003635/http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/archive/cleric-with-child-bride-should-be-jailed-six-years-court-told/402657/|archive-date=2013-12-03}}</ref> In one case that caused a nationwide outcry, a wealthy Muslim cleric married a 12-year-old girl. He was prosecuted for sexually abusing a minor and sentenced to four years in jail.<ref name=thejakartaglobe/><ref>{{cite news|title=Indonesia Cleric Jailed for Marrying 12-Year-Old|date=24 November 2010|agency=The Associated Press|work=CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/indonesia-cleric-jailed-for-marrying-12-year-old/}}</ref>

Among the [[Aceh]] of [[Sumatra]], girls formerly married before puberty. The husbands, though usually older, were still unfit for sexual union.<ref name='nature man'>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j2-RUs_rbH8C&pg=PA90 |first=Elie |last=Metchnikoff |title=The Nature of Man: Studies in Optimistic Philosophy |publisher=Putnam |location=New York|year=1903|page=90|isbn=9780405095788 }}</ref>

==== Malaysia ====

The current laws involving child marriage are very complex in Malaysia, primarily due to conflicts between the beliefs of the government and those disposed by the religious teachings of Islam.

A 41-year-old [[Malaysia|Malaysian]] man married an 11-year-old girl in Golok, a border town in southern [[Thailand]], in June 2018, according to information made public in Malaysia.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-06-30 |title=41-year-old Malaysian weds 11-year-old girl in Thailand – Nation {{!}} The Star Online |url=https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/06/30/41yearold-malaysian-weds-girl-30-years-younger-in-thailand/ |access-date=2023-10-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630133131/https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/06/30/41yearold-malaysian-weds-girl-30-years-younger-in-thailand/ |archive-date=30 June 2018 }}</ref> The man was the [[imam]] of a [[surau]] in a hamlet near [[Gua Musang District|Gua Musang, Kelantan]], and he already had two wives and six children. The girl's parents defended their choice to consent to the marriage.<ref>{{cite web |date=30 June 2018 |title='I'm just 11 and you're 41, but I'll wait for you' |url=http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/06/30/im-just-11-and-youre-41-but-ill-wait-for-you/ |access-date=2018-07-19 |website=Free Malaysia Today}}</ref>

In response to this incident, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri [[Wan Azizah Wan Ismail]] said that the marriage remained valid under [[Islam]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thesundaily.my/news/2018/07/10/govt-powerless-nullify-child-marriage-it-valid-under-islamic-laws|title=Govt powerless to nullify child marriage as it is valid under Islamic laws|last=Phung|first=Adrian|date=10 July 2018|website=The Sun Daily|access-date=2018-07-19}}</ref> She also said in a press statement that "the Malaysian government 'unequivocally' opposes child marriages and is already taking steps to raise the minimum age of marriage to 18".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/malaysia-man-married-11-year-old-girl-oppose-child-marriage-10538734|title=Malaysia 'unequivocally' opposes child marriages: DPM Wan Azizah on case of man who married 11-year-old|last=Chew|first=Amy|date=17 July 2018|publisher=Channel NewsAsia|access-date=2018-07-19|archive-date=19 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719113835/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/malaysia-man-married-11-year-old-girl-oppose-child-marriage-10538734|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk [[Mujahid Yusof Rawa]], proposed a blanket ban on marriages involving minors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sinarharian.com.my/nasional/sekat-kahwin-bawah-umur-mujahid-1.860163|title=Sekat kahwin bawah umur: Mujahid|last=Muah|first=Nurulfatiha|date=25 July 2018|website=Sinar Online|access-date=2018-07-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thestartv.com/v/mujahid-syariah-court-will-have-temporary-sop-on-child-marriage|title=Mujahid: Syariah court will have temporary SOP on child marriage|date=25 July 2018|publisher=Star TV|access-date=2018-07-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2018/07/392091/mujahid-wants-review-laws-which-allow-child-marriages|title=Mujahid wants review of laws which allow child marriages|last=Khairulrijal|first=Rahmat|date=18 July 2018|website=The New Straits Times|access-date=2018-07-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/434735|title=Mujahid: Underage marriage must be stopped|last=Loone|first=Susan|date=18 July 2018|website=Malaysia Kini|access-date=2018-07-18}}</ref> In response, [[Malaysian Islamic Party|PAS]] Vice President Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah said that imposing a blanket ban on child marriage contradicts Islamic religious teachings and could not be accepted.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/07/25/kelantan-pas-imposing-a-blanket-ban-on-child-marriage-contravenes-religious-teachings/|title=Kelantan PAS: Imposing child marriage blanket ban contravenes religious teachings|last=Habibu|first=Sira|date=25 July 2018|website=The Star Online|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180725121754/https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/07/25/kelantan-pas-imposing-a-blanket-ban-on-child-marriage-contravenes-religious-teachings/|archive-date=2018-07-25|url-status=dead|access-date=2018-07-26}}</ref> He also said it would be better to enforce existing laws to protect children from being forced into early marriages.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/07/26/pas-says-no-to-ban-on-child-marriage-vp-from-a-religious-perspective-it-is-not-wrong-to-marry-young/|title=PAS says no to ban on child marriage|date=26 July 2018|website=The Star Online|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180726011722/https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/07/26/pas-says-no-to-ban-on-child-marriage-vp-from-a-religious-perspective-it-is-not-wrong-to-marry-young/|archive-date=2018-07-26|url-status=dead|access-date=2018-07-26}}</ref>

In July 2018, another case of a child bride was reported in Malaysia, involving a 19-year-old man from [[Terengganu]] and a 13-year-old girl from [[Kelantan]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Abdullah |first=Sharifah Mahsinah |date=22 July 2018 |title=[Exclusive] Another child bride case |url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/exclusive/2018/07/393036/exclusive-another-child-bride-case |access-date=2018-07-25 |website=The New Straits Times}}</ref>

In August 2018, [[Selangor]] announced plans for an amendment to the Islamic Family Law (State of Selangor) Enactment 2003 which would raise the minimum age of marriage for [[Muslim]] women from 16 to 18 years.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1 August 2018 |title=Selangor to raise minimum age for marriage for Muslim women |language=en-US |work=Free Malaysia Today |url=http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/08/01/selangor-to-raise-minimum-age-for-marriage-for-muslim-women/ |access-date=2018-08-02}}</ref>

Another child marriage case was covered by the media in September 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2018/09/412355/yet-another-one-15-year-old-girl-marries-father-two-tumpat|title=Yet another one: 15-year-old girl marries father of two in Tumpat|last=Abdullah|first=Sharifah Mahsinah|date=18 September 2018|website=The New Straits Times|access-date=2018-09-18}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=18 September 2018 |title=Teenage girl marries 44-year-old man in Kelantan |language=en-US |work=Free Malaysia Today |url=https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/09/18/teenage-girl-marries-44-year-old-man-in-kelantan/ |access-date=2018-09-18}}</ref>

Malaysia planned to tighten the requirements for child marriages in 2019.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.malaymail.com/s/1693756/dpm-child-marriage-amendments-only-next-year|title=DPM: Child marriage amendments only next year |work=[[Malay Mail]]|access-date=2018-11-15|language=en}}</ref> Subsequently, any marriage with minors would have to go through a stringent approval process involving Shariah Court Department, the Home Ministry, State Religious Council, and Customary Courts.

==== Philippines ====
In December 2021, President [[Rodrigo Duterte]] signed a law criminalizing child marriage, including its facilitation and solemnization, and [[cohabitation]] of an adult with a child outside wedlock.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Parrocha |first1=Azer |title=Duterte signs law criminalizing child marriage |url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1164695 |access-date=7 January 2022 |work=Philippine News Agency |date=6 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220106192427/https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1164695 |archive-date=6 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Slisco |first1=Aila |title=Philippines bans child marriage while 44 U.S. states allow it |url=https://www.newsweek.com/philippines-bans-child-marriage-while-44-us-states-allow-it-1666658 |access-date=7 January 2022 |work=Newsweek |date=7 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107104344/https://www.newsweek.com/philippines-bans-child-marriage-while-44-us-states-allow-it-1666658 |archive-date=7 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

Before the law change, the legal age for marriage was 18 for most Filipinos; however, [[Muslim Filipino]] boys were able to marry from age 15, and Muslim girls from puberty.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Stephens |first1=Matthew |title=Islamic Law in the Philippines: Between Appeasement and Neglect |journal=Islam, Syari'ah and Governance Background Paper Series |year=2011 |page=8 |url=https://law.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/1547795/Stephens_web2.pdf |access-date=7 January 2022}}</ref>

