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Laws regarding
incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity ( marriage or stepfamily), ado ...
(i.e. sexual activity between family members or close relatives) vary considerably between jurisdictions, and depend on the type of sexual activity and the nature of the family relationship of the parties involved, as well as the age and sex of the parties. Besides legal prohibitions, at least some forms of
incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity ( marriage or stepfamily), ado ...
are also socially taboo or frowned upon in most cultures around the world. Incest laws may involve restrictions on
marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
, which also vary between jurisdictions. When incest involves an adult and a child (under the
age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...
) it is considered to be a form of
child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...
.


Degrees of relationship

Laws regarding incest are sometimes expressed in terms of degrees of relationship. The degree of relationship is calculated by adding the number of generations back to a closest common ancestor of each individual. Consanguinity (but not affinity) relationships may be summarized as follows: Most laws regarding
prohibited degree of kinship In law, a prohibited degree of kinship refers to a degree of consanguinity (blood relatedness) and sometimes affinity (relation by marriage or sexual relationship) between persons that results in certain actions between them being illegal. Two major ...
concern relations of ''r'' = 25% or higher, while most permit unions of individuals with ''r'' = 12.5% or lower. In 24 states of the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
,
cousin marriage A cousin marriage is a marriage where the spouses are cousins (i.e. people with common grandparents or people who share other fairly recent ancestors). The practice was common in earlier times, and continues to be common in some societies toda ...
s are prohibited. Also, most laws make no provision for the rare case of marriage between double first cousins. Incest laws may also include prohibitions of unions between biologically unrelated individuals if there is a close legal relationship, such as
adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, fro ...
or step relations.


World map


Table


Africa


Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

Consensual incest between cousins is legal in
Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre ...
(Ivory Coast).


South Africa

In
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
, since 2007, incest is the
sexual penetration Sexual penetration is the insertion of a body part or other object into a body orifice, such as the mouth, vagina or anus, as part of human sexual activity or animal sexual behavior. The term is most commonly used in statute law in the c ...
between persons who are related as follows: * lineally, that is, if one person is a direct descendant of the other. * within the first degree of consanguinuity, that is, where one person is a direct descendant of a parent of the other; this category includes siblings as well as an uncle or aunt with a niece or nephew. * within the first degree of affinity, that is, where one person is the direct ancestor or descendant of the spouse of the other person. * as adoptive parent and adopted child. Before 2007, incest was a
common law offence Common law offences are crimes under English criminal law, the related criminal law of some Commonwealth countries, and under some U.S. State laws. They are offences under the common law, developed entirely by the law courts, having no specific ...
which extended to the same degrees of relationship but which applied only to vaginal intercourse.


Madagascar

Incest is illegal in Madagascar. According to Art. 335.3 - Any sexual relationship between close relatives or relatives up to the 3rd degree inclusive, in a direct or collateral line, the marriage of which is prohibited by law or any sexual abuse committed by the father or mother or another ascendant or a person having parental authority over a child is called incest. Incest is punishable by forced labor in time if it was committed on the person of a child. In other cases, incest is punishable by five to ten years imprisonment and a fine of 4,000,000 Ar to 20,000,000 Ar.


Zimbabwe

In Zimbabwe, most forms of incest are illegal and an offender is currently liable to a fine up to or exceeding level fourteen (about US$5000) or imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years or both. Incest is classified as "sexual intercourse within a prohibited degree of relationship". A prohibited degree of relationship would be that of a parent and their natural or adoptive child, a step-parent and their step-child, whether the step-child's parent and step-parent are married under the Marriage Act hapter 5:11or the Customary Marriages Act hapter 5:07 or are parties to an unregistered customary law marriage, and whether or not the child was over the age of eighteen years at the time of the marriage; a brother and sister, whether of whole or half blood; or an uncle and his niece; or a grand-uncle and his grand-niece; or an aunt and her nephew; or a grand-aunt and her grand-nephew; or a grandparent and their grandchild and any person and their first or second cousin. In cases of first and second cousins an individual charged with such a crime can raise a defense that the cultural or religious customs or traditions of the community to which they belong does not prohibit marriage between first or second cousins; or in the case of a person who is a member of a community governed by customary law, that the cultural or religious customs or traditions of the particular community to which they belong does not prohibit marriage between first or second cousins.


