Romeo & Juliet Laws by State

Each U.S. state defines its own age of consent and close-in-age exemptions. Select a state below for an in-depth overview of statutes, penalties, and FAQs.

State	Age of Consent	Close-in-Age Exemption
Alabama	16	Yes — within 2 years	View
Alaska	16	Yes — within 3 years (under 16)	View
Arizona	18	Yes — within 2 years if 15-17	View
Arkansas	16	Yes — within 3 years	View
California	18	No formal exemption	View
Colorado	17	Yes — within 4 years (under 15) / 10 years (15-17)	View
Connecticut	16	Yes — within 2 years	View
Delaware	18	Yes — within 4 years if 16-17	View
Florida	18	Yes — 16-17 with partner under 24	View
Georgia	16	Yes — misdemeanor if within 4 years	View
Hawaii	16	Yes — within 5 years	View
Idaho	18	Limited	View
Illinois	17	Limited	View
Indiana	16	Yes — within 4 years (14-15)	View
Iowa	16	Yes — within 4 years	View
Kansas	16	Yes — within 4 years (under 16)	View
Kentucky	16	Limited	View
Louisiana	17	Yes — within 2 years (13-17)	View
Maine	16	Yes — within 5 years (14-15)	View
Maryland	16	Yes — within 4 years	View
Massachusetts	16	No formal exemption	View
Michigan	16	Limited	View
Minnesota	16	Yes — within 2-3 years (tiered)	View
Mississippi	16	Yes — within 36 months (14-15)	View
Missouri	17	Yes — within 4 years (14-16)	View
Montana	16	Limited	View
Nebraska	16	Limited	View
Nevada	16	Limited (over 18 partner)	View
New Hampshire	16	Limited	View
New Jersey	16	Yes — within 4 years (13-15)	View
New Mexico	17	Yes — within 4 years	View
New York	17	No formal exemption	View
North Carolina	16	Yes — within 4 years	View
North Dakota	18	Limited	View
Ohio	16	Yes — within 4 years (13-15)	View
Oklahoma	16	Limited	View
Oregon	18	Yes — within 3 years (15-17)	View
Pennsylvania	16	Yes — within 4 years (13-15)	View
Rhode Island	16	Limited	View
South Carolina	16	Limited	View
South Dakota	16	Yes — within 3 years	View
Tennessee	18	Yes — within 4 years (13-17)	View
Texas	17	Yes — within 3 years (14-16)	View
Utah	18	Yes — within 10 years (16-17)	View
Vermont	16	Yes — within 3 years (under 16)	View
Virginia	18	Yes — misdemeanor if 15-17 with partner up to 3 years older	View
Washington	16	Yes — within 2-3 years (tiered)	View
West Virginia	16	Yes — within 4 years (under 16)	View
Wisconsin	18	Limited	View
Wyoming	17	Yes — within 4 years (under 17)	View