According to UNICEF, 15% of Filipino girls were married before age 18, and 2% were married by age 15,<ref name="ph-inquirer">{{cite news |last1=Corrales |first1=Nestor |title=New law bans child marriage: 'Major victory' vs abuse of girls |url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1537254/new-law-bans-child-marriage-major-victory-vs-abuse-of-girls |access-date=7 January 2022 |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |date=7 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107101541/https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1537254/new-law-bans-child-marriage-major-victory-vs-abuse-of-girls |archive-date=7 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref> mostly in the Muslim-dominated [[Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao]] region<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nortajuddin |first1=Athira |title=Child Brides in Philippines' Bangsamoro |url=https://theaseanpost.com/article/child-brides-philippines-bangsamoro |access-date=7 January 2022 |work=The ASEAN Post |date=24 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116000855/https://theaseanpost.com/article/child-brides-philippines-bangsamoro |archive-date=16 January 2021 |quote=Although there are limited data in relation to child marriages in the region, the practice is reported to occur in BARMM, especially common among Moro and Indigenous communities}}</ref>

====Bangladesh====
Child marriage rates in [[Bangladesh]] are amongst the highest in the world.<ref name=unicef12a/> Every 2 out of 3 marriages involve child marriages. According to statistics from 2005, 49% of women then between 25 and 29 were married by the age of 15 in Bangladesh.<ref name=autogenerated4 /> According to a 2008 study, for each additional year a girl in rural Bangladesh is not married she will attend school an additional 0.22 years on average.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|url = http://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/3200264/ambrus_earlymarriage.pdf?sequence=2|title = Early Marriage, Age of Menarche, and Female Schooling Attainment in Bangladesh|last1 = Field|first1 = Erica|year = 2008|journal = Journal of Political Economy|doi = 10.1086/593333|last2 = Ambrus|first2 = Attila|volume=116|issue = 5|pages=881–930|s2cid = 215805592}}</ref> The later girls were married, the more likely they were to utilize preventive health care.<ref name=":0" /> Married girls in the region were found to have less influence on family planning, higher rates of maternal mortality, and lower status in their husband's family than girls who married later.<ref name=":0" /> Another study found that women who married at age 18 or older were less likely to experience IPV (intimate partner violence) than those married before age 18. It also found that girls married before age 15 were at an even higher risk for IPV.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Yount|first1=Kathryn M.|last2=Crandall|first2=AliceAnn|last3=Cheong|first3=Yuk Fai|last4=Osypuk|first4=Theresa L.|last5=Bates|first5=Lisa M.|last6=Naved|first6=Ruchira T.|last7=Schuler|first7=Sidney Ruth|date=1 December 2016|title=Child Marriage and Intimate Partner Violence in Rural Bangladesh: A Longitudinal Multilevel Analysis|journal=Demography|language=en|volume=53|issue=6|pages=1821–1852|doi=10.1007/s13524-016-0520-8|pmid=27812927|issn=1533-7790|pmc=5568420}}</ref>

====India====
{{Main|Child marriage in India}}
[[File:Marriage of H.H Sri Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV and Rana Prathap Kumari of Kathiawar.jpg|thumb|In 1900, Rana Prathap Kumari, aged 12, married [[Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV]], aged 16. Two years later, he was recognized as the [[Maharaja of Mysore]] under [[British India]].]]
According to UNICEF's "State of the World's Children-2009" report, 47% of India's women aged 20–24 married before the legal age of 18, with 56% marrying before age 18 in rural areas.<ref name="unicef.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.unicef.org/sowc09/docs/SOWC09_Table_9.pdf |title=Child Protection |access-date=18 January 2009 |archive-date=19 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090619111412/http://www.unicef.org/sowc09/docs/SOWC09_Table_9.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The report also showed that 40% of the world's child marriages occur in India.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/18/stories/2009011855981100.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090127015155/http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/18/stories/2009011855981100.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=27 January 2009 | location=Chennai, India | work=[[The Hindu]] | title=40 p.c. child marriages in India: UNICEF | date=18 January 2009}}</ref> As with Africa, this UNICEF report is based on data that is derived from a small sample survey in 1999.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Early_Marriage_12.lo.pdf|title=Child Marriage|publisher=UNICEF|volume=Table 1|access-date=12 August 2013|archive-date=28 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828013412/http://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Early_Marriage_12.lo.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The latest available UNICEF report for India uses 2004–2005 household survey data, on a small sample, and other scholars<ref name=":2">{{cite journal | last1 = Raj | first1 = A. | last2 = Saggurti | first2 = N. | last3 = Balaiah | first3 = D. | last4 = Silverman | first4 = J. G. | year = 2009 | title = Prevalence of child marriage and its effect on fertility and fertility-control outcomes of young women in India: a cross-sectional, observational study | journal = The Lancet | volume = 373 | issue = 9678| pages = 1883–1889 | doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60246-4 | pmid=19278721 | pmc=2759702}}</ref> report lower incidence rates for India. According to Raj et al., the 2005 small sample household survey data suggests 22% of girls ever married aged 16–18, 20% of girls in India married between 13 and 16, and 2.6% married before age 13. According to 2011 nationwide census of India, the average age of marriage for women in India is 21.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mospi.nic.in/mospi_new/upload/women_men_2012_31oct12.pdf|title=Women and men in India 2012|publisher=CSO/Census India 2011, Government of India|page=xxi, Highlights item 5|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012024158/http://mospi.nic.in/mospi_new/upload/women_men_2012_31oct12.pdf|archive-date=2013-10-12}}</ref> The child marriage rates in India, according to a 2009 representative survey, dropped to 7%.<ref name=toi2012>K. Sinha [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Nearly-50-fall-in-brides-married-below-18/articleshow/11829410.cms Nearly 50% fall in brides married below 18] The Times of India (10 February 2012)</ref> In its 2001 demographic report, the Census of India stated zero married girls below age 10, 1.4 million married girls out of 59.2 million girls in the age 10–14, and 11.3 million married girls out of 46.3 million girls in the age 15–19 (which includes 18–19 age group).<ref name="censusindia.gov.in">[http://censusindia.gov.in/Tables_Published/C-Series/c_series_tables_2001.aspx Table C-2 Marital Status by Age and Sex] Subtable C0402, India Total Females Married by Age Group, 2001 Census of India, Government of India (2009)</ref> For 2011, the Census of India reports child marriage rates dropping further to 3.7% of females aged less than 18 being married.<ref name=chap22011>{{cite web|url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/vital_statistics/SRS_Report/9Chap%202%20-%202011.pdf|title=Percentage of Female by age at effective marriage and by residence India and bigger States, 2011, chapter 2: Population Composition, Table Statement 12, India totals for ''< 18'', 2011 Census of India, Government of India (2013), page 26}}</ref>

The [[Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929]] was passed during the tenure of British rule on [[British India|Colonial India]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 19 of 1929 {{!}} Ministry of Women & Child Development{{!}}IN{{!}}uopzb |url=https://wcd.nic.in/child-marriage-restraint-act-1929-19-1929#:~:text=An%20Act%20to%20restrain%20the%20solemnisation%20of%20child%20marriage.&text=(1)%20This%20Act%20may%20be,India%20without%20and%20beyond%20India |access-date=2023-10-11 |website=wcd.nic.in}}</ref> It forbade the marriage of a male younger than 21 or a female younger than 18 for Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, and most people of India. However, this law did not and currently does not apply to India's 165 million Muslim population, and only applies to India's Hindu, Christian, Jain, Sikh, and other religious minorities. This link of law and religion was formalized by the British colonial rule with the Muslim personal laws codified in the Indian Muslim Personal Law ([[Sharia]]t) Application Act of 1937. The age at which India's Muslim girls can legally marry, according to this [[Muslim Personal Law#Muslim law|Muslim Personal Law]], is 9, and can be lower if her guardian (''wali'') decides she is sexually mature.<ref>Htun, M., & Weldon, L., {{cite web|url=http://www.gigronline.org/PDF/WBfam.pdf|title=Sex equality in family law: historical legacies, feminist activism, and religious power in 70 countries|publisher=World Development Report, (Purdue University, 2012)|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006202313/http://gigronline.org/PDF/WBfam.pdf|archive-date=2013-10-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Wakf-Board-bristles-at-women-panels-advice-on-child-marriages/articleshow/20825619.cms|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130702154934/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-06-29/hyderabad/40270978_1_wakf-board-child-marriages-aimplb|url-status=live|archive-date=2013-07-02|work=[[The Times of India]]|title=Wakf Board bristles at women panel's advice on child marriages|date=29 June 2013 }}</ref> Over the last 25 years, All India Muslim Personal Law Board and other Muslim civil organizations have actively opposed India-wide laws and enforcement action against child marriages; they have argued that Indian Muslim families have a religious right to marry a girl aged 15 or even 12.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2238321.stm | publisher=BBC News | first=Charles | last=Haviland | title=Battle over India's marriage age | date=5 September 2002}}</ref> Several states of India claim specially high child marriage rates in their Muslim and tribal communities.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20101102142907/http://www.hindu.com/2010/10/29/stories/2010102965680300.htm Call to avoid ambiguity on minimum age of marriage] The Hindu (29 October 2010)</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/child-marriage-indian-union-muslim-league-kerala-underage-marriages/1/287096.html|title=Legalising underage marriage is Indian Union Muslim League's new ploy to gain political mileage in Kerala : NATION|work=India Today|date=30 November 1999 }}</ref> India, with a population of over 1.2 billion, has the world's highest total number of child marriages. It is a significant social issue. As of 2016, the situation has been legally rectified by [[The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006]].

