Oregon Age of Consent Laws: Statutes, Penalties and Reporting

(1) A person is considered incapable of consenting to a sexual act if the person is: (a) Under 18 years of age; (b) Incapable of appraising the nature of the person’s conduct; (c) Mentally incapacitated; or (d) Physically helpless. (2) A lack of verbal or physical resistance does not, by itself, constitute consent but may be considered by the trier of fact along with all other relevant evidence. (3) A person is incapable of appraising the nature of the person’s conduct if: (a) The person is unable to understand the nature of the conduct; (b) The person is unable to understand the right to choose whether and how to engage in conduct, including the right to revoke a prior decision to engage in conduct; or (c) The person is unable to communicate a decision to engage in conduct.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person 18 years of age or older commits the crime of contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor if: (a) Being a male, he engages in sexual intercourse with a female under 18 years of age; or (b) Being a female, she engages in sexual intercourse with a male under 18 years of age; or (c) The person engages in oral or anal sexual intercourse with another person under 18 years of age or causes that person to engage in oral or anal sexual intercourse. (2) Contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor is a Class A misdemeanor.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of trafficking in persons if the person knowingly recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides or obtains by any means, or attempts to recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide or obtain by any means, another person and: (a) The person knows or recklessly disregards the fact that the other person will be subjected to involuntary servitude as described in ORS 163.263 or 163.264; (b) The person knows or recklessly disregards the fact that force, fraud or coercion will be used to cause the other person to engage in a commercial sex act; or (c) The person knows or recklessly disregards the fact that the other person is under 18 years of age and will be used in a commercial sex act. (2) A person commits the crime of trafficking in persons if the person knowingly benefits financially or receives something of value from participation in a venture that involves an act prohibited by subsection (1) of this section or ORS 163.263 or 163.264. (3) As used in this section, “commercial sex act” means sexual conduct or sexual contact, as those terms are defined in ORS 167.002, performed in return for a fee or anything of value.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of purchasing sex with a minor if the person pays, or offers or agrees to pay, a fee to engage in sexual intercourse or sexual contact with a minor, a police officer posing as a minor or an agent of a police officer posing as a minor. (2)(a) If the person does not have a prior conviction under this section at the time of the offense, purchasing sex with a minor is a Class C felony and the person may use a defense described in ORS 163.325 only if the minor or, in the case of a police officer or agent of a police officer posing as a minor, the age of the purported minor as reported to the defendant was at least 16 years of age. (b) If the person has one or more prior convictions under this section at the time of the offense, purchasing sex with a minor is a Class B felony, the state need not prove that the person knew the minor or, in the case of a police officer or agent of a police officer posing as a minor, the purported minor was under 18 years of age and the person may not use a defense described in ORS 163.325.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of unlawful contact with a child if the person: (a)(A) Has been designated a sexually violent dangerous offender under ORS 137.765; (B) Has been classified as a level three sex offender under ORS 163A.100 (3); (C) Has been sentenced as a dangerous offender under ORS 161.725 upon conviction of a sex crime; or (D) Has been given a similar designation or been sentenced under a similar law of another jurisdiction; and (b) Knowingly contacts a child with the intent to commit a crime or for the purpose of arousing or satisfying the sexual desires of the person or another person. (2) As used in this section: (a) “Child” means a person under 18 years of age. (b) “Contact” means to communicate in any manner. (c) “Sex crime” has the meaning given that term in ORS 163A.005. (3) Unlawful contact with a child is a Class C felony. [2005 c.811 §2; 2013 c.708 §13; 2015 c.820 §§18,25; 2017 c.442 §35; 2019 c.430 §§6,10] Note: See note under 163.476.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of incest if the person marries or engages in sexual intercourse or oral or anal sexual intercourse with a person whom the person knows to be related to the person, either legitimately or illegitimately, as an ancestor, descendant or brother or sister of either the whole or half blood. (2) Incest is a Class C felony. [1971 c.743 §172; 2017 c.318 §12] 163.535 Abandonment of a child. (1) A person commits the crime of abandonment of a child if, being a parent, lawful guardian or other person lawfully charged with the care or custody of a child under 15 years of age, the person deserts the child in any place with intent to abandon it. (2) Abandonment of a child is a Class C felony. (3) It is an affirmative defense to a charge of violating subsection (1) of this section that the child was left in accordance with ORS 418.017. [1971 c.743 §173; 2001 c.597 §2] 163.537 Buying or selling a person under 18 years of age. (1) A person commits the crime of buying or selling a person under 18 years of age if the person buys, sells, barters, trades or offers to buy or sell the legal or physical custody of a person under 18 years of age.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the offense of endangering the welfare of a minor if the person knowingly: (a) Induces, causes or permits an unmarried person under 18 years of age to witness an act of sexual conduct or sadomasochistic abuse as defined in ORS 167.060; (b) Permits a person under 18 years of age to enter or remain in a place where unlawful activity involving controlled substances or cannabis is maintained or conducted; (c) Induces, causes or permits a person under 18 years of age to participate in gambling as defined in ORS 167.117; or (d) Sells to a person under 18 years of age any device in which cannabis, cocaine or any controlled substance, as defined in ORS 475.005, is burned and the principal design and use of which is directly or indirectly to deliver cannabis smoke, cocaine smoke or smoke from any controlled substance into the human body, including but not limited to: (A) Pipes, water pipes, hookahs, wooden pipes, carburetor pipes, electric pipes, air driven pipes, corncob pipes, meerschaum pipes and ceramic pipes, with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads or punctured metal bowls; (B) Carburetion tubes and devices, including…

