Weird Laws You Don’t Want To Break Around The World

What some people take for granted, others may have to pay for. We're not talking about serious crimes, here.

Find out where you might get fined for frowning, or worse...for putting ketchup on everything. Actually, that one should be a crime anyway—you're ruining he flavor!

Whatever You Do While Drunk In Scotland, Just Don't Get On A Cow

Cow
Photo: Doruk Yemenici / Unsplash
Photo: Doruk Yemenici / Unsplash

Thanks to the Licensing Act of 1872, it's illegal to ride a cow while drunk, or you could be looking at a £200 fine and almost a year in jail. Well, drunk driving a car is illegal, so why should this be any different, right? Especially because the "car" is also alive in this case.

ADVERTISEMENT

No Frowning Allowed In Milan

ADVERTISEMENT
smile
Photo Credit: Lesly Juarez / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Lesly Juarez / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

In Milan, Italy, it is actually illegal for people to frown in public! Make sure you practice your best smile before arrival, as frowning is exclusively reserved for visiting patients at hospitals or funerals.

ADVERTISEMENT

Keep The PDA At Home In The United Arab Emirates Or You Could Be Kissing Freedom Goodbye

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Kiss
Photo Credit: Spencer Davis / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Spencer Davis / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

In The United Arab Emirates, a sweet innocent kiss between two consenting adults could land you in jail. This has happened numerous times. For example, in 2013, a couple went to jail for a whole year for getting caught kissing on a beach at night, even though they claimed it was just CPR.

ADVERTISEMENT

No Chewing Gum In Singapore

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
gum
Photo Credit: Hana Lopez / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Hana Lopez / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

Singapore is very big on staying as clean as possible, so zoning in on chewing gum seemed like a good place to start. In fact, they banned its importation entirely until recently.

ADVERTISEMENT

Gum had to be transported under lock and key unless you wanted a fine of $100,000 or imprisonment for up to two years if you got caught with it. Now you can carry up to two packs.

ADVERTISEMENT

School Kids Are Banned From Using Ketchup In France

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Ketchup
Photo Credit: Pedro Ribeiro / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Pedro Ribeiro / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

In 2011, Christopher Hebert, the president of the national association of municipal catering managers, banned ketchup (and mayo) from school cafeterias. He didn't even do it for health reasons. He just wanted to preserve the French culture, and putting ketchup on anything but fries is considered too American.

ADVERTISEMENT

Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road? In Georgia, It Didn't Because It Wasn't Allowed

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Chicken
Photo Credit: Sippakorn Yamkasikorn / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Sippakorn Yamkasikorn / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

If you own any chickens in Quitman, Georgia, it is illegal to let them cross the road. This isn't to ruin the timeless joke, but because it wants to ensure owners have their chickens under control at all times for their safety and for that of those on the road.

ADVERTISEMENT

You're Not Allowed To Die In This French Town, So Figure It Out

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
France
Photo Credit: Giuseppe Mondi / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Giuseppe Mondi / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

The French town of Sarpourenx was getting tired of people dying, sometimes deliberately with no prior preparations and just expecting to be buried.

ADVERTISEMENT

The mayor took matters into his own hands and forbade people from dying within the city limits. That's unless they already have bought a burial spot in the local cemetery.

If you do anyway, you risk severe punishment, whatever that means in that case...

ADVERTISEMENT

You Must Let Strangers Into Your Home If They Ask To Use The Bathroom

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
door
Photo Credit: Evelyn Paris / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Evelyn Paris / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

We're not sure how they ensure the people's safety on this one, but if someone knocks on your door in Scotland and asks to use your bathroom, you must just take a leap of faith and hope this person won't end up stealing your belongings.

ADVERTISEMENT

Someone Needs To Let The Aliens Know They're Not Allowed To Fly Their UFOs Over This Part Of France

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
UFO
Photo Credit: Artem Kovalev/ Unsplash
Photo Credit: Artem Kovalev/ Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

Anti-UFO legislation originated in 1954 in Châteauneuf-du-Pape in southeastern France. A local saw "deep sea divers" coming from a "cigar-shaped" space ship, so the mayors took immediate action and mandated that: "any aircraft, known as flying saucer or flying cigar, which should land on the territory of the community will be immediately held in custody."

ADVERTISEMENT

That seems reasonable.

ADVERTISEMENT

Start Practicing With A Swear Jar Before Visiting St Kitts

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
money jar
Photo Credit: Melissa Walker Horn / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Melissa Walker Horn / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

This Caribbean nation is known for having arrested 50 Cent the rapper for swearing during a concert. Unless you want to face the same fate, you might want to leave the explicit language at home.