According to the "National Plan of Action for Children 2005", published by Indian government's Department of Women and Child Development, set a goal to eliminate child marriage completely by 2010. In 2006, The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 was passed to prohibit solemnization of child marriages. This law states that men must be at least 21 years of age and women must be at least 18 years of age to marry.

Some Muslim organizations planned to challenge the new law in the Supreme Court of India.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/muslim-marital-age-muslim-women-indian-union-muslim-league-cpi-m-criticises/1/311284.html|title=Muslim marital age: CPI(M) criticises, Congress cautious|date=23 September 2013 |access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref> In latter years, various high courts in India – including the [[Gujarat High Court]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/ahmedabad/prohibition-of-child-marriage-act-to-prevail-over-personal-laws-hc/|title=Prohibition of Child Marriage Act to prevail over personal laws: HC|date=25 September 2015|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref> the [[Karnataka High Court]]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Child-Marriage-Act-overrides-Muslim-Personal-Law-Karnataka-high-court/articleshow/18700656.cms|title=Child Marriage Act overrides Muslim Personal Law: Karnataka high court|website=[[The Times of India]]|date=27 February 2013 |access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref> and the [[Madras High Court]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-madras-hc-says-anti-child-marriage-act-prevails-over-muslim-personal-law-2073796|title=Madras HC says anti-child marriage act prevails over Muslim Personal Law |date=1 April 2015|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref> – have ruled that the act prevails over any personal law (including Muslim personal law).

====Nepal====
{{main|Child marriage in Nepal}}
[[UNICEF]] reported that 28.8% of marriages in Nepal were child marriages as of 2011.<ref name=":5" /> A UNICEF discussion paper determined that 79.6 percent of Muslim girls in Nepal, 69.7 percent of girls living in hilly regions irrespective of religion, and 55.7 percent of girls living in other rural areas, are all married before the age of 15. Girls born into the highest wealth quintile marry about two years later than those from the other quintiles.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Child_Marriage.pdf|title=Child Marriages in Southern Asia (see Solutions to Ending Child Marriage in Southern Asia: Nepal, Australian AID – ICRW |year=2009|website=reliefweb.int}}</ref>

====Pakistan====
{{Main|Child marriage in Pakistan}}
According to a [[UNICEF]] report from 2018, around 18% of the girls in Pakistan were married before the age of 18<ref name="unicef18">[https://data.unicef.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Child-marriage-database_Mar2021.xlsx Child Marriage Database]. UNICEF. 30 July 2021.</ref><ref>[https://atlas.girlsnotbrides.org/map/pakistan Atlas: Pakistan]. Girls Not Brides. 31 July 2021</ref> and 4% of the girls were married before the age of 15.<ref name="unicef18"/> In the past two 2013 reports suggest that over 50% of all marriages in [[Pakistan]] involve girls less than 18 years old.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Nasrullah | first1 = M | year = 2013 | title = Bielefeld University, Germany, Girl Child Marriage and Its Effect on Fertility in Pakistan: Findings from Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey, 2006–2007 | journal = Matern Child Health J | volume = 18| issue = 3| pages = 534–43| doi = 10.1007/s10995-013-1269-y | pmid = 23580067 | s2cid = 26184621 |display-authors=etal}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/597697/social-customs-nearly-half-of-pakistani-women-are-married-before-the-age-of-18/|title=Social customs: 'Nearly half of Pakistani women are married before the age of 18' – The Express Tribune|date=31 August 2013|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref>

The exact number of child marriages in Pakistan below the age of 13 is unknown, but rising according to the United Nations.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irinnews.org/report/33985/pakistan-child-marriages-on-the-rise-across-rural-sindh|title=IRIN Asia – PAKISTAN: Child marriages on the rise across rural Sindh – Pakistan – Children – Human Rights|newspaper=Irinnews |agency=The New Humanitarian|date=31 March 2006}}</ref>

Another custom in Pakistan, called ''[[Swara (custom)|swara]]'' or ''[[Vani (custom)|vani]]'', involves village elders solving family disputes or settling unpaid debts by marrying off girls. The average marriage age of ''swara'' girls is between 5 and 9.<ref name=star2013>{{cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2013/08/26/pakistans_child_brides_suffering_for_others_crimes.html|title=Pakistan's child brides: suffering for others' crimes|date=26 August 2013|work=Toronto Star}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/10/2012101792934276587.html|title=Child brides blot tribal Pakistan|author=Mehreen Zahra-Malik|publisher=Al Jazeera}}</ref> Similarly, the custom of [[watta satta]] has been cited<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.plan.fi/File/416b7ead-4c65-4ab5-a26c-0eb4cb80c560/Stealing+Innocence+-+Child+Marriage+in+Pakistan+(Plan+2011).pdf|title=Stealing innocence: child marriage in Pakistan|first=Samuel|last=Lane|work=Abo Akademi University|location=Finland|year=2012|access-date=2013-09-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012035244/http://www.plan.fi/File/416b7ead-4c65-4ab5-a26c-0eb4cb80c560/Stealing+Innocence+-+Child+Marriage+in+Pakistan+(Plan+2011).pdf|archive-date=2013-10-12|url-status=dead}}</ref> as a cause of child marriages in Pakistan.

According to [[Population Council]], 35% of all females in Pakistan become mothers before they reach the age of 18, and 67% have experienced pregnancy – 69% of these have given birth – before they reach the age of 19.<ref>[http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/ayp0102.pdf Adolescents and Youth in Pakistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312003405/http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/ayp0102.pdf |date=12 March 2014 }} Zeba Sathar, Cynthia Lloyd, et al., Population Council, with support from UNICEF; pp. 96–101</ref> Less than 4% of married girls below the age of 19 had some say in choosing her spouse; over 80% were married to a near or distant relative. Child marriage and early motherhood is common in Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/ayp0102.pdf|title=Adolescents and Youth in Pakistan|first1=Zeba|last1=Sathar|first2=Cynthia|last2=Lloyd|work=Population Council, with support from UNICEF|volume=Table 5.8 and 5.15|pages=188–193|display-authors=etal|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312003405/http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/ayp0102.pdf|archive-date=2014-03-12}}</ref>