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: Oregon Expungement Laws: How to Set Aside a Conviction Under ORS 137.225

(1) Notwithstanding ORS 161.605, when a person is convicted of one of the offenses listed in subsection (2)(a) of this section and the offense was committed on or after April 1, 1995, or of one of the offenses listed in subsection (2)(b) of this section and the offense was committed on or after October 4, 1997, or of the offense described in subsection (2)(c) of this section and the offense was committed on or after January 1, 2008, the court shall impose, and the person shall serve, at least the entire term of imprisonment listed in subsection (2) of this section. The person is not, during the service of the term of imprisonment, eligible for release on post-prison supervision or any form of temporary leave from custody. The person is not eligible for any reduction in, or based on, the minimum sentence for any reason whatsoever under ORS 421.121 or any other statute. The court may impose a greater sentence if otherwise permitted by law, but may not impose a lower sentence than the sentence specified in subsection (2) of this section.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: How Long Is a Life Sentence in Oregon? (2026 Guide), Oregon Sexting Laws: Legal Consequences and Penalties

The maximum term of an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment for a felony is as follows: (1) For a Class A felony, 20 years. (2) For a Class B felony, 10 years. (3) For a Class C felony, 5 years. (4) For an unclassified felony as provided in the statute defining the crime.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: Oregon GPS Tracking Laws: Is It Legal to Put a Tracker on a Car? (2026)

Sentences for misdemeanors shall be for a definite term. The court shall fix the term of imprisonment within the following maximum limitations: (1) For a Class A misdemeanor, 364 days. (2) For a Class B misdemeanor, 6 months. (3) For a Class C misdemeanor, 30 days. (4) For an unclassified misdemeanor, as provided in the statute defining the crime.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: Oregon Audio Recording Laws: Split Consent Rules for Conversations and Calls, Oregon Phone Call Recording Laws: Split Consent Rules and Penalties, Oregon Recording Laws (2026): Hybrid One-Party and All-Party Rules

As used in ORS 163A.005 to 163A.235: (1) “Another United States court” means a federal court, a military court, the tribal court of a federally recognized Indian tribe or a court of: (a) A state other than Oregon; (b) The District of Columbia; (c) The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; (d) Guam; (e) American Samoa; (f) The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; or (g) The United States Virgin Islands. (2) “Attends” means is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis. (3)(a) “Correctional facility” means any place used for the confinement of persons: (A) Charged with or convicted of a crime or otherwise confined under a court order. (B) Found to be within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court for having committed an act that if committed by an adult would constitute a crime. (b) “Correctional facility” applies to a state hospital or a secure intensive community inpatient facility only as to persons detained therein charged with or convicted of a crime, or detained therein after being found guilty except for insanity under ORS 161.290 to 161.373 or responsible except for insanity under ORS 419C.411.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: Oregon Voyeurism and Hidden Camera Laws: Offenses, Penalties, and Protections, Oregon Video Recording Laws: Surveillance, Privacy, and Consent Rules, Oregon Smart Glasses Recording Laws (2026)