Americas


Argentina

In
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
, incest is legal if both individuals are over the minimum age of consent. Marriage between third-degree relatives and beyond is allowed, with the exception of marriage involving lineal ancestors and descendants, which is considered null and void disregarding the degree of separation (parent/offspring, grandparent-grandchild).


Brazil

Brazil has no criminal punishment if the involved are over the age of 14 (the clear
age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...
in force; before 2011, though, sex with people as young as 12 and as old as 17 was in a legal grey area, with legal guardian-reported sex with those aged 12 and 13 being prosecuted as statutory rape, but unlike as with those aged 11 and younger not directly prosecuted by the State without a report by either the legal guardians or the adolescents themselves—unlike now, where the police forces prosecute all statutory rape-related cases without distinction—, and legal guardian-reported sex with those aged 14, 15, 16 and 17 being prosecuted as corruption of minors, but prosecution as corruption of minors for non-commercial consented sexual activity between people out of a defined hierarchy fell), capable of acting upon their legal rights, and that consent means that the relationship is absent of any kind of coercion or fraud. First cousin marriages, once fairly common in some regions in the 19th century, are allowed on demand as all other marriages, while avunculate ones (those between uncles or aunts and nephews or nieces), the preferred by some Amazonian Amerindian tribes, and those between half-siblings, are allowed provided that those contracting it have a health check. Marriages between parents and their children (both consanguineous and adoptive) or between siblings (both consanguineous and adoptive) are invalid, but, as stated above, non-rape sexual relationships between persons older than the age of consent are likely otherwise treated legally as all others, irrespectively of consanguinity (information over the possibility or validity of in such situations are nevertheless unclear or unexistent, but since those in these relationships are already consanguineous and thus inherently inside a legal family entity, the rights offered by such unions—recognizing a family entity between unrelated single persons—are most likely pointless, with the exceptional cases being only the remote possibility of people who were adopted contracting a relationship with a biological close family member). Brazilian law, by the Article 1521 of the Civil Code, also extends the invalidity of marriage between parents and children to grandparents and grandchildren or any other sort of ascendant-descendant relationship (both consanguineous and adoptive), parents-in-law and children-in-law even after the divorce of the earlier couple (see affinity), as well as to stepparents and stepchildren, and former husbands or wives to an adoptive parent who did this unilaterally (regarded as an equivalent, in families formed by adoption, to stepparents and stepchildren); and extends the invalidity of marriage between siblings to biological cousin-siblings. It also formerly prohibited the avunculate marriages and extended the prohibition for marriage between siblings to half-siblings, both cited above, but the Decrete Law 3.200/1941 made marriage possible for those non-ascended/descended in consanguinity of third degree (25%) provided both have health checks. Brazilian law never held marriages between double first cousins as a reason for invalidity, even though those have a consanguinity as strong as that of half-siblings, and those, as other first cousins, are not asked health checks to marry, doing so in the same way as non-related people. Also legally treated much like non-related people are stepsiblings, while those who are stepsiblings and half-siblings (that is, those who have a half-sibling who is also child of a latter married spouse of one's parent) are treated like half-siblings who are not stepsiblings, being demanded health checks before marrying.


Canada

Under Canadian federal law, incest is defined as having a sexual relationship with a sibling (including half-sibling), child/parent or grandchild/grandparent, requiring knowledge of the existence of the blood relationship. Everyone who commits incest is guilty of an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 14 years and, if the other person is under the age of 16 years, to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of five years.


Chile

In Chile, incest between lineal ancestors and descendants and between full siblings is prohibited. It is punishable by up to 1 year in prison.


Cuba

Incest in Cuba is illegal. According to article 304.: 1. The ascendant who has sexual relations with the descendant, incurs a penalty of deprivation of liberty for two to five years. The penalty applicable to the descendant is from six months to two years of deprivation of liberty. 2. Siblings who have sexual relations with each other incur a penalty of deprivation of liberty from three months to one year, each. 3. The sanctions provided for in this article are imposed as long as the facts do not constitute a major crime.


Mexico

In Mexico, the crime of incest when the ancestors have sexual relations with their descendants will be punished with a sentence of one to six years in prison.