====Iran====
In [[Iran]], as in other developing societies, the phenomenon of child marriage, or early child marriage, is widespread.<ref>Ahmady, Kameel Et al 2017: An Echo of Silence (A Comprehensive Research Study on Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran). Nova Publishing, USA.</ref><ref name="auto2">{{Cite news |title=A Tale of Two Child Marriages |language=en |url=https://iranwire.com/en/society/103764-a-tale-of-two-child-marriages/ |access-date=2023-02-07}}</ref><ref name="auto5">{{Cite journal|title=The trend of girl child marriage in Iran based on national census data – PMC|year=2020 |pmc=7887999 |last1=Azimi |first1=K. |journal=Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters |volume=28 |issue=1 |doi=10.1080/26410397.2020.1820655 |pmid=33032487 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |title=The Role of Temporary Marriage (TM) in Promoting Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran |date=2021 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4469-3_3 |work=Temporary and Child Marriages in Iran and Afghanistan: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Issues |pages=47–66 |editor-last=Hosseini |editor-first=S. Behnaz |place=Singapore |publisher=Springer |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-981-33-4469-3_3 |isbn=978-981-334-469-3 |s2cid=234317299 |access-date=2023-02-07|url-access=subscription }}</ref> According to the official statistics of Iran in 2013, as many as 187,000 marriages of children under the legal age were registered with the country's Civil Registration Organization.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |date=2018-03-29 |title=Feminization of Poverty- The Cause and Consequence of Early Childhood Marriages in Iran |url=http://swiftjournals.org/sjssh/abstract/2018/march/Kameel2.php |journal=Swift Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=01–10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |date=2018 |title=Feminization of Poverty- The Cause and Consequence of Early Childhood Marriages in Iran |journal=The Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities |s2cid=56407086 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |title=Feminization of Poverty - The Cause and Consequence of Early Childhood Marriages in Iran |url=http://www.swiftjournals.org/sjssh/pdf/2018/march/Kameel2.pdf |issn=2986-9811}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-12-25 |title=Iran's Parliament Rejects Motion To Raise legal age of marriage |url=https://iran-hrm.com/2018/12/25/irans-parliament-rejects-motion-to-raise-legal-age-of-marriage/ |access-date=2023-02-07 |language=en-US}}</ref> The vice president of prevention of social harms of the government's welfare organization stated that, in 2016, 17% of girls’ marriages in Iran took place before they reached the age of 18.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-06-04 |title=17 درصد دختران قبل از 18 سالگی ازدواج می‌کنند |url=https://www.isna.ir/news/95031508655/17-درصد-دختران-قبل-از-18-سالگی-ازدواج-می-کنند |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=ایسنا |language=fa}}</ref> The border provinces of [[Razavi Khorasan province|Khorasan Razavi]], [[East Azerbaijan province|East Azerbaijan]], and [[Sistan and Baluchestan province|Sistan and Baluchistan]] are the three provinces where the highest number of child marriages occur.<ref>{{Cite web |title=irna./news |url=https://www.irna.ir/news/82775889/%D8%B0%D8%A8%D8%AD-%D9%83%D9%88%D8%AF%D9%83%DB%8C-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D9%85%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%AE-%D8%A8%D8%B1%D8%AF%DA%AF%DB%8C-%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%86%DA%AF%DB%8C |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=www.irna.ir|date=26 December 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Child and forced marriage, including in humanitarian settings |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/women/child-and-forced-marriage-including-humanitarian-settings |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=OHCHR |language=en}}</ref><ref>احمدی کامیل. '''زنانه شدن فقر:''' علت‌ها و پیامدهای ازدواجهای موسوم به «کودک همسری» در ایران، فصلنامه مطالعات روانشناسی و علوم تربیتی، دوره 5، شماره 2، تابستان 1399، صفحات 177 – 163.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |date=2021-06-22 |title=An Echo of Silence: A Comprehensive Research on Early Child Marriage in Iran |url=http://www.aftj.ir/article_160339.html |journal=Journal of Applied Family Therapy |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=508–527 |doi=10.22034/aftj.2022.338197.1533 |issn=2717-2430}}</ref>

Though the legal age of marriage in [[Iran]] is 13 years for girls and 15 for boys, there are cases of girls below the age of 10 being married.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ibtimes.com/child-bride-practice-rising-iran-parliament-seeks-lower-girls-legal-marriage-age-9-760263|title=Child Bride Practice Rising in Iran, Parliament Seeks To Lower Girl's Legal Marriage Age To 9|first=Vivian Tsai 08/30/12 AT 4:30|last=PM|date=30 August 2012|website=International Business Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Tsai |first=Vivian |date=2012-08-30 |title=Child Bride Practice Rising In Iran, Parliament Seeks To Lower Girl's Legal Marriage Age To 9 |url=https://www.ibtimes.com/child-bride-practice-rising-iran-parliament-seeks-lower-girls-legal-marriage-age-9-760263 |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=International Business Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="auto3">{{Cite web |title=Iranian girls ruined by child marriage – DW – 09/11/2017 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/child-marriage-in-iran-forces-girls-into-a-life-of-oppression/a-40450099 |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=dw.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name="auto2"/> The same source pointed out that "child marriages are more common in socially backward rural areas often afflicted with high levels of illiteracy and drug addiction".<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web |date=2021-08-30 |title=The Life of an Iranian Child Bride: An Animation by Marjan Farsad |url=https://iranhumanrights.org/2021/08/the-life-of-an-iranian-child-bride-an-animation-by-marjan-farsad/ |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=Center for Human Rights in Iran}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Efevbera |first1=Yvette |last2=Bhabha |first2=Jacqueline |date=2020-10-15 |title=Defining and deconstructing girl child marriage and applications to global public health |journal=BMC Public Health |volume=20 |issue=1 |pages=1547 |doi=10.1186/s12889-020-09545-0 |issn=1471-2458 |pmc=7560271 |pmid=33054856 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="auto5"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=رپرتاژ - ازدواج کودکان |url=https://www.manototv.com/episode/2684 |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=Manoto TV |language=fa |archive-date=23 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223131128/https://www.manototv.com/episode/2684 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>Ahmady, Kameel. The Role of Temporary Marriage (TM) in Promoting Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran, Swift Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, February 2021, pp 47–66.</ref> In October 2019, a prosecutor annulled the marriage of an 11-year-old girl to her adult cousin in rural Iran, and said he was indicting the mullah (officiant) and the girl's parents for an illegal underage marriage.<ref name="jpostOct19">{{Cite web|url=https://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/WATCH-Iranian-man-marries-11-year-old-girl-605352|title=WATCH: Iranian man marries 11-year-old girl|date=22 October 2019 }}</ref><ref name="auto4">{{Cite journal |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |date=2021-10-08 |title=CHANGING THE ATTITUDE OF YOUNG PEOPLE TOWARDS MARRIAGE WITH A FOCUS ON LAW AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS SUCH AS RELIGION AND CUSTOM |url=http://psychologyandeducation.net/pae/index.php/pae/article/view/6826 |journal=Psychology and Education Journal |language=en |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=5233–5244 |issn=1553-6939}}</ref> According to the Iranian Students News Agency, nearly 6,000 children are married each year in Iran.<ref name="jpostOct19" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-03-08 |title=وجود ۱۵ هزار بیوه زیر ۱۵ سال در کشور |url=https://www.isna.ir/news/96121709566/وجود-۱۵-هزار-بیوه-زیر-۱۵-سال-در-کشور |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=ایسنا |language=fa}}</ref>

The [[Committee on the Rights of the Child|UN Committee on the Rights of the Child]] (CRC) examining child marriage in Iran has warned of a rising number of young girls forced into marriage in Iran.<ref name="newsweek.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.newsweek.com/un-condemns-iran-increase-child-brides-young-10-423435|title=U.N. condemns Iran for increase in child brides as young as 10 years old|website=[[Newsweek]]|date=5 February 2016|access-date=2018-03-03}}</ref><ref name="auto3"/> The Committee deplored the fact that the State party allows sexual intercourse involving girls as young as 9 [[Lunar calendar|lunar years]] and that other forms of sexual abuse of even younger children is not criminalized.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dailysabah.com/mideast/2016/02/04/un-decries-child-marriages-in-iran-whose-laws-permit-sexual-intercourse-with-girls-as-young-as-9|title=UN decries child marriages in Iran whose laws permit sexual intercourse with girls as young as 9|website=[[Daily Sabah]]|date=4 February 2016|access-date=2018-03-03}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title="سیاستی برای خاتمه ختنه زنان در ایران وجود ندارد" – DW – ۱۳۹۷/۸/۲۱ |url=https://www.dw.com/fa-ir/iran/a-46260381 |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=dw.com |publisher=[[Deutsche Welle]] |language=fa}}</ref>
CRC said that Tehran must "repeal all provisions that authorize, condone or lead to child sexual abuse" and called for the age of sexual consent to be increased from nine years old to 16.<ref name="auto2"/> The Society For Protecting The Rights of The Child said that 43,459 girls aged under 15 married in 2009. In 2010, 716 girls under the age of 10 married, up from 449 in the year prior.<ref name="newsweek.com" /><ref name="auto2"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Despite Outrage, No End In Sight For Child Marriage In Iran |url=https://en.radiofarda.com/a/many-iran-religious-leaders-support-child-marriage/29735413.html |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=RFE/RL |date=28 January 2019 |language=en}}</ref> On 8 March 2018 a member of the [[Tehran City Council]], [[Shahrbanoo Amani]] said that there were 15,000 widows under the age of 15 in the country.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.isna.ir/news/96121709566/وجود-۱۵-هزار-بیوه-زیر-۱۵-سال-در-کشور|title=وجود ۱۵ هزار بیوه زیر ۱۵ سال در کشور|date=8 March 2018|website=ایسنا}}</ref><ref name="auto4"/><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=طنین سکوت (پژوهشی جامع بر باب ازدواج کودکان در ایران) | date=5 January 2023 |type=Learning |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQp2ZIZINjI |publisher=kameel Ahmady |language=fa |access-date=2023-02-07 |via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>

The Iranian Government has been criticized by the international community over its high rate of child marriage.<ref name="auto1"/>