A person otherwise required to report under ORS 163A.010, 163A.015, 163A.020 or 163A.025 is not required to report, and if currently reporting is no longer required to report, if: (1)(a) The person has been convicted of: (A) Rape in the third degree as defined in ORS 163.355; (B) Sodomy in the third degree as defined in ORS 163.385; (C) Sexual abuse in the third degree as defined in ORS 163.415; (D) Sexual abuse in the second degree as defined in ORS 163.425; (E) Contributing to the sexual delinquency of a minor as defined in ORS 163.435; (F) Sexual misconduct as defined in ORS 163.445; or (G) An attempt to commit an offense listed in subparagraphs (A) to (F) of this paragraph; (b) The person has been found guilty except for insanity of an offense listed in paragraph (a) of this subsection; (c) The person has been found to be within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court for having committed an act that if committed by an adult would constitute an offense listed in paragraph (a)(A), (B) or (D) of this subsection; or (d) The person is paroled to this state under ORS 144.610 after being convicted in another United States court of a crime that would…

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of compelling prostitution if the person knowingly: (a) Uses force or intimidation to compel another to engage in prostitution or attempted prostitution; (b) Induces or causes a person under 18 years of age to engage in prostitution; (c) Aids or facilitates the commission of prostitution or attempted prostitution by a person under 18 years of age; or (d) Induces or causes the spouse, child or stepchild of the person to engage in prostitution. (2) Compelling prostitution is a Class B felony. (3) In a prosecution under subsection (1)(b) or (c) of this section, the state is not required to prove that the defendant knew the other person was under 18 years of age and it is no defense that the defendant did not know the person’s age or that the defendant reasonably believed the person to be older than 18 years of age.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

As used in ORS 167.060 to 167.095, unless the context requires otherwise: (1) “Advertising purposes” means purposes of propagandizing in connection with the commercial sale of a product or type of product, the commercial offering of a service, or the commercial exhibition of an entertainment. (2) “Displays publicly” means the exposing, placing, posting, exhibiting, or in any fashion displaying in any location, whether public or private, an item in such a manner that it may be readily seen and its content or character distinguished by normal unaided vision viewing it from a public thoroughfare, depot or vehicle. (3) “Furnishes” means to sell, give, rent, loan or otherwise provide. (4) “Minor” means an unmarried person under 18 years of age. (5) “Nudity” means uncovered, or less than opaquely covered, post-pubertal human genitals, pubic areas, the post-pubertal human female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areola, or the covered human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state. For purposes of this definition, a female breast is considered uncovered if the nipple only or the nipple and areola only are covered.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

(1) A person commits the crime of displaying obscene materials to minors if, being the owner, operator or manager of a business or acting in a managerial capacity, the person knowingly or recklessly permits a minor who is not accompanied by the parent or lawful guardian of the minor to enter or remain on the premises, if in that part of the premises where the minor is so permitted to be, there is visibly displayed: (a) Any picture, photograph, drawing, sculpture or other visual representation or image of a person or portion of the human body that depicts nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement or sadomasochistic abuse; or (b) Any book, magazine, paperback, pamphlet or other written or printed matter, however reproduced, that reveals a person or portion of the human body that depicts nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement or sadomasochistic abuse. (2) Displaying obscene materials to minors is a Class A misdemeanor. Notwithstanding ORS 161.635 and 161.655, a person convicted under this section may be sentenced to pay a fine, fixed by the court, not exceeding $10,000.

Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-29 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at oregonlegislature.gov

Also relied on in: Oregon Pornography Laws (2026): State v. Henry & No Obscenity Crime