| Field Listing - Constitution
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Country | Constitution
Afghanistan | the Bonn Agreement called for a Loya Jirga (Grand Council) to be convened within 18 months of the establishment of the Transitional Authority to draft a new constitution for the country; the basis for the next constitution is the 1964 Constitution, according to the Bonn Agreement
Albania | a constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28 November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted the vote
Algeria | 19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976; revised 3 November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996
American Samoa | ratified 1966, in effect 1967
Andorra | Andorra's first written constitution was drafted in 1991; approved by referendum 14 March 1993; came into force 4 May 1993
Angola | 11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6 March 1991, and 26 August 1992
Anguilla | Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 1990
Antigua and Barbuda | 1 November 1981
Argentina | 1 May 1853; revised August 1994
Armenia | adopted by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995
Aruba | 1 January 1986
Australia | 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Austria | 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945)
Azerbaijan | adopted 12 November 1995
Bahamas, The | 10 July 1973
Bahrain | adopted late December 2000; Bahrani voters approved on 13-14 February 2001 a referendum on legislative changes (revised constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary)
Bangladesh | 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amended many times
Barbados | 30 November 1966
Belarus | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996
Belgium | 7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a constitutional package creating a federal state
Belize | 21 September 1981
Benin | December 1990
Bermuda | 8 June 1968, amended 1989
Bhutan | no written constitution or bill of rights; note - the King commissioned a committee to draft a constitution in 2001, but has yet to be approved
Bolivia | 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994
Bosnia and Herzegovina | the Dayton Agreement, signed 14 December 1995, included a new constitution now in force; note - each of the entities also has its own constitution
Botswana | March 1965, effective 30 September 1966
Brazil | 5 October 1988
British Virgin Islands | 1 June 1977
Brunei | 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984)
Bulgaria | adopted 12 July 1991
Burkina Faso | 2 June 1991 approved by referendum; 11 June 1991 formally adopted
Burma | 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); national convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft a new constitution; progress has since been stalled
Burundi | 13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural political system; supplanted on 6 June 1998 by a Transitional Constitution which enlarged the National Assembly and created two vice presidents
Cambodia | promulgated 21 September 1993
Cameroon | 20 May 1972 approved by referendum; 2 June 1972 formally adopted; revised January 1996
Canada | 17 April 1982 (Constitution Act); originally, the machinery of the government was set up in the British North America Act of 1867; charter of rights and unwritten customs
Cape Verde | new constitution came into force 25 September 1992; underwent a major revision on 23 November 1995, substantially increasing the powers of the president, and a further revision in 1999, to create the position of national ombudsman (Provedor de Justica)
Cayman Islands | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992
Central African Republic | passed by referendum 29 December 1994; adopted 7 January 1995
Chad | passed by referendum 31 March 1996
Chile | 11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981, amended 30 July 1989, 1993, and 1997
China | most recent promulgation 4 December 1982
Christmas Island | NA
Cocos (Keeling) Islands | Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955
Colombia | 5 July 1991
Comoros | 23 December 2001 note: a Transitional National Unity Government (GUNT) was formed on 20 January 2002 following the passing of the new constitution; the GUNT governed until the presidential elections on 14 April 2002
Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it was not ratified by a national referendum; one outcome of the ongoing inter-Congolese dialogue is to be a new constitution
Congo, Republic of the | constitution approved by referendum 20 January 2002
Cook Islands | 4 August 1965
Costa Rica | 7 November 1949
Cote d'Ivoire | 3 November 1960; has been amended numerous times, last time 27 July 1998
Croatia | adopted on 22 December 1990
Cuba | 24 February 1976, amended July 1992 and June 2002
Cyprus | 16 August 1960; negotiations to create the basis for a new or revised constitution to govern the island and to better relations between Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been held intermittently; in 1975 Turkish Cypriots created their own constitution and governing bodies within the "Turkish Federated State of Cyprus," which was renamed the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" in 1983; a new constitution for the Turkish Cypriot area passed by referendum on 5 May 1985
Czech Republic | ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993
Denmark | 1849 was the original constitution; there was a major overhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state
Djibouti | multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992
Dominica | 3 November 1978
Dominican Republic | 28 November 1966
East Timor | 22 March 2002 (based on the Portuguese model)
Ecuador | 10 August 1998
Egypt | 11 September 1971
El Salvador | 23 December 1983
Equatorial Guinea | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995
Eritrea | the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented
Estonia | adopted 28 June 1992
Ethiopia | ratified December 1994; effective 22 August 1995
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) | 3 October 1985; amended 1997 and 1998