In August 2019, Iran demonstrated its sensitivity towards its birth rates by arresting [[Kameel Ahmady]], an expert in the area of child marriage, and sentencing him to a nine-year and three-month imprisonment for alleged "subversive research." Ahmady's research focuses on harmful traditional practices such as early child marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM), sexuality and the [[LGBT|LGBTQ]]+ community, [[child labour]] and ethnic issues.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.practices-of-violence.net/female-genital-mutilation-in-iran/|title=Female Genital Mutilation in Iran|access-date=7 February 2023|archive-date=29 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129183216/https://www.practices-of-violence.net/female-genital-mutilation-in-iran/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-12-14 |title=Kameel Ahmady: British FGM academic 'jailed in Iran' |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-55300694 |access-date=2023-02-07}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=British-Iranian FGM, child marriage researcher arrested in Iran on unknown charges |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/british-iranian-fgm-researcher-arrested-iran-unknown-charges?amp=1 |access-date=2023-02-07 |newspaper=The New Arab |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=World needs to shout about scholars silenced by the state – Dr Alice König |language=en-GB |work=The Scotsman |url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/columnists/world-needs-shout-about-scholars-silenced-state-dr-alice-konig-1404878 |access-date=2023-02-07}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Dehghan |first=Saeed Kamali |date=2015-06-04 |title=Female genital mutilation practised in Iran, study reveals |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/04/female-genital-mutilation-iran-fgm |access-date=2023-02-07 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> His group fieldwork research on child marriage, carried out in 2017 and published under the title An Echo of Silence: A Comprehensive Research Study on Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran, brought him to the attention of the authorities because they believed he was campaigning to raise the legal age of marriage for girls.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Susanti |first1=Christina Esti |last2=Ahmady |first2=Kameel |date=2015-11-07 |title=Prevalence of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in Iran |url=http://swiftjournals.org/sjssh/abstract/2015/november/Kameel.php |journal=Swift Journal of Social Sciences and Humanity |volume=1 |issue=3 |pages=28–42}}</ref><ref>Ahmady, Kameel. THE NEXUS BETWEEN TEMPORARY MARRIAGE AND EARLY CHILD MARRIAGE IN IRAN, Paper presented at the 14th Eurasian Conference on Language and Social Sciences Hosted by University of Gjakova‘Fehmi Agani, KOSOVO, pp. 376–391, Jan 2022.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Ahmady |first=Kameel |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V4RZtAEACAAJ&q=kameel+ahmady |title=An Echo of Silence: A Comprehensive Research Study on Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran |date=2018 |publisher=Nova Science Publishers, Incorporated |isbn=978-1-5361-2365-4 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=An Echo of Silence: A Comprehensive Research Study on Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran – Nova Science Publishers |url=https://novapublishers.com/shop/an-echo-of-silence-a-comprehensive-research-study-on-early-child-marriage-ecm-in-iran/ |access-date=2023-02-07 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>Ahmady, Kameel Et al 2021: An Echo of Silence (A Comprehensive Research Study on Early Child Marriage (ECM) in Iran). Avayebuf, Denmark.</ref>

==== Yemen ====
Child marriage is a common practice in Yemen, both in urban and rural areas.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2011-12-07 |title="How Come You Allow Little Girls to Get Married?" |url=https://www.hrw.org/report/2011/12/07/how-come-you-allow-little-girls-get-married/child-marriage-yemen |journal=Human Rights Watch |language=en}}</ref> As of 2023, an estimated 3.8 million Yemeni girls (about 30%) are married before the age of 18, with approximately 1.3 million girls (about 7%) married before the age of 15.<ref name=":yemen0">{{Cite web |title=Child Marriage in Yemen |url=https://childmarriagedata.org/country-profiles/yemen/ |access-date=2024-10-26 |website=Child Marriage Data Portal |language=en}}</ref>

According to [[Human Rights Watch]] (HRW), in 1999 the minimum marriage age 15 for women was abolished; the onset of puberty, interpreted by conservatives to be at age nine, was set as a requirement for consummation of marriage.<ref name=HRWYemenReport2001>{{Citation| title= World Report 2001|chapter= Yemen: Human Rights Developments | publisher= Human Rights Watch | year=2001 | chapter-url= https://www.hrw.org/wr2k1/mideast/yemen.html | access-date=2010-04-08}}</ref> In April 2008, [[Nujood Ali]], a 10-year-old girl, successfully obtained a divorce after being raped under these conditions. Her case prompted calls to raise the legal age for marriage to 18.<ref name=Daragahi2008>{{Citation| last= Daragahi| first= Borzou | title= Yemeni bride, 10, says I won't | work= Los Angeles Times | date= 11 June 2008 | url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-jun-11-fg-childbride11-story.html | access-date=2010-02-16}}</ref> Later in 2008, the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood proposed to define the minimum age for marriage at 18 years, the law passed in April 2009 with the age voted for as 17, however due to maneuvers by opposing parliamentarians the law was dropped the next day.<ref name="Assamiee&Al-Sakkaf2010">{{Citation | author= Mahmoud Assamiee and Nadia Al | title= Relative breakthrough in Yemen's early marriage dilemma | work= Yemen Times | date= 25 March 2010 | url= http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=33771 | access-date=2010-04-08 | url-status= dead | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110608055754/http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=33771 | archive-date= 8 June 2011 }}</ref>

Since 2014 the [[Yemeni civil war (2014–present)|Yemeni civil war]] has led to severe disruption of economic, social and political systems. Extreme poverty drives many families in Yemen to marry off their daughters for financial relief, receiving a dowry in exchange, or sometimes to ensure the safety of girls in an unstable environment.<ref name=":yemen1">{{Cite web |date=2024-06-24 |title=Yemen's Daughters: The Battle Against Child Marriage Amidst War - ECDHR |url=https://www.ecdhr.org/yemens-daughters-the-battle-against-child-marriage-amidst-war/ |access-date=2024-10-26 |website=www.ecdhr.org |language=en-GB}}</ref> Limited access to education leaves young girls with limited options, as child marriage rates are significantly higher among uneducated girls (39.5%) compared to those with secondary education (22.3%).<ref name=":yemen0" /> [[Houthi_movement|Houthi]] laws and policies have also forced the closure of several civil and human rights organisations and also further restricted access to education,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-02-06 |title=Houthis Violating Women's and Girls' Rights in Yemen {{!}} Human Rights Watch |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/02/06/houthis-violating-womens-and-girls-rights-yemen |access-date=2024-10-26 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=September 26, 2023 |title=Gender Segregation at Sanaa University: A Worrying Trend for Yemen |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/sada/2023/09/gender-segregation-at-sanaa-university-a-worrying-trend-for-yemen?lang=en |access-date=October 25, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=September 1, 2022 |title=They are suffocating us': Amnesty condemns Houthis' stifling male guardianship rules |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/amnesty-condemns-houthi-guardianship-rules-women |access-date=October 25, 2024 |website=[[The New Arab]]}}</ref> indirectly increasing child marriage rates.

===Europe===

====General====
Each European country has its own laws; in both the [[European Union]] and the [[Council of Europe]] the marriageable age falls within the jurisdiction of individual member states. The [[Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence|Istanbul convention]], the first legally binding instrument in Europe in the field of violence against women and domestic violence,<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 March 2014 |title=The Convention of Belém do Pará and the Istanbul Convention: A response to violence against women worldwide |url=https://www.oas.org/es/mesecvi/docs/CSW-SideEvent2014-Flyer-EN.pdf |access-date=3 November 2023 |website=[[Organization of American States]]}}</ref> only requires countries which ratify it to prohibit [[forced marriage]] (Article 37) and to ensure that forced marriages can be easily voided without further victimization (Article 32), but does not make any reference to a minimum age of marriage.

