[Photo taken at Yokohama Arena on Jan. 8, 2018 shows 37,000 people attending a coming-of-age ceremony. (File photo by=Kyodo)]

TOKYO: Japan will lower the age of adulthood from 20 to 18 in April by revising the Civil Code and changing the legal definition of an adult for the first time in over 140 years, opening up new freedoms and responsibilities for 18- and 19-year-olds, Kyodo reported.
 
While the move aims to encourage active social participation by youth, there are also concerns they will become easy targets for scams after being allowed to enter into consumer contracts without parental consent. Changes to Japan's Juvenile Law to implement stricter punishments for 18- and 19-year-old criminal offenders will also come into effect on April 1. The revision will expand the range of crimes where 18- and 19-year-olds are referred to prosecutors from family courts and tried as adults. The revision will also relax rules for media reporting, allowing for the full names and faces of 18- and 19-year-old offenders to be revealed. With the lowering of the adulthood age, numerous related laws including those on passports, national licenses, and jury duty will also be revised, but people under 20 will still be prohibited from drinking alcohol, smoking, and gambling.

Some experts fret that, stripped of the protection of a clause that allows a minor's contracts to be canceled by the individual or their guardian, those with minimal experience as adults could be particularly susceptible to scams.