United States

Laws regarding incest in the United States vary widely among jurisdictions regarding both the definition of the offense and penalties for its commission. The laws regarding incest in the United States article summarizes these laws for individual U.S. states and the
District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle (Washington, D.C.), Logan Circle, Jefferson Memoria ...
. In the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, the District of Columbia and every state and inhabited territory have some form of codified incest prohibition. In most states, sexual activity between a lineal ancestor and a lineal descendant (parent, grandparent with child or grandchild), siblings (brother-sister) and aunt-nephew, uncle-niece is penalized as incest. However, individual statutes vary widely.
Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
has repealed its criminal incest statute, and only criminalizes incestuous marriage.
Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...
"targets only parental figures", and
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...
does not apply any penalties when both parties are 12 years of age or older. The most severe penalties for incest are in
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
and
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, which punish incest with up to 20 years in prison, Georgia where a penalty for incest is up to 30 years in prison, Wisconsin where the penalty for incest is up to 40 years in prison, and in the states of
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...
,
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
,
Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
,
Idaho Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...
and
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...
where a penalty of up to life imprisonment for incest may be given. In some states, sex between first cousins is prohibited (see
cousin marriage law in the United States by state Cousin marriage laws in the United States vary considerably from one state to another, ranging from cousin marriages being legal in some to being a criminal offense in others. However, even in the states where it is legal, the practice is not wid ...
for cousin sex, as well as cousin marriage, being outlawed in some states). Many states also apply incest laws to non-blood relations, including stepparents, stepsiblings, in-laws and people related through adoption.


Uruguay

Incest in Uruguay is penalized if it causes a public scandal. As article 276 says: Those who, with public scandal, have sexual relations with legitimate ancestors and natural parents recognized or declared such, with legitimate descendants and natural children recognized or declared such, and with legitimate siblings. This crime will be punished with six months in prison to five years in prison.


Asia


China (Mainland)

Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China Chapter 4 prohibit rape and sexual assault, but not consensual incest. Since the age of consent is 14, this implies that incest sex is legal if both are over 14.


Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, it is illegal to have sexual intercourse with certain close relatives, even if they are consenting adults. The prohibited relationships are grandfather-granddaughter, father-daughter, brother-sister and mother-son. Punishment is up to 20 years' imprisonment for male offenders and up to 14 years' imprisonment for female offenders. The law does not cover sexual intercourse with more distant relatives, such as an aunt, uncle, niece, nephew and cousin. It only addresses male-on-female and female-on-male sexual intercourse, and it appears that consensual same-sex incest is not illegal. The law makes an assumption that a female below the age of 16 has no ability to consent to sexual intercourse, therefore a female below 16 cannot commit incest. On 5 December 2019, the Law Reform Commission of Hong Kong ("LRC") published a report on Review of Substantive Sexual Offences making final recommendations for the reform of substantive sexual offences in the Crimes Ordinance (Cap 200). It recommended that "the offence of incest should be reformed to become gender neutral; to cover all penile penetration of the mouth, vagina and anus and other forms of penetration; and be extended to cover uncles (aunts) and nieces (nephews) who are blood relatives as well as adoptive parents"


India

The
Indian Penal Code The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is the official criminal code of India. It is a comprehensive code intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law. The code was drafted on the recommendations of first law commission of India established ...
(IPC) does not contain any specific provision against inces

and also there is no law to support incest relationships, but there are general provisions relating to
sexual abuse of children Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whethe ...
by their custodian, such as a parent or teacher. Moreover the rule of kinship or marriage depends on one’s religion and is governed by the different marriage laws.


Japan

Consensual incest between adults is legal in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
. However, Article 179 of Penal Code stated that a person who "commits an indecent act upon" or "engages in sexual intercourse, etc." with another person "under eighteen years of age by taking advantage of the influence arising from the fact of having custody of that person" is punished in the same manner as prescribed in Article 176 ("Indecency through Compulsion") ie imprisonment for not less than 6 months but not more than 10 years.


South Korea

The Criminal Act does not prohibit consensual incest. Starting from 20 August 2019, ACT ON SPECIAL CASES CONCERNING THE PUNISHMENT, ETC. OF SEXUAL CRIMES stipulated that a person who rapes (i.e. through violence or intimidation, has sexual intercourse with) another person in a consanguineous or marital relationship (relatives by blood or marriage within the fourth degree or residing together, including a de facto relationship) shall be punished by imprisonment for a fixed term of at least seven years, which is heavier penalty than that targeting raping in general (at least three years imprisonment) stipulated by the Criminal Act.
Article 809 of the Korean Civil Code Article 809 of the Korean Civil Code (Korean: 민법 제809조) was the codification of a traditional rule prohibiting marriage between men and women who have the same surname resulting from belonging to the same clan and possessing the same genealo ...
allowed Koreans with the same surname to have marital relations if they were not closely related. Previously it was banned culturally and codified by law in 1957. The law now requires the separation of lineage to be at least third or fourth cousins.