====European Union====
In the European Union, the general age of marriage ''as a right'' is 18 in all member states. When all exceptions are taken into account (such as judicial or parental consent), the minimum age is 16 in most countries. In 7 countries marriage under 18 is completely prohibited. By contrast, in 6 countries there is no set minimum age, although all these countries require the authorization of a public authority (such as a judge or social worker) for the marriage to take place.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | State
! colspan=2 | Minimum age
! rowspan=2 class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
!| Minimum age when all exceptions are taken into account
!| General age
|-
| {{flag|Austria}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with parental consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.austria.org/marriage-in-austria/|title=Marriage in Austria|website=Austria|access-date=2018-03-03|archive-date=11 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171111041737/http://www.austria.org/marriage-in-austria/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Belgium}}
| data-sort-value="0"|none
| 18
| Younger than 18 and only after judicial consent (with no strict minimum age). With parental consent, serious reasons are required for a minor to obtain judicial consent for a marriage; without parental consent, serious reasons are required and the unwillingness of the parents has to constitute an abuse.<ref>Articles 144, 145, and 148 of the Civil Code of Belgium.</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Bulgaria}}
| 16
| 18
| The new 2009 Family Code fixes the age at 18, but allows for an exception for 16 years olds, stating that "Upon exception, in case that important reasons impose this, matrimony may be concluded by a person at the age of 16 with permission by the regional judge". It further states that both persons wanting to marry, as well as the parents/guardians of the minor, must be consulted by the judge. (Chapter 2, Article 6)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://kenarova.com/law/Family%20Code.pdf |title=Family Code : General Provisions |publisher=Kenarova.com |access-date=2015-11-20}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Croatia}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with judicial consent.
|-
| {{flag|Cyprus}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with parental consent, if there are serious reasons for the marriage.<ref name="coe.int">{{cite web|url=http://www.coe.int/t/dg3/familypolicy/Source/4_1_i%20Legislation%20on%20marriage.pdf |title=Council of Europe Family Policy Database : 4. Social Policy and Family Law : Marriage, Divorce and Parenthood |publisher=Coe.int |access-date=2015-11-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010091437/http://www.coe.int/t/dg3/familypolicy/Source/4_1_i%20Legislation%20on%20marriage.pdf |archive-date=2015-10-10 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.youthpolicy.org/pdfs/factsheets/Cyprus.pdf |title=Youth Policy Fact Sheet : Cyprus |publisher=Youthpolicy.org |access-date=2015-11-20 |archive-date=24 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024100043/http://www.youthpolicy.org/pdfs/factsheets/Cyprus.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Czech Republic}}
| 16
| 18
| Article 672 of Act No. 89/2012 Coll. the Civil Code (which came into force in 2014) states that the court may, in exceptional cases, allow a marriage of a 16-year-old, if there are serious reasons for it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.zakonyprolidi.cz/cs/2012-89|title=Občanský zákoník (nový) – č. 89/2012 Sb. – Aktuální znění|work=Zákony pro lidi|access-date=2015-07-28}}</ref> 
|-
| {{flag|Denmark}}
| 18
| 18
|Since 2017, marriage is no longer allowed under 18.<ref name=Denmark2019/>
|-
| {{flag|Estonia}}
| 18
| 18
| Since 2022, marriage under 18 is prohibited.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ESTONIA Comprehensive national review report |url=https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2024-09/b30_report_estonia_en.pdf |website=www.unwomen.org}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Finland}}
| 18
| 18
| Under 18 marriages with judicial authorization were banned in 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ts.fi/uutiset/4487764|title=Lapsiavioliitot kielletään Suomessa – Oikeusministeri: "Lapsien tulee saada olla lapsia täysi-ikäisyyteen asti"|first=Niko|last=Vahtera|publisher=[[Turun Sanomat]]|date=20 February 2019|access-date=9 April 2019|language=fi}}</ref>

|-
| {{flag|France}}
| data-sort-value="0"|none
| 18
| Under 18 needs judicial authorization.<ref>{{Citation|title=Code civil – Article 145|url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichCodeArticle.do?cidTexte=LEGITEXT000006070721&idArticle=LEGIARTI000006421971&dateTexte=20171110|access-date=2019-07-08}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Germany}}
| data-sort-value="17.9"|18/unclear
| 18
| The minimum age was set at 18 in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bgbl.de/xaver/bgbl/start.xav?startbk=Bundesanzeiger_BGBl&start=//*%5B@attr_id='bgbl117s2429.pdf'%5D#__bgbl__//*%5B@attr_id='bgbl117s2429.pdf'%5D__1502380300881|title=Bundesgesetzblatt|website=bgbl.de|access-date=2017-08-10}}</ref> In 2023, the German [[Federal Constitutional Court]] ruled this law in parts unconstitutional.<ref>{{cite web |access-date=2023-03-29 |date=2023-02-01 |title=BVerfG, Beschluss des Ersten Senats vom 1. Februar 2023 - 1 BvL 7/18 |url=https://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/SharedDocs/Entscheidungen/DE/2023/02/ls20230201_1bvl000718.html |website=bundesverfassungsgericht.de}}<!-- auto-translated from German by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{cite web |access-date=2023-03-31 |title=Gesetz zur Bekämpfung von Kinderehen mangels Regelungen zu den Folgen und zu Fortführungsmöglichkeiten nach inländischem Recht unwirksamer Auslandskinderehen mit dem Grundgesetz unvereinbar |type=Pressemitteilung Nr. 36/2023 vom 29. März 2023 |url=https://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/SharedDocs/Pressemitteilungen/DE/2023/bvg23-036.html}}<!-- auto-translated from German by Module:CS1 translator --></ref>
|-
| {{flag|Greece}}
| data-sort-value="0"|none
| 18
| |Under 18 requires court permission, which may be given if there are serious reasons for such a marriage<ref name="coe.int"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://greece.angloinfo.com/family/marriage-partnerships/|title=Getting Married in Greece|access-date=28 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150717165849/http://greece.angloinfo.com/family/marriage-partnerships/|archive-date=17 July 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Hungary}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with authorization from the guardianship authority<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.impowr.org/content/current-legal-framework-marriage-or-child-marriage-hungary |title=Current Legal Framework: Marriage or Child Marriage in Hungary |publisher=impowr.org |access-date=2015-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117024830/http://www.impowr.org/content/current-legal-framework-marriage-or-child-marriage-hungary |archive-date=2015-11-17 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Ireland}}
| 18
| 18
| Since 2019, marriage under 18 is banned.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/birth_family_relationships/getting_married/legal_prerequisites_for_marriage.html|title=Legal requirements for marriage|last=Citizensinformation.ie|website=citizensinformation.ie|language=en|access-date=2019-08-26}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Italy}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with court consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/443/country-minimum|title=National law and policies on minimum ages – Italy – Right to Education|website=r2e.gn.apc.org|access-date=3 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110225502/http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/443/country-minimum|archive-date=10 November 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Latvia}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with court consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/362/country-minimum|title=National law and policies on minimum ages – Latvia – Right to Education|website=r2e.gn.apc.org|access-date=3 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110225457/http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/362/country-minimum|archive-date=10 November 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Lithuania}}
| data-sort-value="1"|none girls/15 boys
| 18
| 15 with court permission. Girls can marry below 15 with court permission if they are pregnant.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:yvIqWHiISFgJ:www.interpol.int/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/CsaLithuania.pdf+lithuania+age+of+consent+interpol&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESi0C0o0KxrchPH7-cgnwLw8l9STSGqek6FgmlZbX1FW219q-nhlrRA4pHiMnbOZlQD4Ci-z8_TPuz3JGI5j3QeqE73RMNsoRtKjdtK-qJ9OxiQh8kGTRKil4Aoc80DOVrh4BX0X&sig=AHIEtbRwMRy1vEGSvVjsc2QmIUNUFc_l2A |title=Powered by Google Docs |access-date=2013-01-14}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Luxembourg}}
| data-sort-value="0"|none
| 18
| Under 18 need judicial permission. New laws of 2014 fixed the marriageable at 18 for both sexes; prior to these regulations the age was 16 for females and 18 for males. The new laws still allow both sexes to obtain judicial consent to get married under 18.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guichet.public.lu/citoyens/fr/actualites/2014/06/19-mariage-gay/index.html|title=Mariage et adoption s'ouvrent aux couples de personnes du même sexe|access-date=28 July 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924024116/http://www.guichet.public.lu/citoyens/fr/actualites/2014/06/19-mariage-gay/index.html|archive-date=24 September 2015}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Malta}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with parental consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.justiceservices.gov.mt/DownloadDocument.aspx?app=lom&itemid=8749&l=1 |title=Marriage Act, Section 3 "Restrictions on Marriage" |access-date=2016-04-08}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Netherlands}}
| 18
| 18
|Exceptions were removed by a change in the law in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0037085/2015-12-05|title=wetten.nl – Regeling – Wet tegengaan huwelijksdwang – BWBR0037085|website=wetten.overheid.nl|language=nl|access-date=2018-06-03}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Poland}}
| data-sort-value="16.1"|16 girls/18 boys
| 18
| 16 for girls with court consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/489/country-minimum|title=National law and policies on minimum ages – Poland – Right to Education|website=r2e.gn.apc.org|access-date=3 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110225409/http://r2e.gn.apc.org/country-node/489/country-minimum|archive-date=10 November 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Portugal}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with parental consent.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/portugal/family/marriage-partnerships|title=Getting Married in Portugal – Portugal – Angloinfo|access-date=3 March 2018}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Romania}}
| 16
| 18
| 16, if there are valid reasons, with both judicial and parental permission, as well as medical approval.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://legeaz.net/noul-cod-civil/art-272-varsta-matrimoniala-conditiile-de-fond-pentru-incheierea-casatoriei-incheierea-casatoriei |title=Art. 272 Noul cod civil Vârsta matrimonială Condiţiile de fond pentru încheierea căsătoriei Încheierea căsătoriei &#124; Noul Cod Civil actualizat 2015 – Legea 287/2009 |publisher=Legeaz.net |date=29 October 2011 |access-date=2015-11-20}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Slovakia}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with court consent, with a serious reason such as pregnancy.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
|-
| {{flag|Slovenia}}
| data-sort-value="0"|none
| 18
| Under 18 may be approved by the Social Work Centre if there are "well founded reasons" arising upon the investigation of the situation of the minor. (Art 23, 24 of the Law on Marriage and Family Relations).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mddsz.gov.si/fileadmin/mddsz.gov.si/pageuploads/dokumenti__pdf/zakonodaja/law_on_marriage_and_family_relations.pdf |title=Law on marriage and family relations |access-date=2017-11-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417042710/http://www.mddsz.gov.si/fileadmin/mddsz.gov.si/pageuploads/dokumenti__pdf/zakonodaja/law_on_marriage_and_family_relations.pdf |archive-date=2018-04-17 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Spain}}
| 16
| 18
| 16 with court consent.
|-
| {{flag|Sweden}}
| 18
| 18
| Not possible to marry under the age of 18 for Swedish citizens since 1 July 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lansstyrelsen.se/Stockholm/En/manniska-och-samhalle/vigsel/Pages/default.aspx|title=Marriage|last=Marriage|website=lansstyrelsen.se|access-date=2017-11-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024111611/http://www.lansstyrelsen.se/Stockholm/En/manniska-och-samhalle/vigsel/Pages/default.aspx|archive-date=2017-10-24|url-status=dead}}</ref> Authorities take a different approach to individuals who were already married when they arrived in Sweden, as during the [[European migrant crisis]], the [[Swedish Migration Agency]] identified 132 married children, of which 65 were in [[Malmö]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sydsvenskan.se/2016-06-21/132-gifta-barn-i-sverige-65-i-malmo|title=132 gifta barn i Sverige – 65 i Malmö|work=Sydsvenskan|access-date=2018-02-13|language=sv-SE}}</ref>
|}

