Pornography laws by region

Definitions and restrictions on pornography vary across jurisdictions. The production, distribution, and possession of pornographic films, photographs, and similar material are activities that are legal in many but not all countries, providing that any specific people featured in the material have consented to being included and are above a certain age. Various other restrictions often apply as well (e.g. to protect those who are mentally handicapped or highly intoxicated). The minimum age requirement for performers is most typically 18 years.
This article excludes material considered child pornography or zoophilic pornography. In most cases the legality of child pornography and the legality of zoophilic pornography are treated as separate issues, and they are usually subject to additional, specialized laws. Specialized laws to address the emerging phenomenon of "deep fake" pornographic content became an active subject of law-making and litigation in the 2020s, although fictional and semi-fictional pornography have existed throughout history.
This is a summary table of laws and their enforcement by governments. The subsequent sections contain more detail on each of the jurisdictions.
The possession of "indecent and obscene material such as pornographic books, magazines, films, videos, DVDs, Blu-Ray, VHS, and software" is prohibited in Botswana. Possession or import of such material is illegal and punishable by a fine or up to four years imprisonment.
In Egypt, it is illegal to distribute pornography. Possession and access of pornography are not criminalised. Unlike numerous African nations which have no laws against child pornography, Egypt blocks child pornography websites and dealing in child pornography carries a minimum sentence of five years and fines of US$29,000.
Under the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act, No. 15 or 2018, the publication, viewership, and sharing of pornography is legal in Eswatini only if it passes a three-element test. Pornography is legal if it does not involve any non-consenting persons (including children or those with a significant disability), can be easily traced to its creator, and does not otherwise depict a sexual offense.
Distributing or selling pornographic materials is illegal in Ethiopia, and their production in the country is rare. There are no official laws regarding Internet pornography in Ethiopia, making the Internet the only available source of pornography.
In 2004, Morocco introduced severe punishments for promoting pornography.
Nigeria has no national laws prohibiting pornography, although the public display of graphic sexual material is illegal in Lagos. The country has a small pornography industry which produces exclusively heterosexual pornography, as homosexual activity in Nigeria is illegal. Some Muslim politicians in the national government have proposed a nationwide block on pornographic websites. There is significant piracy of pornography in Nigeria, with pirated pornographic DVDs being sold from roadside stalls in Lagos. Pornography is also sold in Nigerian sex shops and some pornographic magazines are produced in the country, often reproducing pictures from foreign magazines.
The first officially acknowledged hardcore pornographic film produced in Nigeria was Better Lover Valentine Sex Party. It was not submitted to the National Film and Video Censors Board for classification and it was immediately banned on the grounds of obscenity and immorality. Internet pornography is widely viewed in Nigeria. In 2015 the monthly average for the number of searches for pornography was 135,000, and in December 2014 and 2015 the proportion of searches for pornography (relative to other searches) was higher in Nigeria than in the United States. In 2013 Nigeria ranked second globally for Internet searches for gay pornography.
Pornography rated X18 is permitted by the law only if sold to persons over the age of 18 in registered stores. It is an offense to host a pornographic web site in South Africa because of the difficulty of age-verification and the requirement that pornography only be distributed from designated, licensed physical premises. It is also unlawful to visually represent bestiality (also rated XX), but not in text descriptions. Supplying violent pornography is an offence in any form, but the law allows the production of pornography that is not prohibited.
Distribution of pornography is regulated by the Films and Publications Act of 1996, which is enforced by the Films and Publications Board.
Pornographic DVDs have in the past been sold on the streets in Uganda. However, an Anti-Pornography Act (popularly known as the "Anti-Miniskirt Law") was signed into law in 2014 with the stated objectives of defining what constitutes the offence of pornography and establishing a Pornography Control Committee. The committee is responsible for the implementation of the law and for taking measures to detect, prohibit, collect and destroy pornographic materials. The law broadly defines pornography as "any representation of the sexual parts of a person for primarily sexual excitement". The law says that "a person shall not produce, traffic in, publish, broadcast, procure, import, export, sell or abet any form of pornography". Breaches of the law are punishable with up to ten years in jail.
Prior to the passing of the act there were a number of laws concerning aspects of pornography in Uganda, but this was the first law to create a specific offence of pornography. The law repeals and replaces Section 166 of the Penal Code Act, widening the legal interpretation of pornography and prohibiting it comprehensively. The law has been subject to challenge in the Constitutional Court on the basis of its vague wording and the broad powers of the committee.
In July 2018, the Ugandan government directed the country's ISPs to block 27 pornographic websites.