ADVERTISEMENT

If you let it slip, you might be fined $1,100.

ADVERTISEMENT

In Switzerland, You Can't Own Just One Goldfish

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Goldfish
Photo Credit: Saeed Soltankhah / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Saeed Soltankhah / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

Amidst its animal cruelty laws, social creatures including goldfish should never be isolated. People can own as many goldfish as they like as long as there is more than one, otherwise, it's considered inhumane isolation.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Forgotten Law In Florida Forbids Farting

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
public
Photo Credit: Kaylah Matthews / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Kaylah Matthews / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

In Florida, you might want to hold the wind in, as it is illegal to pass it in a public place after 6 p.m. on Thursdays. The law hasn't been enforced since it was probably written originally in the 1800s and we're not sure why, or why just on Thursdays.

ADVERTISEMENT

Kids Will Never Get To Know The Loveable Winnie The Pooh Character In This Polish City

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Winnie The Pooh
Photo Credit: Inna Lesyk / Pexels
Photo Credit: Inna Lesyk / Pexels
ADVERTISEMENT

The beloved cartoon character has been deemed an "inappropriate hermaphrodite" in Tuszyn, Poland, and is banned from all playgrounds. That's because he doesn't wear pants and has non-gender-specific genitalia. How dare a cartoon do such a thing, right?

ADVERTISEMENT

Make Sure You Don't Need The Bathroom after 10 PM In Switzerland.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
toilet
Photo Credit: Emily Silverstein / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Emily Silverstein / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

In Switzerland, it's against the law to flush a toilet after 10 p.m. in an apartment building. This is because it's considered noise pollution.

ADVERTISEMENT

So instead of disturbing your neighbors with the sound, you can disturb them with the smell?

ADVERTISEMENT

Don't Hold Your Salmon "Weird" In The U.K.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
fish
Photo Credit: Noaa / Unsplahs
Photo Credit: Noaa / Unsplahs
ADVERTISEMENT

There is a vague Salmon Act from 1986 that states you can't just hold salmon any way you like, especially not in a way that comes off as "suspicious."

ADVERTISEMENT

It's okay if you do it with shrimp, though, as the act only applies to "salmon, trout, eels, lampreys, smelt and freshwater fish," according to the fine print.

ADVERTISEMENT

You Can't Name Your Baby "Apple" In Denmark

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
baby
Photo Credit: Filip Mroz / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Filip Mroz / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

This might upset a lot of celebs whose kids are named "North" or "Blue Ivy," but in Denmark, there is a list of only 7,000 government-approved baby names.

ADVERTISEMENT

If you want to get creative, you need to ask for permission and have the name approved by Copenhagen University's Names Investigation Department. Don't hold your breath, as they reject about 20% of name applications a year.

ADVERTISEMENT

Going Commando Is Not An Option In Thailand

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Thailand
Photo Credit: Sumit Chinchane / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Sumit Chinchane / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

You can't just leave the house without wearing underwear in Thailand. The reason is not certain, but it's likely to be related to hygiene in bathhouses or public decency laws surrounding nudity.

ADVERTISEMENT

The real question is though...how would the police enforce this?

ADVERTISEMENT

In China, You Can't Just Reincarnate Without Permission

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
monks
Photo Credit: Lee Bernd / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Lee Bernd / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

If it's your time to go, you can't just come back in whatever reincarnation you like. The totalitarian government recently legislated that Buddhist monks are banned from reincarnating without the government's express permission.

ADVERTISEMENT

It's a way to tighten control, but also how do you even control that?

ADVERTISEMENT

You Might Want To Cut Down On The Sushi Because it's Ilegal To Be Obese In Japan

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Sushi
Photo Credit: Giovanna Gomes / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Giovanna Gomes / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

Some countries play gym ads on the radio, some countries enforce a nutrition system in schools, but all with the united goal of eliminating the health consequences of being overweight. Then, some countries like Japan just decide to ban being obese altogether.

ADVERTISEMENT

It's illegal to have a waistline above 85 cm (33.5 inches) for men and 90 cm (35 inches) for women. That'll surely fix the problem, right?

ADVERTISEMENT

You're Not Allowed To Buy A Home Without Buying Art

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
wall art
Photo Credit: Jonny Caspari / Unsplash
Photo Credit: Jonny Caspari / Unsplash
ADVERTISEMENT

We're not talking about France or an art capital here, but Wyoming in the United States. The state has a law that states that any building that costs over $100,000, which is about the standard price for a home, needs to be equipped with at least one percent of its value in artwork.