====Scandinavia====
In April 2016, [[Reuters]] reported "Child brides sometimes tolerated in Nordic asylum centers despite bans". For example, at least 70 girls under 18 were living as married couples in Sweden; in Norway, "some" under 16 lived "with their partners". In Denmark, it was determined there were "dozens of cases of girls living with older men", prompting Minister Inger Stojberg to state she would "stop housing child brides in asylum centers".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Doyle|first1=Alister|title=Child brides sometimes tolerated in Nordic asylum centers despite bans|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-brides-idUSKCN0XI1MZ?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&rpc=69|access-date=2016-04-22|work=Reuters|location=Oslo|date=21 April 2016|quote=10 of those aged under 16 – the minimum local age for sex or marriage – were married and four had children, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) said. Of the 10 "some live in adult asylum centers, some in their own rooms and some with their partners", it said in emailed replies to Reuters questions ... Minister [[Inger Støjberg]] said that she would "stop housing child brides in asylum centers" after a review found dozens of cases of girls living with older men. ... authorities said that at least 70 girls under 18 were married in asylum centers run by municipalities including Stockholm and Malmo.}}</ref>

Marriage under 18 was completely banned in [[Sweden]] in 2014, in [[Denmark]] in 2017,<ref name=Denmark2019>{{cite web|url=https://www.ft.dk/samling/20161/lovforslag/l94/index.htm|title=SIDSTE STJERNEITEM|website=Folketinget|date=9 January 2017 }}</ref> and in [[Finland]] in 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ts.fi/uutiset/4487764|title=Lapsiavioliitot kielletään Suomessa – Oikeusministeri: "Lapsien tulee saada olla lapsia täysi-ikäisyyteen asti"|date=20 September 2019|website=[[Turun Sanomat]]|language=fi|access-date=2019-08-26}}</ref>

====Balkans/Eastern Europe====
In these areas, child and forced marriages are associated with the [[Romani people|Roma]] community and with some rural populations. However, such marriages are illegal in most of the countries from that area. In recent years, many of those countries have taken steps in order to curb these practices, including equalizing the marriageable age of both sexes (e.g. Romania in 2007, Ukraine in 2012). Therefore, most of those 'marriages' are informal unions (without legal recognition) and often arranged from very young ages. Such practices are common in Serbia,<ref>[https://www.unicef.org/serbia/en/child-marriage-among-roma-population-serbia "Child marriages in the Roma population in Serbia"], UNICEF, 2017.</ref> Bulgaria and Romania<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/4972768/Romanian-gypsy-children-become-engaged-aged-six-and-four.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/4972768/Romanian-gypsy-children-become-engaged-aged-six-and-four.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Romanian gypsy children become engaged aged six and four|date=11 March 2009|access-date=2018-03-03|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/early-marriage-deters-lesser-roma-girls-from-school-in-bulgaria-02-22-2016|title=Bulgarian Roma Girls Still Quitting School Young|access-date=2018-03-03|date=22 February 2016}}</ref> (in these countries the marriageable age is 18, and can only be lowered to 16 in special circumstances with judicial approval<ref>[https://advokatiubeogradu.rs/zakoni/PORODICNI-ZAKON-REPUBLIKE-SRBIJE.pdf Porodični zakon Republike Srbije] "The Family Law of The Republic of Serbia: Article 23" (in Serbian), 2005.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=FAMILY CODE |url=https://kenarova.com/law/Family%20Code.pdf |access-date=3 November 2023 |website=kenarova.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://legeaz.net/noul-cod-civil/art-272-varsta-matrimoniala-conditiile-de-fond-pentru-incheierea-casatoriei-incheierea-casatoriei|title=Art. 272 Noul cod civil Vârsta matrimonială Condiţiile de fond pentru încheierea căsătoriei Încheierea căsătoriei|access-date=2018-03-03}}</ref>). A 2003 case involving the daughter of an informal 'gypsy king' of the area has made international news.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3159818.stm|title=Gypsy child couple separated|date=2 October 2003|access-date=2018-03-03|publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

====Belgium====
''[[The Washington Post]]'' reported in April 2016 that "17 child brides" arrived in Belgium in 2015 and a further 7 so far in 2016. The same report added that "Between 2010 and 2013, the police registered at least 56 complaints about a forced marriage."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Ishaan|first1=Ishaan|title=Refugee child bride went on a hunger strike after Belgium separated her from husband|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/04/01/refugee-child-bride-went-on-a-hunger-strike-after-belgium-separated-her-from-husband/|access-date=2016-04-22|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=1 April 2016|quote=Official figures indicate some 17 child brides arrived among the refugee influx last year and another seven this year ... Belgium has had wider concerns over the prevalence of forced child marriages among some of the country's communities. Between 2010 and 2013, the police registered at least 56 complaints about a forced marriage.}}</ref>

==== Germany ====
In 2016 there were 1475 underage foreigners in Germany registered as married, of which 1100 were girls. [[Syrians in Germany|Syrians]] represented 664, [[Afghans in Germany|Afghans]] 157 and [[Iraqis in Germany|Iraqis]] 100. In July 2016, 361 foreign children under 14 were registered as married.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/gesellschaft/kinderehen-1475-minderjaehrige-in-deutschland-sind-verheiratet-a-1111624.html|title=Kinderehen: 1475 Minderjährige in Deutschland sind verheiratet|date=9 September 2016|work=Der Spiegel|access-date=2018-04-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161125230033/http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/gesellschaft/kinderehen-1475-minderjaehrige-in-deutschland-sind-verheiratet-a-1111624.html|archive-date=2016-11-25}}</ref>

