Country profile PLW
National Legal Framework
National Legal Framework
| Provision | Legislation date | Convention | Legislation info | sources | Value | sort_order | Provision description | Legislation description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| List of hazardous activities prohibited for children | 2013 | C138 & C182 | Palau National Code, Title 30 (Labor Code) | [{"link_name":"-CEACR Direct Request","source_link":"https://normlex.ilo.org/dyn/nrmlx_en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:13100:0::NO::P13100_COMMENT_ID%2CP13100_COUNTRY_ID:4348834%2C2466492"},{"link_name":"-UN Committee on the Rights of the Child explicitly","source_link":"https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CRC%2FC%2FPLW%2FCO%2F2&Lang=en"}] | No | 7 | C138 and C182 require the national determination of a list of hazardous work prohibited for children under 18 years of age. The competent authorities should consult with workers' and employers' organizations to determine what types of employment or work are considered to be hazardous. Such a list shall be periodically examined and revised as necessary. | Palau’s Labor Code sets the general employment age (16 for citizens, 21 for non-citizens) but fails to include any list of hazardous activities prohibited to under-18s. There are no provisions for defining such activities, consulting stakeholders, or periodically reviewing such a list. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child explicitly noted in 2018 that “there is no list of hazardous work prohibited to children in Palau” (CRC/C/PLW/CO/2, para. 52), and the ILO Committee in 2023 reiterated that no progress has been made in this area. |
| Minimum age for hazardous work | 2013 | C138 & C182 | Palau National Code, Title 30 (Labor Code) | [{"link_name":"Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/415610_PALAU-2022-HUMAN-RIGHTS-REPORT.pdf"}] | No | 6 | C138 and C182 set 18 as the minimum age for hazardous work, which is defined as work that, due to its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to jeopardize children’s health, safety or morals. C138 and C182 allow countries to permit hazardous work exceptionally as from 16, provided that the health, safety and morals of the young persons concerned are fully protected and that they have received adequate specific instruction or training. | Palau has not set a specific minimum age for hazardous work. The Labor Code establishes a general minimum working age of 16 for citizens and 21 for non-citizens but does not define or regulate hazardous work separately. There is no legal provision that prohibits hazardous work for persons under 18. |
| Is the use, procuring or offering of children for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs, prohibited? | 2013 | C182 | Penal Code (RPPL No. 9‑21, 2013) - Section 703 | [{"link_name":"-Penal Code (RPPL No.\u202f9\u201121, 2013)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/legis/num_act/pcotroprn9212013343/"},{"link_name":"-CEACR Direct Request","source_link":"https://www.ilo.org/normlex-permalink/comment/en/4348834"}] | No | 11 | C182 prohibits the use, procuring or offering of children for illicit activities in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs. | Palau’s Penal Code criminalises drug offences under Section 703, including the possession, trafficking, and manufacture of controlled substances, and allows for property forfeiture related to such crimes. However, the Penal Code does not contain any specific provisions that prohibit or address the use, procuring, or offering of children under 18 years for these offences. In its 2023 Direct Request, the CEACR noted the absence of information from the Government on this matter and requested details on measures taken to ensure that children are not involved in illicit drug-related activities, as required under Article 3(c) of Convention No. 182. |
| Is the use, procuring or offering of a child for the purpose of prostitution and for production of pornography prohibited? | 2013 | C182 | Penal Code (RPPL No. 9‑21, 2013) - Sections 1800 to 1803, 4800 to 4803 | [{"link_name":"-Penal Code (RPPL No.\u202f9\u201121, 2013)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/legis/num_act/pcotroprn9212013343/"}] | Yes | 10 | C182 prohibits the use of a child under the age of 18 for prostitution, regardless of the child's consent. The use, procuring or offering of any person under the age of 18 for commercial sexual exploitation constitutes a worst form of child labour, even if prostitution is a legalised. In regard to the prohibition of child pornography, States need to make sure that national legislation addresses the involvement of a child in the production of pornographic materials, including non-recorded performances. | The Penal Code of 2013, under sections 4800 to 4803, defines prostitution as a misdemeanour and criminalises engaging in, offering, promoting, or profiting from prostitution. In addition, sections 1800 to 1803 of the same code explicitly prohibit the use, procurement, or offering of any person under 18 for the purpose of pornography or pornographic performances. |