Macau

According to Macau's civil code, people in direct line kinship or in the second degree of collateral kinship cannot marry each other.


Malaysia

In
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
, it is incest to have sexual intercourse with a person who under the law, religion, custom or usage that applies to the person he or she is not permitted to marry on account of their relationship. In addition to whipping, persons convicted of incest face a minimum sentence of six years' imprisonment and a maximum sentence of 20 years' imprisonment. It is a defense against the charge if the person did not know the relationship was not permitted or if the sexual intercourse was done without his or her consent. Girls below the age of 16 and boys below the age of 13 are deemed to be incapable of giving consent. (The age of consent for sex in Malaysia is 16 for both sexes.) While it is unclear to which family members the incest law applies, a verdict from the High Court in Sabah and Sarawak in 2011 provided some indication about the sentencing guidelines. It described incest as a "heinous crime" but that the degree of kinship between the parties dictates the "level of repulsion" which the court translates into a sentence imposed. The verdict said the worst on such a scale is incest committed by a father to his biological daughter or a brother to his biological sister, and that such offenders should receive the harshest sentence. It said an uncle and his maternal niece committing incest is not on that same level and, if there was no violence involved, the length of the sentence should reflect it. There are more severe sentences for those who commit incest through rape. The offence of incestuous rape is punishable with not less than eight years' imprisonment and not more than 30 years' imprisonment. In addition, those convicted receive not less than 10 strokes. Malaysian law also considers sexual intercourse with the stepfamily to be incestuous.


Pakistan

The legal code of Pakistan defines incest as marriage ( consortion) between a male and either his: * wife or former wife of father, grandfather and further ancestors * Mother, grandmother and further ancestors * Daughter, granddaughter and further descendants * full or half-sister * parents' sisters, grandparents' sisters and further ancestors' sisters * daughter, granddaughter and further descendant of full or half-sibling * suckling ancestor * suckling sister * Mother, grandmother and further ancestors of wife or former wife * Daughter, granddaughter of wife or former wife * Wife or former wife of true son or grandson and further descendants * Sororal
polygyny Polygyny (; from Neoclassical Greek πολυγυνία (); ) is the most common and accepted form of polygamy around the world, entailing the marriage of a man with several women. Incidence Polygyny is more widespread in Africa than in any ...
Both participants are guilty if they commit the above acts and are charged with
zina ''Zināʾ'' () or ''zinā'' ( or ) is an Islamic legal term referring to unlawful sexual intercourse. According to traditional jurisprudence, ''zina'' can include adultery, fornication, prostitution, rape, sodomy, incest, and bestiality. ' ...
.


Philippines

Article 81 of the Civil Code of the Philippines considers marriages between the following incestuous and void from their performance: # Between brothers and sisters, whether of the full or half blood; # Between collateral relatives by blood within the fourth civil degree A similar prohibition can be found in Articles 37 and 38 of the Family Code. In the 1973 visa proceedings case of ''In re: Bautista'', an Immigration Officer denied entry to a married couple who were second cousins. In reaching the decision, the immigration officer relied on subsection 1 of Article 81 of the Civil Code. However, on appeal, it was found that the parties were collateral relatives and therefore fell under subsection 2 of the same Code, which prohibits marriages between relatives by blood within the fourth civil degree. The fourth civil degree includes first cousins. Second cousins, who are the children of first cousins, fall under the fifth civil degree and are not covered by the prohibition. The marriage, being valid under the laws of the place of celebration, was then recognized for immigration purposes only. In addition, the Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines prohibit by consanguinity (''tahrimjbin-nasab'') the following marriages: # Ascendants and descendants of any degree; # Brothers and sisters, whether germane, consanguine or uterine; and # Brothers or sisters and their descendants within the third civil degree. While incestuous marriage is illegal in the Philippines, there is no legislation which prohibits out-of-marriage incestuous sexual acts between two consenting adults.