====Netherlands====
The Dutch government's National Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings and Sexual Violence against Children wrote that "between September 2015 and January 2016 around 60 child brides entered the Netherlands".<ref>{{cite web|title=National Rapporteur concerned about Syrian child brides and Roma children|url=https://www.dutchrapporteur.nl/current/news/archief/new-report-national-rapporteur-concerned-about-syrian-child-brides-and-roma-children.aspx?cp=64&cs=69412|publisher=National Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings and Sexual Violence against Children|access-date=2016-04-22|quote=child marriages occur in the Netherlands, drawing attention to the Syrian child brides who travel from Syria, often with an adult male. Between September 2015 and January 2016 around 60 child brides entered the Netherlands.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509024840/https://www.dutchrapporteur.nl/current/news/archief/new-report-national-rapporteur-concerned-about-syrian-child-brides-and-roma-children.aspx?cp=64&cs=69412|archive-date=2016-05-09|url-status=dead}}</ref> At least one was 14 years old.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2016/04/key-advisor-warns-on-child-brides-calls-for-more-action/|title=Key advisor warns on Syrian child brides, calls for more action – DutchNews.nl|date=15 April 2016|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nltimes.nl/2016/04/14/some-60-syrian-child-brides-as-young-as-14-entered-netherlands/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20160823032923/http://www.nltimes.nl/2016/04/14/some-60-syrian-child-brides-as-young-as-14-entered-netherlands/|url-status=dead|archive-date=23 August 2016|title=Some 60 Syrian child brides, as young as 14, entered Netherlands|date=14 April 2016|access-date=2016-07-09}}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' reported that asylum centers in the Netherlands were "housing 20 child brides between ages 13 and 15" in 2015.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Ishaan|first1=Ishaan|title=Refugee child bride went on a hunger strike after Belgium separated her from husband|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/04/01/refugee-child-bride-went-on-a-hunger-strike-after-belgium-separated-her-from-husband/|access-date=2016-04-22|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=1 April 2016|quote=Last year, asylum centers next door in the Netherlands were reportedly housing 20 child brides between ages 13 and 15.}}</ref>

====Russia====
The common marriageable age established by the [[Family Code of Russia]] is 18 years old. Marriages of persons at age from 16 to 18 years are allowed only with good reasons and by local municipal authority permission. Marriage before 16 years old may be allowed by [[federal subject of Russia]] law as an exception just in special circumstances.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://base.garant.ru/10105807/3/ |title=Ст. 13 Семейного кодекса РФ |date=30 December 2015 |publisher=[[Garant]] |access-date=2016-11-09 |language=ru }}</ref>

By 2016, a minimum age for marriage in special circumstances had been established at 14 years (in [[Adygea]],<ref name="ag">{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/804932443 |title=Закон Республики Адыгея от 30 ноября 1998 г. N 101 "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак граждан Российской Федерации в возрасте от четырнадцати до шестнадцати лет, постоянно либо преимущественно проживающих на территории Республики Адыгея" |date=2 April 2012 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Kaluga Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/972205041 |title=Закон Калужской области от 06 июня 1997 года №10-ОЗ "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак на территории Калужской области лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" |date=29 May 1997 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Magadan Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/412309526 |title=Закон Магаданской области от 04 мая 2001 года №182-ОЗ "О порядке и условиях получения разрешения на вступление в брак на территории Магаданской области лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" (с изменениями на: 10.03.2016) |date=10 March 2016 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Moscow Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/819047310 |title=Закон Московской области от 30 апреля 2008 года №61/2008–ОЗ "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак на территории Московской области лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" (с изменениями на 15 июля 2015 года) |date=15 July 2015 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Nizhny Novgorod Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/465505566 |title=Постановление Правительства Нижегородской области от 23 октября 2013 года №765 "Об утверждении Положения о порядке принятия решений о разрешении на вступление в брак гражданам, не достигшим возраста шестнадцати лет, в Нижегородской области" |date=23 October 2013 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Novgorod Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/424034453 |title=Закон Новгородской области от 02 февраля 2009 года №465-ОЗ "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак на территории Новгородской области лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" (с изменениями на: 25.04.2014) |date=25 April 2014 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Oryol Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/453100152 |title=Закон Орловской области от 04 марта 2011 года №1177-ОЗ "О порядке и условиях выдачи разрешения на вступление в брак лицам, не достигшим возраста шестнадцати лет, в Орловской области" |date=4 March 2011 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Sakhalin Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/802032194 |title=Закон Сахалинской области от 11 июля 2005 года №46-ЗО "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак граждан, проживающих на территории Сахалинской области, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" (ред. от 29.06.2015) |date=29 June 2015 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Tambov Oblast]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/948000488 |title=Закон Тамбовской области от 24 июня 1997 года №120-З "О порядке и условиях вступления в брак на территории Тамбовской области лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" (с изменениями на 5 мая 2014 года) |date=5 May 2014 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Tatarstan]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/429039678 |title=Закон Республики Татарстан от 13 января 2009 года №4-ЗРТ "Семейный кодекс Республики Татарстан" (с изменениями на 07.05.2016) |date=7 May 2016 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> [[Vologda Oblast]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/453133717 |title=Закон Вологодской области от 14 августа 1996 года №95-ОЗ "О снижении брачного возраста" (с изменениями на: 27.11.2000) |date=27 November 2000 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref>) or to 15 years (in [[Murmansk Oblast]]<ref name="mur">{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/913501229 |title=Закон Мурманской области от 18 ноября 1996 года №42-01-ЗМО "Об условиях и порядке вступления в брак лиц, не достигших возраста шестнадцати лет" |date=18 November 1996 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref> and [[Ryazan Oblast]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.cntd.ru/document/423906474 |title=Закон Рязанской области от 30 декабря 2014 года №105-ОЗ "О порядке и условиях выдачи разрешения на вступление в брак лицам, не достигшим возраста шестнадцати лет" |date=30 December 2014 |work=Электронный фонд правовой и нормативно-технической документации |publisher={{interlanguage link|Kodeks|ru|Кодекс (справочно-правовая система)}} |access-date=2016-12-16 |language=ru }}</ref>). Others subjects of Russia also can have marriageable age laws.

Abatement of marriageable age is an ultimate measure acceptable in cases of life threat, pregnancy, and childbirth.<ref name="ag"/><ref name="mur"/>

====United Kingdom====
Since May 1, 2022, the marriageable age in both England and Wales is 18 with no exemptions (16 with consent of both parents or guardians, plus also a magistrate approval required within Northern Ireland only),<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.itv.com/news/2022-04-27/minimum-marriage-age-to-be-raised-from-16-to-18-in-england-and-wales | title=Minimum marriage age to be raised from 16 to 18 in England and Wales | date=28 April 2022 }}</ref><ref name=uklaw>{{cite web|title=Marriage Act 1949|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo6/12-13-14/76|website=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=6 March 2018|language=en|at=sections 2, 3 and 78 as amended by the Family Law Reform Act 1987}}</ref> although in [[Scotland]]<ref>{{cite news|last1=Caloum|first1=Leslie|title=How has Scotland's law on marriage evolved over the centuries?|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-26019306|access-date=2015-02-15|publisher=BBC News|date=4 February 2014}}</ref> no parental consent is required over 16.<ref>{{cite web|title=Did You Know? – How to Get Married in Scotland|url=http://www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow_marriage_howto.htm|access-date=2015-02-15}}</ref> Scotland and Andorra are the only European jurisdictions where 16-year-olds can marry as ''a right'' (i.e. without parental or court approval); see {{section link|Marriageable age|Europe}}.

According to a 2004 report in ''[[The Guardian]]'', girls as young as 12 have been smuggled into the UK to be the brides of men in the [[Islam in the United Kingdom|Muslim community]]. Girls trying to escape this child marriage can face death because this [[Honor killing|breaks the honor code]] of her husband and both families.<ref name="12 years guardian">{{cite web|last1=Hill|first1=Amelia|title=Revealed: the child brides who are forced to marry in Britain|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/feb/22/ukcrime.gender|website=The Guardian|date=22 February 2004 |access-date=2015-02-15}}</ref>

As with the United States, underage cohabitation is observed in the [[United Kingdom]]. According to a 2005 study, 4.1% of all girls in the 15–19 age group in the UK were cohabiting (living in an informal union), while 8.9% of all girls in that age group admitted to having been in a cohabitation relation (child marriage per UNICEF definition<ref name="Child Marriage"/>), before the age of 18. Over 4% of all underage girls in the UK were teenage mothers.<ref name=cohabitteen>Sharon K. Houseknecht and Susan K. Lewis, "Explaining Teen Childbearing and Cohabitation: Community Embeddedness and Primary Ties", ''Family Relations'', Vol. 54, No. 5, Families and Communities (Dec., 2005), pp. 607–620</ref>

In July 2014, the United Kingdom hosted its first global Girl Summit; the goal of the Summit was to increase efforts to end child, early, and [[forced marriage]], as well as [[female genital mutilation]] within a generation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://uk.news.yahoo.com/girl-summit-aims-end-child-marriage-223504733.html#lkd4Kdu |title='Girl Summit' Aims To End Child Marriage |publisher=Yahoo! News |date=22 July 2014 |access-date=2015-02-18}}</ref>