List of enlistment age by country
 |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2011) |
These are the enlistment ages for Military service, by country, according to the online CIA publication The World Factbook.
A
- Afghanistan – 18 (voluntary)
- Albania – 19 (voluntary)
- Algeria – 17 (voluntary), 19 (compulsory)
- Angola – 18 (voluntary - men), 20 (voluntary - women), 20 (compulsory - men)
- Antigua and Barbuda – 18 (voluntary)
- Argentina – 21 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 18 with parental consent)
- Armenia – 17 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory)
- Australia – 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 17 with parental consent)
- Austria – 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Azerbaijan – 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
B
- Bahamas – 18 (voluntary)
- Bahrain – 15 (military cadets, NCOs and technicians), 18 (voluntary)
- Bangladesh – 16 (voluntary)
- Barbados - 18 (voluntary)
- Belarus - 17 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory)
- Belgium - 18 (voluntary)
- Belize - 18 (voluntary)
- Benin - 18 (compulsory)
- Bhutan - 18 (voluntary), 20 (compulsory military training)
- Bolivia - 17 (voluntary; volunteers can start military training at age 15, exempting them from compulsory service), 18 (compulsory)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina - 18 (voluntary)
- Botswana - 18 (voluntary)
- Brazil - 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Brunei - 17 (voluntary)
- Bulgaria - 18 (voluntary)
- Burkina Faso - 18 (voluntary)
- Burma - 18 (compulsory; conscription of children, despite being prohibited, still continues)
- Burundi - No de jure enlistment age (de facto enlistment age 18)
C
- Cambodia - 18 (compulsory)
- Cameroon - 18 (voluntary)
- Canada - 18 (voluntary; 16 year olds can join the Reserves or enter the Military Colleges; volunteers can join the regular forces at age 17 with parental consent)
- Cape Verde - 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Central African Republic - 18 (compulsory)
- Chad - 18 (voluntary), 20 (compulsory - men), 21 (compulsory - women)
- Chile - 18 (voluntary)
- People's Republic of China - 18 (compulsory; no de jure minimum age for volunteers)
- Colombia - 18 (compulsory)
- Comoros - 18 (voluntary)
- Democratic Republic of the Congo - 18 (compulsory)
- Republic of the Congo - 18 (voluntary)
- Côte d'Ivoire - 18 (compulsory)
- Croatia - 18 (voluntary)
- Cuba - 17 (compulsory)
- Cyprus - 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Czech Republic - 18 (voluntary)
D
- Denmark - 18 (compulsory)
- Djibouti - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can start military training at age 16)
- Dominican Republic - 17 (voluntary)
E
- Ecuador - 18 (voluntary)
- Egypt - 16 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- El Salvador - 16 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Equatorial Guinea - 18 (compulsory)
- Eritrea - 18 (compulsory)
- Estonia - 18 (compulsory)
- Ethiopia - 18 (voluntary)
F
- Fiji - 18 (voluntary)
- Finland - 18 (compulsory)
- France - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 17 with parental consent)
G
- Gabon - 20 (voluntary)
- Gambia - 18 (voluntary)
- Georgia - 18 (compulsory)
- Germany - 17 (voluntary)
- Ghana - 18 (voluntary)
- Greece - 17 (voluntary), 19 (compulsory; conscription age can be lowered to 17 during wartime)
- Guatemala - 17 (compulsory)
- Guinea - 18 (compulsory)
- Guinea-Bissau - 16 (voluntary, with parental consent), 18 (compulsory)
- Guyana - 16 (voluntary)
H
I
- India - 17 (voluntary; volunteers can join the Navy at age 16)
- Indonesia - 18 (voluntary)
- Iran - 15 (voluntary service in the Basij), 16 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Iraq - 18 (voluntary)
- Ireland - 18[1] (voluntary; volunteers can be recruited at age 16 for specialist positions)
- Israel - 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Italy - 18 (voluntary)