Singapore

Section 376G of the Penal Code specifies that
"Any person (A) of or above 16 years of age who — (a) penetrates, with A’s penis, the vagina, anus or mouth, as the case may be, of a person of or above 16 years of age who is a close family relative (B); (b) sexually penetrates, with a part of A’s body (other than A’s penis, if A is a man) or anything else, the vagina or anus, as the case may be, of a person of or above 16 years of age who is a close family relative (B); (c) causes or permits a man of or above 16 years of age who is a close family relative (B) to penetrate, with B’s penis, the vagina, anus or mouth, as the case may be, of A; or (d) causes or permits a person of or above 16 years of age who is a close family relative (B) to sexually penetrate, with a part of B’s body (other than B’s penis, if B is a man) or anything else, the vagina or anus, as the case may be, of A, knowing that B is a close family relative, shall be guilty of an offence."


Taiwan

In
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
, Article 230 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of China prohibits sexual intercourse between any lineal relatives by blood or collateral relatives within the third degree of relationship by blood. Violators may be imprisoned for up to five years. Article 968 of the Civil Code states that "the degree of relationship by blood between a person and his lineal relative by blood shall be determined by counting the number of generations upwards or downwards from himself s the case may be one generation being taken as one degree. As between the person and his collateral relative, the degree of relationship shall be determined by the total number of generations counting upwards from himself to the common lineal ancestor and then from such common ancestor downwards to the relative by blood with whom the degree of relationship is to be determined."


Thailand

Incestuous relations between persons (over 15 years old) are not prohibited by law, though a marriage cannot take place if the man and woman have blood relations in the direct ascendant or descendant line, or brother or sister of full or half blood. The said relationship shall be in accordance with blood relation without regard to its legitimacy.


Turkey

Sibling marriage and
avunculate marriage An avunculate marriage is a marriage with a parent's sibling or with one's sibling's child—i.e., between an uncle or aunt and their niece or nephew. Such a marriage may occur between biological (consanguine) relatives or between persons related ...
is prohibited, while
cousin marriage A cousin marriage is a marriage where the spouses are cousins (i.e. people with common grandparents or people who share other fairly recent ancestors). The practice was common in earlier times, and continues to be common in some societies toda ...
is legal. Marriage between parents and offspring is also prohibited, even when there is no blood relationship, i.e.
adoptive parent Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...
or parent-in-law.


Vietnam

Incest between people of direct blood line is illegal in
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
and is punishable by sentencing to between six months and five years of imprisonment.


Europe

Countries that prohibit incest include: (all articles refer to the Penal Codes) Albania Article 106, Slovenia Article 195, Slovakia Section 203, Serbia Article 197, Poland Article 201, Norway Article 197 and 198, Hungary Article 199, Bulgaria Article 154, and Cyprus Article 147. Countries that allow consensual incest if both are over the
age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...
include Belarus, Belgium, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, France, Russia, Spain, Ukraine, and Portugal.Russia and Belarus also allow incest between teenagers (under 18) Estonia, Latvia, and Ukraine prohibit incest if one has custody over the other


Austria

In
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, incest between lineal ancestors and descendants and between full siblings is prohibited. It is punishable by up to three years in prison.


Belarus

There seems to be no law criminalizing incest which pre-dates the foundation of the state. It is illegal for a male to have sexual intercourse with his granddaughter, mother, daughter, sister, or half-sister; and for a female (over 16 years of age) with her grandfather, father, son, brother, or half-brother. The act does not refer to other familial relationships (such as grandson-grandmother), or same-sex relations. Prior to the amendment of the 1908 Act in 2019, incest was punishable by up to seven years' imprisonment for a female and up to life imprisonment for a male. The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Act 2019 amended the Act of 1908 to provide for a maximum term of 10 years' imprisonment for both males and females. Occasionally, offenders convicted of incest will be admitted to a
psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociat ...
for psychiatric treatment.


Italy

Incest is illegal in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
only if it provokes public scandal, according to Article 564 of the Penal code and punishable from two to eight years' imprisonment, open to more years for the older person if the other was under aged. For incest to be a “public scandal” the incest must be done in a blatant manner. The fact that someone reports incest to the authorities does not by itself make it a public scandal.


Latvia

Incest is not criminally prohibited in Latvia except as part of the general protection of adolescents from sexual abuse.


Lithuania

Criminal Code of Lithuania does not explicitly foresee a criminal punishment for incest between adults. However, it does state that "A father, mother, guardian, custodian or another lawful representative of a child or a person holding statutory powers in respect of a minor who has sexual intercourse or otherwise satisfied his sexual desires with that minor, in the absence of characteristics of a rape, sexual assault or sexual abuse, shall be punished by a fine or by restriction of liberty or by arrest or by a custodial sentence for a term of up to six years." Thereby, the law explicitly foresees a criminal punishment for incest between a parent and a child or for persons of similar standing.


