Dating someone who is 17 when you are older.

[Naruto Uzumaki]

Hi,
I need some advice on whether an online relationship with someone who is 17 is illegal (they are from the UK) . I am currently 31. (I live in South Australia)
We met and starting talking on a gaming channel. Neither one of us had any ill intent and the relationship wasn't deliberate or pursued by me. He actually pursued me and asked me out. I was very resistant for about two months to agree to be in a relationship with him. (Mostly because of the age difference). But he eventually broke me down and I realized I had fallen in love with this person. He fell for me pretty quickly. Our relationship isn't sexual in nature. We are basically just really two people in love who speak every day but consider ourselves committed to each other. The relationship isn't sexual. As I aware how bad that could be. We are both thinking about the relationship long term. I'm just not sure if I'm legally doing the right thing.

 

[Clancy]

Quoted from internet- "Although the legal age of consent throughout Australia is either 16 or 17 years of age, legislation in New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory makes it an offence for a person in a 'supervisory' role to sexually engage with a person under their special care who is aged 16 or 17"

16 in UK as well

So as far as Australia is concerned, there is nothing illegal.

However, police in Australia have the power to 'guess' the young persons age just based on a picture and a whim and prosecute you based on that. They do not have to actually 'prove' the person is underage at all - the onus is totally on you to prove their age to avoid prosecution.... so if you did take the relationship to a sexual level, make sure you have absolute proof of his age, don't just take his word for it - many a good person has fallen victim to that.... you know what i mean - do the police ever listen when someone says "but they told me they were 17" Noooooooo