Before the change, boys and girls could get married at 14, but with the permission of a judge. Now the minimum age in Spain is leveled with most countries in Europe.
The change comes a few months after the country raised the age of consent to 16 from 13.
The government said upping the age of consent was necessary to combat pedophilia, while decriminalizing sexual relations between teenagers who are the same age.
Salome Adroher, the health ministry’s family and child services director, said the law is aimed at stopping abuses.
Between 2000 and 2014, around 360 marriages involving under-16s took place. Last year, only five marriages of children between 14 and 16 took place.
In the 90s, there were around 2,600 marriages that involved at least one person who was under 16. In the 80s, there were almost 13,000.
Now that Spain has decided to up the age that people can get married at, that leaves Estonia as the country with the lowest legal age of marriage in Europe. Those who are at least 15 can get married in Estonia.
The legal age to marry varies across Europe, with the age being 16 in Germany and the UK, and 18 in countries such as France, Belgium and Sweden.