Netherlands

Consensual incest between adults is legal in the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. Marriage is forbidden between ancestors and descendants or between siblings, although the Minister of Justice may grant dispensation in the case of siblings by adoption. Marriage between blood relations of the third and fourth degree are possible, but require both partners to sign a declaration of consent. (Dutch civil law book 1, articles 41 and 42.)


Norway

Incest is illegal in
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...
and is defined as intercourse between ancestors and descendants (including adopted descendants), siblings, and even stepfamily. It is punishable by up to six years in prison.


Poland

In
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
, incest is defined in Article 201 of the Penal Code as sexual intercourse with an ancestor, descendant, guardian, ward, brother, or sister, and is punishable by imprisonment for no less than three months and no more than five years.


Portugal

Incest is not specifically prohibited under Portuguese law.


Romania

Incest is defined in the
Penal Code A criminal code (or penal code) is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that might ...
as "consensual sexual relations between lineal relatives or between siblings" and is punished by a year to five years in prison.


Russia

In
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
, consensual sex (including incest sex) between adults, teenagers (12-18), or an adult with a teenager 16 or older, is not a crime. However, under the Family Code of Russia, persons who are related lineally, siblings, half-siblings, and a stepparent and a stepchild may not marry.


Slovenia

Incest in
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...
is not criminally prohibited unless one person is a minor. A person who has sexual relations with a blood relation minor is punished to two years in prison.


Spain

Consensual incest is legal in
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
since there is no law against it. But both must be over the
age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...
of 16 to have sex.Incest_is_not_Illegal_in_Spain
_.html" ;"title="Spain">Incest is not Illegal in Spain
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Sweden

Incest with a descendant or a full sibling is prohibited by law in Sweden. Incest with Descendants is not a crime same for same-sex siblings. Half-siblings can engage in sexual intercourse and even marry, but require special approval by the government.


Switzerland

Article 213 of the Swiss Criminal Code prohibits incest. Intercourse among siblings or other persons related by blood in direct line is punishable by up to three years' imprisonment. The federal government proposed to abolish this prohibition in 2010, arguing that in the few cases where persons were convicted of incest (three since 1984), other sexual crimes such as child sexual abuse were also committed.


Ukraine

There appears to be no law prohibiting incest but there is a law restricting it.
Article 155
of the criminal code prohibits penetrative sex with anyone under 16. The same article also prohibits incest with a person under 16 with whom one has custodial authority (such as father-minor-daughter).


United Kingdom

Legislation regarding sexual offences in the United Kingdom is
devolved Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...
. Sex with an adult who is related as parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece, is illegal. In England and Wales the offence is against the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which effectively replaced the offence of incest with two new wider groups of offences: familial child sex offences (sections 25–29) and sex with an adult relative (sections 64–65). The punishment for sex between adults knowingly related in the aforementioned ways via penetration is liable to a maximum imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years. While sexual activity with a child family member can incur imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years. These laws are intended to protect the rights of people, so as to avoid potential violation. However, these laws still outlaw consensual sexual relationships between family members, even if they are fully willing and knowledgeable of the potential consequences. There has been some debate surrounding the rhetoric used by the Sexual Offences Review Team. Roffee discusses how the language used manipulates the reader to deem consensual familial sexual acts as not only illegal, but also immoral. In Northern Ireland similar offences are against the Sexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 2008. In Scotland the offence is against the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995, the provisions of which effectively replaced the Incest and Related Offences (Scotland) Act 1986 (although the 1986 Act was not actually repealed until 2010). Prior to the 1986 Act the law was based on the Incest Act 1567 which incorporated into Scots criminal law Chapter 18 of the
Book of Leviticus The book of Leviticus (, from grc, Λευιτικόν, ; he, וַיִּקְרָא, , "And He called") is the third book of the Torah (the Pentateuch) and of the Old Testament, also known as the Third Book of Moses. Scholars generally agree ...
, using the version of the text of the
Geneva Bible The Geneva Bible is one of the most historically significant translations of the Bible into English, preceding the King James Version by 51 years. It was the primary Bible of 16th-century English Protestantism and was used by William Shakespea ...
of 1562. In January 2016 a petition calling for "Adult Consensual Incest" to be decriminalised was submitted to the Scottish Parliament's Public Petitions Committee, but the petition was not debated and no change was made to the law. In August 2016 and December 2017, further petitions were submitted to the Scottish Parliament's Public Petitions Committee.


