New threshold of age 13 to be applied only for serious criminals Officials of the Ministry of Justice hold a media briefing on measures to curb the recent surge in juvenile crimes, at Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, June 9. (Yonhap) The Korean government is considering lowering the age threshold for criminal responsibility from 14 to 13 for juvenile offenders who committed serious crimes, amid clashing opinions from the public and experts.The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the Ministry of Justice have agreed to conditionally lower the culpability age for underage offenders, according to local media reports on Sunday. Officials reportedly plan to submit their recommendation to the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.The government's plan is a middle ground between the overwhelming support for lowering the criminal age and experts’ suggestions to retain the status quo. A March poll by Gallup Korea of 1,002 adults showed that 81 percent of respondents supported lowering the age threshold, but experts on the government-led deliberative body generally opposed the idea in this year’s discussion.An increasing number of crimes committed by under-14 minors has sparked nationwide frustration. According to March data from the National Police Agency, crimes committed by those exempt from criminal punishment went from 11,677 in 2021 to 21,095 in 2025.The data showed significant surges in sex crimes and violence, which each increased by 85.7 percent and 100.7 percent from 2021 to 2025.Rights groups and experts, however, cautioned against focusing on harsher punishments for young offenders, rather than on preventing such crimes from occurring in the first place. In 2018 and 2022, the National Human Rights Commission officially opposed lowering the criminal age threshold, and maintained its position this year.Even if the Lee Jae Myung administration accepts the ministries’ suggestion, the details of the potential revision have yet to be discussed, including what "serious crime" would mean. A proposed law revision during the 21st National Assembly on the juvenile crime law is expected to be a possible reference, which defines serious crimes as murder, robbery, sex crimes and assault via collective force.The revision, which ultimately was not passed by the lawmakers, also stated that minors sent to the juvenile detention center three times would not be exempt from criminal punishment — even if they are under the age of criminal responsibility.