J
K
- Kazakhstan - 17 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory)
- Kenya - 18 (voluntary)
- North Korea - 16 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- South Korea - 18 (voluntary), 20 (compulsory)
- Kuwait - 17 (voluntary)
- Kyrgyzstan - 16 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory), 19 (voluntary - women)
L
- Laos - 18 (compulsory)
- Latvia - 18 (voluntary)
- Lebanon - 17 (voluntary)
- Lesotho - 18 (voluntary)
- Liberia - 18 (voluntary)
- Libya - 18 (voluntary)
- Lithuania - 18 (voluntary)
- Luxembourg - 18 (voluntary)
M
- Macedonia - 18 (voluntary)
- Madagascar - 18 (voluntary)
- Malawi - 18 (voluntary)
- Malaysia - 17 (voluntary)
- Maldives - 18 (voluntary)
- Mali - 18 (compulsory)
- Malta - 17 (voluntary)
- Mauritania - 18 (voluntary)
- Mexico - 15 (military cadets), 16 (voluntary, with parental consent), 18 (compulsory)
- Moldova - 18 (compulsory)
- Mongolia - 18 (compulsory)
- Montenegro - 18 (voluntary)
- Morocco - 20 (voluntary)
- Mozambique - 18 (compulsory)
N
- Namibia - 18 (voluntary)
- Nepal - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can start military training at age 15)
- Netherlands - 17 (voluntary)
- New Zealand - 17 (voluntary; soldiers are not deployed in combat before the age of 18)
- Nicaragua - 18 (voluntary)
- Niger - 18 (compulsory)
- Nigeria - 18 (voluntary)
- Norway - 16 (voluntary service in the Home Guard), 17 (voluntary - men), 18 (voluntary - women), 19 (compulsory - men; lowered to 16 during wartime)
O
- Oman - 18 (voluntary)
P
- Pakistan - 16 (voluntary; soldiers are not deployed in combat before the age of 18)
- Papua New Guinea - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 16 with parental consent)
- Paraguay - 18 (compulsory)
- Peru - 18 (voluntary)
- Philippines - 17 (voluntary)
- Poland - 18 (voluntary)
- Portugal - 18 (voluntary)
Q
- Qatar - 18 (voluntary)
R
- Romania - 18 (voluntary)
- Russia - 16 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory; men have to register for the draft at age 17)
- Rwanda - 18 (voluntary)
S
- Saint Kitts and Nevis - 18 (voluntary)
- San Marino - 18 (voluntary)
- São Tomé and Príncipe - 17 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Saudi Arabia - 17 (voluntary)
- Senegal - 18 (voluntary), 20 (compulsory)
- Serbia - 18 (voluntary)
- Seychelles - 18 (voluntary)
- Sierra Leone - 18 (voluntary)
- Singapore - 16 (voluntary), 18 (compulsory)
- Slovakia - 18 (voluntary)
- Slovenia - 18 (voluntary)
- Somalia - 18 (compulsory)
- South Africa - 18 (voluntary)
- South Sudan - 18 (compulsory)
- Spain - 18 (voluntary)
- Sri Lanka - 18 (voluntary)
- Sudan - 18 (compulsory)
- Suriname - 18 (voluntary)
- Swaziland - 18 (voluntary)
- Sweden - 18 (voluntary)
- Switzerland - 18 (voluntary), 19 (compulsory)
- Syria - 18 (compulsory)
T
- Taiwan - 18 (compulsory)
- Tajikistan - 15 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory)
- Tanzania - 18 (voluntary)
- Thailand - 18 (voluntary), 21 (compulsory)
- Timor-Leste - 18 (voluntary)
- Togo - 18 (compulsory)
- Tonga - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 16 with parental consent)
- Trinidad and Tobago - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 16 with parental consent)
- Tunisia - 18 (voluntary), 20 (compulsory)
- Turkey - 18 (voluntary), 21 (compulsory)
- Turkmenistan - 15 (military cadets), 18 (compulsory)
U
- Uganda - 18 (voluntary)
- Ukraine - 18 (compulsory)
- United Arab Emirates - 16 (naval cadets), 18 (voluntary)
- United Kingdom - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 16 with parental consent; 17 years old for admission to an officer program)
- United States - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 17 with parental consent; 16 years old if a junior in high school)
- Uruguay - 18 (voluntary)
- Uzbekistan - 18 (compulsory)
V
Y
- Yemen - 18 (voluntary)
Z
- Zambia - 18 (voluntary; volunteers can join at age 16 with parental consent)
- Zimbabwe - 18 (voluntary)