Oceania


Australia

In
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
, federal marriage law prohibits marriage between an ancestor and descendant or siblings (including a sibling of half-blood), including those traced through adoption. However, under federal law, sexual conduct between consenting adults (18 years of age or older) is legal, which also applies to close family members. Subject to this overriding federal law, incest continues in the statute books as a crime in every Australian jurisdiction, but what constitutes incest and penalties vary. In all Australian states and territories except
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
, sexual intercourse between a lineal ancestor and a lineal descendant is incest. In New South Wales, incest involves "close family members", which are "parent, son, daughter, sibling (including a half-brother or half-sister), grandparent or grandchild, being such a family member from birth". In
Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...
, unlawful incest also includes sexual intercourse between an uncle or aunt with their niece or nephew, although here its application is curtailed by the effect of the federal '' Marriage Act 1961'', as the Queensland Criminal Code states that the crime of incest does not apply to "persons who are lawfully married or entitled to be lawfully married". Thus it is not incest for a niece aged 16 or over to engage in sexual intercourse with her uncle or a nephew aged 16 or over to engage in sexual intercourse with his aunt. The same principles apply in a same-sex context, as the ''Marriage Act'' allows
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
. In New South Wales incest is generally only applied in cases where both participants are aged 16 or over (the
age of consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is unable to legally cla ...
in the state). Where a participant is aged between 10 and 16 years of age the older participant would generally be charged with sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 16, while in cases when a participant is under 10, the older participant would generally be charged with sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 10. In the other states and territories, incest can also arise where one of the parties is below the age of consent, but this does not exclude the possibility of bringing the more general charge of sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 10 (New South Wales and
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
), 12, 16 or 17 (
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest o ...
and
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
) as the case may be. This is particularly relevant where a certain form of sexual conduct between related persons falls outside of the legal definition of incest in a particular jurisdiction. In no state or territory is
consent Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another. It is a term of common speech, with specific definitions as used in such fields as the law, medicine, research, and sexual relationships. Consent as und ...
a defense to incest. The maximum penalty for incest varies: eight years' imprisonment in New South Wales; 10 years' imprisonment in South Australia; 20 years' imprisonment in
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...
and the
Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding township#Aust ...
; 25 years' imprisonment in the Northern Territory, Victoria, and Tasmania; and life imprisonment in Queensland. After one conviction for incest, the offender's name is placed on the
sex offender registry A sex offender registry is a system in various countries designed to allow government authorities to keep track of the activities of sex offenders, including those who have completed their criminal sentences. In some jurisdictions, registration ...
for 15 years, while any offender with two or more convictions for incest has their name placed on the registry for the remainder of their life. No particular laws apply to relationships arising from a
sperm donation Sperm donation is the provision by a man of his sperm with the intention that it be used in the artificial insemination or other 'fertility treatment' of a woman or women who are not his sexual partners in order that they may become pregnant by ...
.


New Zealand

In
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
, incest is sexual connection between a parent and child (both biological and adopted), grandparent and grandchild (both biological and adopted), and full and half-siblings. It is a defence if the person was unaware of the relationship at the time of the act (i.e.
accidental incest Accidental incest is sexual activity or marriage between persons who were unaware of a family relationship between them which would be considered incestuous. The laws of many jurisdictions void incestuous marriages, even if entered into without ...
). A conviction for incest attracts a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment. Incest is the only sexual crime punishable by seven years or more imprisonment that is not subject to the country's "three-strikes" law. It is also illegal in New Zealand to have a sexual connection with a dependent child under 18; this includes step-children, foster children and wards. A conviction for having a sexual connection, or attempting to have a sexual connection, with a dependent child attracts a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment.


See also

*
Jewish views on incest Jewish views on incest deal with the sexual relationships which are prohibited by Judaism and rabbinic authorities on account of a close family relationship that exists between persons. Such prohibited relationships are commonly referred to as inces ...
* Mahram


References


External links

* Hughes, Graham.
The Crime of Incest
" ''
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology The ''Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology'' ("JCLC") is a peer-reviewed, student-run academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is ...
'', Fall 1964. Volume 55, Issue 3 (September), Article 2, p. 322-331. *World Population Review:Where incest is lega

*Incest laws and map for Europ


Lifting the veil on incest The historical development of the offense
Family law Incest Sex laws {{Law country lists