The Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery is a bylaw of the Ministry of Magic, written in 1875, which bans the use of underage magic outside of school. The Decree is enforced by the Improper Use of Magic Office in the Ministry of Magic. The restriction is for wizards and witches who are under the age of seventeen, upon which The Trace still operates. Even so, the Ministry does recognise that they may have to use magic in certain situations such as self-defence in a life-threatening situation.