| Is forced or compulsory recruitment of children under 18 for use in armed conflict prohibited? | 1994 | C182 | Compact of Free Association between Palau and the United States; Palau National Code (military provisions) | [{"link_name":"Compact of Free Association","source_link":"https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/uploads/Palau_ROP_COFA.pdf"}] | Yes | 9 | C182 defines forced or compulsory recruitment of children under 18 for use in armed conflict as a worst form of child labour. Nevertheless, C182 only prohibits the forced or compulsory recruitment of children under 18, and does not cover the voluntary recruitment of children under 18. | Palau maintains no armed forces and therefore has no provisions for compulsory military recruitment of any age. Defence is the responsibility of the United States under the Compact of Free Association (1994). Palauan law provides that citizens of Palau are ineligible for involuntary induction into any armed force. While Palau citizens may volunteer for the U.S. armed forces under terms of the Compact, there is no mechanism for forced or compulsory recruitment of those under 18. |
| Is the sale and trafficking of children for sexual and labour exploitation prohibited? | 2005 | C182 | Anti-People Smuggling and Trafficking Act (RPPL 7‑5, 2005) - Sections 6 and 7 | [{"link_name":"Anti-People Smuggling and Trafficking Act","source_link":"https://www.refworld.org/legal/legislation/natlegbod/2005/en/14718"}] | Yes | 8 | C182 defines all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour as worst forms of child labour. | Section 7 of the Anti-People Smuggling and Trafficking Act criminalises the trafficking of children (under 18) by “recruiting, transporting, transferring, harbouring or receiving” them for purposes of exploitation. Section 6 defines “exploitation” to include forced labour, slavery-like practices, and other forms of abuse, explicitly covering sexual and labour exploitation. The maximum penalty is imprisonment for up to 50 years and a fine up to US $500,000. |
| Minimum age for admission to apprenticeship | 1975; 1995 | C138 | Palau Labor Development Act of 1975 - Paragraph 3015 ; Palau National Code Title 30 (Labor Code) | [{"link_name":"-Palau Labor Development Act of 1975","source_link":"https://ministryofhrctd.pw/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/33-PNCA-Public-Service-Employment.pdf"},{"link_name":"-Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/indices/legis/palau-national-code-index.html"}] | No | 5 | C138 does not apply to work done in school for general, vocational or technical education or in training institutions or work done by children at least 14 years of age in undertakings, where such work is carried out in accordance with conditions prescribed by the competent authority. Such work must be an integral part of: (i) a course of education or training for which a school or training institution is primarily responsible; (ii) a programme of training mainly or entirely in an undertaking, which programme has been approved by the competent authority; or (iii) a programme of guidance or orientation designed to facilitate the choice of an occupation or of a line of training. | Palau law establishes apprenticeship programmes under the Labor Development Act of 1975 (§ 3015) and within the Labor Code (Title 30). No minimum age is specified in either statute. There are no provisions permitting apprenticeships at age 14–15. Citizens have a mandatory employment age of 16, but apprenticeship regulations do not define a lower age for admission or tie participation to education. |
| Is the minimum age for admission to work not less than the age for completion of compulsory schooling? | 1995 ; 1953 | C138 | Palau National Code, Title 30 (Labor Code); Title 22 (Education Code) - Section 159 | [{"link_name":"-Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/indices/legis/palau-national-code-index.html"},{"link_name":"-Title 22 (Education Code)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/legis/consol_act/et22144.pdf"}] | No | 4 | C138 requires that the minimum age for admission to work shall not be less than the age of completion of compulsory schooling and, in any case, shall not be less than 15 years. | Under Title 22, Section 159 of the Palau National Code, compulsory education is required for all children between ages 6 and 17 inclusive, or until high school graduation. Under Title 30 of the Labor Code, the minimum legal employment age for citizens is 16, and for non‑citizens 21, with no provisions allowing employment at or above completion of compulsory schooling (which ends at 17). |
