Even anime characters that are 18 or 19 years old in old and new animations are officially adults too in Japan. www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h01285/amp/ The age of adulthood in Japan was lowered from 20 to 18 on April 1, 2022. This makes it possible for 18- or 19-year-olds to sign a smartphone contract or take out a loan without parental consent, but also means that they need to take responsibility for such decisions. The age of adulthood was long defined as starting from 20 in Japan, as first stipulated in an 1876 proclamation. From April 1, 2022, however, through a revision in the Civil Code, it has been lowered to 18. As defined in the Civil Code, this is the age at which a person may enter a contract on their own and is no longer subject to parental authority. This means that 18-year-olds will be able to sign a contract for a smartphone or credit card, lease an apartment, or enter an expensive loan contract for an automobile or English conversation school, without parental con...