Faroe Islands | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)
Fiji | promulgated on 25 July 1990 and amended on 25 July 1997 to allow nonethnic Fijians greater say in government and to make multiparty government mandatory; entered into force 28 July 1998; note - the May 1999 election was the first test of the amended constitution and introduced open voting - not racially prescribed - for the first time at the national level
Finland | 1 March 2000
France | 28 September 1958, amended concerning election of president in 1962, amended to comply with provisions of 1992 EC Maastricht Treaty, 1996 Amsterdam Treaty, 2000 Treaty of Nice; amended to tighten immigration laws 1993
French Guiana | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
French Polynesia | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Gabon | adopted 14 March 1991
Gambia, The | 24 April 1970; suspended July 1994; rewritten and approved by national referendum 8 August 1996; reestablished in January 1997
Georgia | adopted 17 October 1995
Germany | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Ghana | approved 28 April 1992
Gibraltar | 30 May 1969
Greece | 11 June 1975; amended March 1986 and April 2001
Greenland | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)
Grenada | 19 December 1973
Guadeloupe | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Guam | Organic Act of 1 August 1950
Guatemala | 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; note - suspended 25 May 1993 by former President SERRANO; reinstated 5 June 1993 following ouster of president; amended November 1993
Guernsey | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice
Guinea | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale)
Guinea-Bissau | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996
Guyana | 6 October 1980
Haiti | approved March 1987; suspended June 1988, with most articles reinstated March 1989; in October 1991, government claimed to be observing the constitution; return to constitutional rule, October 1994
Holy See (Vatican City) | Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1 March 1968)
Honduras | 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995
Hong Kong | Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"
Hungary | 18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April 1972; 18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997 amendment streamlined the judicial system
Iceland | 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944
India | 26 January 1950
Indonesia | August 1945, abrogated by Federal Constitution of 1949 and Provisional Constitution of 1950, restored 5 July 1959
Iran | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership
Iraq | in transition following April 2003 defeat of SADDAM Husayn regime by US-led coalition
Ireland | 29 December 1937; adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite
Israel | no formal constitution; some of the functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law
Italy | 1 January 1948
Jamaica | 6 August 1962
Japan | 3 May 1947
Jersey | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice
Jordan | 8 January 1952
Kazakhstan | adopted by national referendum 30 August 1995; first post-independence constitution was adopted 28 January 1993
Kenya | 12 December 1963, amended as a republic 1964; reissued with amendments 1979, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1997, and 2001
Kiribati | 12 July 1979
Korea, North | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998
Korea, South | 17 July 1948
Kuwait | approved and promulgated 11 November 1962
Kyrgyzstan | adopted 5 May 1993; note - amendment proposed by President AKAYEV and passed in a national referendum on 2 February 2003 significantly expands the powers of the president at the expense of the legislature
Laos | promulgated 14 August 1991
Latvia | the 1991 Constitutional Law, which supplements the 1922 constitution, provides for basic rights and freedoms
Lebanon | 23 May 1926, amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989
Lesotho | 2 April 1993
Liberia | 6 January 1986
Libya | 11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977
Liechtenstein | 5 October 1921
Lithuania | adopted 25 October 1992
Luxembourg | 17 October 1868, occasional revisions
Macau | Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution"
Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of | adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991 note: in November of 2001, the Macedonian Parliament approved a series of new constitutional amendments strengthening minority rights
Madagascar | 19 August 1992 by national referendum
Malawi | 18 May 1994
Malaysia | 31 August 1957, amended 16 September 1963
Maldives | adopted January 1998
Mali | adopted 12 January 1992
Malta | 1964 constitution substantially amended on 13 December 1974 and again in 1987
Man, Isle of | unwritten; note - The Isle of Man Constitution Act, 1961, does not embody the Manx Constitution
Marshall Islands | 1 May 1979
Martinique | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Mauritania | 12 July 1991
Mauritius | 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992
Mayotte | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Mexico | 5 February 1917
Micronesia, Federated States of | 10 May 1979
Moldova | new constitution adopted 28 July 1994; replaces old Soviet constitution of 1979
Monaco | 17 December 1962
Mongolia | 12 February 1992
Montserrat | present constitution came into force 19 December 1989
Morocco | 10 March 1972, revised 4 September 1992, amended (to create bicameral legislature) September 1996
Mozambique | 30 November 1990
Namibia | ratified 9 February 1990; effective 12 March 1990
Nauru | 29 January 1968
Nepal | 9 November 1990
Netherlands | adopted 1814; amended many times, last time 17 February 1983
Netherlands Antilles | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended
New Caledonia | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
New Zealand | consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments and The Constitution Act 1986 which is the principal formal charter