| Light work - Determination of types and conditions of activities | 1995 | C138 | Palau National Code, Title 30 (Labor Code) | [{"link_name":"Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/415610_PALAU-2022-HUMAN-RIGHTS-REPORT.pdf"}] | N/A | 3 | If the country chooses to allow light work, States must determine what activities are considered light work, and the hours and the circumstances under which they may be carried out. | Palau’s Labor Code sets no distinction between light and regular work. It establishes a minimum employment age for citizens of 16 and for non‑citizens of 21, with no provisions for defining or permitting light work, nor any regulatory guidance on hours or conditions for minors below the working age. |
| Minimum age for light work | 1995 | C138 | Palau Labor Code (Title 30, Chapter 1) | [{"link_name":"Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/indices/legis/palau-national-code-index.html"}] | N/A | 2 | C138 defines light work as work that does not interfere with children’s schooling, or their ability to benefit from it, and that is not hazardous. C138 allows countries to permit light work for children younger than the general minimum age. For countries that set the minimum age at 15, this means children aged 13-14, and for those that set it at 14, children aged 12-13 may engage in light work. | The Palau Labor Code does not distinguish between “light work” and regular employment. It sets the minimum employment age at 16 for citizens and 21 for non-citizens, with no provisions permitting employment at ages 12–15, either generally or for light duties. |
| Minimum age for admission to work | 1995 (Title 30, Labor Code) | C138 | Palau National Code, Title 30 (Labor Code) - Chapter 1 | [{"link_name":"Title 30 (Labor Code)","source_link":"https://www.paclii.org/pw/indices/legis/palau-national-code-index.html"}] | 16 | 1 | C138 establishes 15 as the minimum age for work in general. Developing countries have the option of setting a minimum age of 14 as a transitional measure as they strengthen their education systems and economies. | Palau has not ratified ILO Convention C138. Instead, its Labor Code (Title 30, Chapter 1) sets the minimum employment age for citizens at 16 years, with non-resident workers allowed only from age 21. There is no legal framework permitting employment under age 16, nor provisions for special cases at age 15. |
International Legal Framework
International Legal Framework
| Ratification status | Convention | Convention description | Date of ratification | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in-force | C182 | Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) | 04-MAR-2019 | Source |
Policies and Plans
Policies and Plans
| Description | sources | Period | Policy name | Implementing agency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A multi-sector strategy developed through extensive consultation with youth and stakeholders. It prioritises safe and decent employment, skills development, protection from abuse and exploitation, and child safety. It includes an action plan with clear agency responsibilities and performance indicators. | [{"link_name":"Palau National Youth Policy and Action Plan","source_link":"https://ministryofhrctd.pw/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Palau-National-Youth-Policy-and-Action-Plan-FINAL-1.pdf"}] | 2023–2027 | Palau National Youth Policy and Action Plan | Ministry of Human Resources, Culture, Tourism and Development (Division of Youth and Career Development) |
| A comprehensive, whole-of-government strategy to prevent, detect and respond to human trafficking. The Plan sets out actions under the "4P" framework—Prevention, Protection, Prosecution, and Partnership—and assigns responsibilities across agencies, including strengthening victim services, enhancing law enforcement capacity, and raising public awareness. | [{"link_name":"National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking","source_link":"https://www.palaugov.pw/wp-content/uploads/Presidential-Proclamation-23-339.pdf"}] | 2022–2025 | National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking | Anti‑Human Trafficking Unit (within Bureau of Public Safety, Ministry of Justice) |