WORLD Policy Analysis Center

What is the minimum age for light work?

C138 defines light work as work which is “(a) not likely to be harmful to their health or development; and (b) not such as to prejudice their attendance at school, their participation in vocational orientation or training programmes approved by the competent authority or their capacity to benefit from the instruction received”.

For countries that explicitly define light work in their legislation, that definition was used.

For countries that do not define light work, work that met the following criteria was considered to be light: (1) its description in legislation matched the definition of light work in C138 and (2) the legislation explicitly identified a minimum age for this type of work and this age was below the age for admission to employment.

Countries

Antigua and Barbuda - No national minimum age

Bahamas - No national minimum age

Canada - No national minimum age

Cabo Verde - No national minimum age

Comoros - No national minimum age

Dominica - No national minimum age

Dominican Republic - No national minimum age

Greece - No national minimum age

Luxembourg - No national minimum age

Malaysia - No national minimum age

New Zealand - No national minimum age

Nigeria - No national minimum age

Oman - No national minimum age

The Philippines - No national minimum age

Portugal - No national minimum age

Samoa - No national minimum age

Slovakia - No national minimum age

Solomon Islands - No national minimum age

Sri Lanka - No national minimum age

St. Vincent and the Grenadines - No national minimum age

Turkmenistan - No national minimum age

Bangladesh - 12 years old

Belize - 12 years old

Benin - 12 years old

Bolivia - 12 years old

Burundi - 12 years old

Cambodia - 12 years old

Central African Republic - 12 years old

Chad - 12 years old

Egypt - 12 years old

El Salvador - 12 years old

Guinea - 12 years old

Kiribati - 12 years old

Laos - 12 years old

Mali - 12 years old

Mauritania - 12 years old

Panama - 12 years old

Peru - 12 years old

Senegal - 12 years old

Seychelles - 12 years old

South Sudan - 12 years old

Uganda - 12 years old

Vanuatu - 12 years old

Algeria - 13 years old

Australia - 13 years old

Austria - 13 years old

Bhutan - 13 years old

Burkina Faso - 13 years old

Denmark - 13 years old

Estonia - 13 years old

Fiji - 13 years old

Germany - 13 years old

Ghana - 13 years old

Greenland - 13 years old

Iceland - 13 years old

Indonesia - 13 years old

Italy - 13 years old

Jamaica - 13 years old

Japan - 13 years old

Kenya - 13 years old

Latvia - 13 years old

Lesotho - 13 years old

Liberia - 13 years old

The Netherlands - 13 years old

Norway - 13 years old

Saudi Arabia - 13 years old

Sierra Leone - 13 years old

Singapore - 13 years old

Slovenia - 13 years old

St. Lucia - 13 years old

Sweden - 13 years old

Switzerland - 13 years old

Syria - 13 years old

Timor-Leste - 13 years old

Tunisia - 13 years old

Uruguay - 13 years old

Vietnam - 13 years old

Zambia - 13 years old

Andorra - 14 years old

Angola - 14 years old

Argentina - 14 years old

Armenia - 14 years old

Azerbaijan - 14 years old

Belarus - 14 years old

Botswana - 14 years old

Brunei - 14 years old

Cameroon - 14 years old

Eritrea - 14 years old

Ethiopia - 14 years old

Finland - 14 years old

France - 14 years old

Georgia - 14 years old

Guatemala - 14 years old

Guinea-Bissau - 14 years old

Honduras - 14 years old

India - 14 years old

Ireland - 14 years old

Israel - 14 years old

Kazakhstan - 14 years old

Kyrgyzstan - 14 years old

Lebanon - 14 years old

Liechtenstein - 14 years old

Malawi - 14 years old

Malta - 14 years old

Namibia - 14 years old

Nepal - 14 years old

Niger - 14 years old

Paraguay - 14 years old

Russian Federation - 14 years old

Sao Tome and Principe - 14 years old

Sudan - 14 years old

Suriname - 14 years old

Tajikistan - 14 years old

Tanzania - 14 years old

Türkiye - 14 years old

Tuvalu - 14 years old

Ukraine - 14 years old

United Kingdom - 14 years old

United States of America - 14 years old

Venezuela - 14 years old

Afghanistan - 15 years old or older

Albania - 15 years old or older

Bahrain - 15 years old or older

Barbados - 15 years old or older

Belgium - 15 years old or older

Bosnia and Herzegovina - 15 years old or older

Brazil - 15 years old or older

Bulgaria - 15 years old or older

Chile - 15 years old or older

China - 15 years old or older

Colombia - 15 years old or older

Democratic Republic of the Congo - 15 years old or older

Republic of the Congo - 15 years old or older

Costa Rica - 15 years old or older

Cote d'Ivoire - 15 years old or older

Croatia - 15 years old or older

Cuba - 15 years old or older

Cyprus - 15 years old or older

Czech Republic - 15 years old or older

Djibouti - 15 years old or older

Ecuador - 15 years old or older

Equatorial Guinea - 15 years old or older

Gabon - 15 years old or older

The Gambia - 15 years old or older

Grenada - 15 years old or older

Guyana - 15 years old or older

Haiti - 15 years old or older

Hungary - 15 years old or older

Iran - 15 years old or older

Iraq - 15 years old or older

Jordan - 15 years old or older

Democratic People's Republic of Korea - 15 years old or older

Republic of Korea - 15 years old or older

Kuwait - 15 years old or older

Libya - 15 years old or older

Lithuania - 15 years old or older

North Macedonia - 15 years old or older

Madagascar - 15 years old or older

Maldives - 15 years old or older

Mauritius - 15 years old or older

Mexico - 15 years old or older

Moldova - 15 years old or older

Mongolia - 15 years old or older

Montenegro - 15 years old or older

Morocco - 15 years old or older

Mozambique - 15 years old or older

Myanmar - 15 years old or older

Nicaragua - 15 years old or older

Papua New Guinea - 15 years old or older

Poland - 15 years old or older

Qatar - 15 years old or older

Romania - 15 years old or older

Rwanda - 15 years old or older

Serbia - 15 years old or older

Somalia - 15 years old or older

South Africa - 15 years old or older

Spain - 15 years old or older

Eswatini - 15 years old or older

Thailand - 15 years old or older

Togo - 15 years old or older

Trinidad and Tobago - 15 years old or older

United Arab Emirates - 15 years old or older

Uzbekistan - 15 years old or older

Yemen - 15 years old or older

Zimbabwe - 15 years old or older