Nicaragua | 9 January 1987, with reforms in 1995 and 2000
Niger | the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999
Nigeria | new constitution adopted May 1999
Niue | 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act)
Norfolk Island | Norfolk Island Act of 1979
Northern Mariana Islands | Covenant Agreement effective 4 November 1986 and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands effective 1 January 1978
Norway | 17 May 1814, modified in 1884
Oman | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens
Pakistan | 10 April 1973, suspended 5 July 1977, restored with amendments 30 December 1985; suspended 15 October 1999, restored on 31 December 2002 note: selected provisions of the Constitution pertaining to changes President MUSHARRAF made while the Constitution was suspended, remain contested by political opponents
Palau | 1 January 1981
Panama | 11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983 and 1994
Papua New Guinea | 16 September 1975
Paraguay | promulgated 20 June 1992
Peru | 31 December 1993
Philippines | 2 February 1987, effective 11 February 1987
Pitcairn Islands | 1838; reformed 1904 with additional reforms in 1940; further refined by the Local Government Ordinance of 1964
Poland | 16 October 1997; adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997; passed by national referendum 23 May 1997
Portugal | 25 April 1976, revised 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, and 3 September 1997
Puerto Rico | ratified 3 March 1952; approved by US Congress 3 July 1952; effective 25 July 1952
Qatar | provisional constitution enacted 19 April 1972; in July 1999 Amir HAMAD issued a decree forming a committee to draft a permanent constitution; in the 29 April 2003 referendum, 96.6% of Qatari voters approved the new constitution
Reunion | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Romania | 8 December 1991
Russia | adopted 12 December 1993
Rwanda | on 5 May 1995, the Transitional National Assembly adopted as Fundamental Law the constitution of 18 June 1991, provisions of the 1993 Arusha peace accord, the July 1994 Declaration by the Rwanda Patriotic Front, and the November 1994 multiparty protocol of understanding
Saint Helena | 1 January 1989
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 19 September 1983
Saint Lucia | 22 February 1979
Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 27 October 1979
Samoa | 1 January 1962
San Marino | 8 October 1600; electoral law of 1926 serves some of the functions of a constitution
Sao Tome and Principe | approved March 1990; effective 10 September 1990
Saudi Arabia | governed according to Shari'a (Islamic law); the Basic Law that articulates the government's rights and responsibilities was introduced in 1993
Senegal | a new constitution was adopted 7 January 2001
Serbia and Montenegro | 4 February 2003
Seychelles | 18 June 1993
Sierra Leone | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times
Singapore | 3 June 1959, amended 1965 (based on preindependence State of Singapore Constitution)
Slovakia | ratified 1 September 1992, fully effective 1 January 1993; changed in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership
Slovenia | adopted 23 December 1991, effective 23 December 1991
Solomon Islands | 7 July 1978
Somalia | 25 August 1979, presidential approval 23 September 1979 note: the Transitional National Government formed in August 2000 has a mandate to create a new constitution and hold elections within three years
South Africa | 10 December 1996; this new constitution was certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | adopted 3 October 1985
Spain | 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978
Sri Lanka | adopted 16 August 1978
Sudan | 12 April 1973, suspended following coup of 6 April 1985; interim constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of 30 June 1989; new constitution implemented on 30 June 1998 partially suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR
Suriname | ratified 30 September 1987
Swaziland | none; constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973; a new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people; since then a few more outlines for a constitution have been compiled under the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), but so far none have been accepted
Sweden | 1 January 1975
Switzerland | 18 December 1998
Syria | 13 March 1973
Taiwan | 1 January 1947, amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, and 1999
Tajikistan | 6 November 1994
Tanzania | 25 April 1977; major revisions October 1984
Thailand | new constitution signed by King PHUMIPHON on 11 October 1997
Togo | multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992
Tokelau | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970
Tonga | 4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967
Trinidad and Tobago | 1 August 1976
Tunisia | 1 June 1959; amended 12 July 1988
Turkey | 7 November 1982
Turkmenistan | adopted 18 May 1992
Turks and Caicos Islands | introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988
Tuvalu | 1 October 1978
Uganda | 8 October 1995; adopted by the interim, 284-member Constituent Assembly, charged with debating the draft constitution that had been proposed in May 1993; the Constituent Assembly was dissolved upon the promulgation of the constitution in October 1995
Ukraine | adopted 28 June 1996
United Arab Emirates | 2 December 1971 (made permanent in 1996)
United Kingdom | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice
United States | 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Uruguay | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997
Uzbekistan | new constitution adopted 8 December 1992
Vanuatu | 30 July 1980
Venezuela | 30 December 1999
Vietnam | 15 April 1992
Virgin Islands | Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954
Wallis and Futuna | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution)
Yemen | 16 May 1991; amended 29 September 1994 and February 2001
Zambia | 2 August 1991
Zimbabwe | 21 December 1979
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2003