What is the drinking age in Europe?
Asked by: Prof. Green Swaniawski | Last update: August 20, 2023Score: 4.6/5 (35 votes)
However, there are notable variations in different regions. In Europe, for instance, there is a tendency to set the legal drinking age at either 16 years old, as seen in countries such as Austria, Belgium, Denmark, and Luxembourg, or 18 years old, in countries like France, Spain, and Italy for example.
Can you buy alcohol at 16 in Europe?
Belgium, Denmark and Germany set 16 years as the minimum age for purchasing beverages containing less than 1.2 % of distilled alcohol and 18 years for buying spirits (more than 1.2 % of distilled alcohol). Sweden set the minimum age for purchasing beverages with more than 3.5 % of alcohol at 20 years.
Can 18 year old Americans drink in Europe?
While US teenagers are prohibited from drinking alcohol before turning 21, the MLDA in most European countries is 18. Some countries even allow drinking for teenagers as young as 16.
Is there a country with no drinking age?
However, Angola (except Luanda Province), Central African Republic, Comoros, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and Togo have no laws on the books restricting the sale of alcohol to minors. In Libya, Somalia and Sudan the sale, production and consumption of alcohol is completely prohibited.
What country is 13 the legal drinking age?
Burkina Faso — Age to purchase is 13 for males, 16 for females. Burundi — Age to purchase is 18 unless accompanied by parent. Cambodia. Cameroon — Age to purchase is 18 on-premise, 21 off-premise.
Why the US drinking age is 21
Why is the US drinking age so high?
The legal drinking age was set at 21 years of age because studies showed that the leading cause of death among people aged 1 to 34 accounted for one third of deaths due to unintentional injury from alcohol consumption.
What is China's drinking age?
The legal drinking age in China is 18 years old, meaning it is illegal for individuals under 18 to purchase, possess, or consume alcoholic beverages. The government takes the issue of underage drinking seriously.
What is Mexico's legal drinking age?
The minimum legal drinking age in Mexico is 18 years old. Mexico requires that young adults show photo identification, either a passport or driver's license, as proof of age when buying alcohol.
What is Germany's drinking age?
The legal drinking age in Germany is 16 for beer and wine, and 18 for spirits and other distilled alcoholic beverages. This means that people who are 16 years of age or older are allowed to buy and consume beer and wine in public places such as bars, restaurants, and festivals.
Why is Europe drinking age so low?
Europe's small size is just one of the many factors that contributes to its lower drinking age. For comparison, the state of Texas can fit almost all of Europe in its boundaries. While the size of a continent may seem trivial, it ultimately affects how Europeans travel.
What is the lowest drinking age in the world?
Burkina Faso is the country with the youngest drinking age at 13 years. Burkina Faso, a country in West Africa, a population 20.9 million (2020), has an area that expands to roughly 170,255 miles.
What is the drinking age in Greece?
The drinking age in Greece for US citizens or any other nationality is the same as the general legal drinking age in Greece, which is 18 years old. Regardless of your nationality, if you're visiting Greece and wish to consume alcohol, you must be at least 18 years old to do so legally.
Why is Germany's drinking age so low?
In contrast to many other countries, legislation is relatively lenient and not designed to keep young people away from alcohol, but rather intended to teach them an appropriate approach to alcohol consumption, which is reflected by one of the lowest drinking ages in the world.
Can you drink at 14 in Italy?
The age limit for alcohol in Italy is 18 years. This means that it is illegal to sell alcohol to minors in shops, restaurants or bars. But there are no restrictions to enjoy it at home.
Is Italy's drinking age 16?
The alcohol age limit in Italy is 18 years old. That means, it is illegal to sell alcohol to minors in either shops, restaurants or bars. That's a little bit more generous than the legal age limit in the USA.
Is Hawaii strict on drinking age?
The legal Hawaii drinking age is 21 years old. In Hawaii, minors are permitted to consume alcohol in a private area under the supervision of their parents or legal guardians, given that the parents or guardians are the ones providing the in such circumstances.
What is the drinking age in Japan?
In Japan, the legal adult age is 20. Japanese law prohibits individuals under the age of 20 to drink alcohol or smoke. Regardless of age, you must not force anyone to drink or smoke as it may cause serious health and social consequences.
What is the drinking age in Hawaii?
It was phased in over a few years, and today all 50 states require one to be 21 or older to purchase alcohol.
What's the drinking age in Canada?
A Brief History of MLDA Changes in Canada
increased their legal drinking age from 18 to 19 years; since this time there have been no further changes to the MLDA in Canada. Currently, the MLDA is 18 years of age in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec, and 19 years in the rest of the Canadian provinces and territories.
What is the drinking age in India?
In 2021, the legal age for drinking alcohol is 18 years in the state of Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Sikkim, and Puducherry in India. In comparison, the legal age for drinking is 21 years in the capital city of India, Delhi.
What is the drinking age in Australia?
Laws that apply anywhere in Australia
Legal drinking age – you must be 18 or older to buy alcohol or to drink alcohol in a licensed venue. Selling alcohol – it's illegal to sell alcohol to anyone under 18 or to someone who is already drunk.
What was the lowest drinking age in America?
After the 21st Amendment passed in December 1933, most set their legal minimum drinking age at 21. This limit remained consistent until the late 1960s and 1970s. During this time, numerous states lowered the minimum drinking age to 18. In 1971, the 26th Amendment lowered the national voting age from 21 to 18.
What is the youngest drinking age in United States?
Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) laws specify the legal age when an individual can purchase alcoholic beverages. The MLDA in the United States is 21 years. However, prior to the enactment of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984, the legal age when alcohol could be purchased varied from state to state.
What was the drinking age before 1984?
From the end of Prohibition until 1984, drinking ages were determined by the states; many of them had the age at 21 while several lowered the age to 18 for the purchase of beer. This was changed due to the baby boom generation and the Vietnam War.