The Bahamian penal code prohibits the production and distribution of obscene publications. Many types of pornography are prohibited in the Bahamas; however, law enforcement is relaxed and does not usually enforce the prohibition. Pornography is available on Bahamian cable television and in 2014 ZNS-TV broadcast a report on the establishment of a local pornography industry in the Bahamas.
In Brazil, pornographic film actors must be 18 or older. Pornography which does not involve bestiality is legal when sold in public places. Depiction of sex with non-human animals is legal. However, magazine and DVD covers that depict genitalia must not be visible from public view, and pornography can only be sold to people 18 or older.
The laws of Canada permit the sale of hardcore pornography to anyone over the age of 18. While persons below that age may have pornography in their possession, its sale to them is prohibited. Most hardcore pornography is sold in adult stores or on adult websites.
Pornography was illegal in Cuba during Fidel Castro's leadership of the country, but the laws were relaxed in the 2010s. Currently, Cuba restricts online pornography.
In the United States, "non-obscene" pornography is generally lawful at the federal level. Distinguishing between "pornography" and "obscenity" is conducted using the Miller test, which was developed in the 1973 case Miller v. California. The Miller test has three parts:
The following four forms of pornography are specifically unlawful at the federal level.
By passing the "Pornography Control Act, 2012", the government of Bangladesh prohibited the carrying, exchanging, using, selling, marketing, distributing, preserving, filming etc. of pornography (sexually explicit materials, unless it has artistic and/or educational value). Penalties include a maximum of 10 years in prison and fines up to Tk500,000 (US$6,410).
China's criminal code defines pornography as
It is illegal to sell, distribute pornography or arrange for pornographic performances in mainland China.
Pornographic films in Hong Kong are referred to as Category III films, after the territory's motion picture rating system. Prior to 1988 films with excessive nudity, violence, cursing in Chinese and drug use were not allowed to be shown in public theaters. This did not however mean that porn was banned. Porn was and still is legal and easily accessible. In the 80s and 90s before the internet was widespread, it was common to see adult videos for rent in convenience stores and elsewhere. Category III films are not similar to the R-rated films in the United States. Category III spans a wide spectrum from what would be considered "Hard R" all the way to hardcore NC-17 or X rating.
In July 2015 the Supreme Court of India refused to allow the blocking of pornographic websites and said that watching pornography indoors in the privacy of one's own home was not a crime. In August 2015 the Government of India issued an order to Indian ISPs to block at least 857 websites that it considered to be pornographic. In 2015 the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had asked internet service providers to take down 857 websites in a bid to control cyber crime, but after receiving criticism from the authorities it partially rescinded the ban. The ban from the government came after a lawyer filed a petition in the Supreme Court arguing that online pornography encourages sex crimes and rapes.
In October 2018 the government directed Internet service providers to block 827 websites that host pornographic content following an order by the Uttarakhand High Court. The court cited the rape of a 10th standard girl from Dehradun by four of her seniors. The four accused told police that they raped the girl after watching pornography on the Internet.
A law passed in 2010 states any "pictures, sketches, photos, writing, voice, sound, moving picture, animation, cartoons, conversation, gestures, or other communications shown in public with salacious content or sexual exploitation that violate the moral values of society" will have offenders face up to a 15-year jail sentence. With the maximum penalty for downloading pornographic material is a 4-year jail sentence or a 2 billion rupiah ($219,200) fine.
Pornography is legal in Japan; however, there are restrictions. Genitalia must be pixelated or censored under Article 175 of the Criminal Code (1907) and all participants must be 18 years of age or older, unless it is of a fictional characters.
Pornography is illegal in Malaysia with fines of up to RM10,000 for owning or sharing pornographic materials. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has blocked more than 2,400 pornographic websites between 2018 and 2020.
Nepali law identifies pornography as illegal. The sharing, distribution and broadcasting of pornographic content through any medium is prohibited. In 2010 it was reported that the Home Ministry had banned access to a list of websites including explicitly adult websites. In September 2018, concerns about violence against women led the Government of Nepal to announce its intention to ban online pornography. From 24 September, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) began to put a block on all websites providing pornographic content on the orders of the Nepal Government Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MOCIT). By 12 October more than 21,000 pornographic websites had been blocked.
Both domestic and imported works of pornography have been available in North Korea since recent decades. Producing, distributing, importing and watching pornography is prohibited.
There is no access to foreign pornographic websites from within North Korea.
Pornography in Pakistan is illegal and is subject to several legal provisions. Since November 2011 the Government has placed a complete ban on Internet websites containing pornographic material. The list of banned websites is updated on an ongoing basis. Despite this, child pornography is illegal and strictly forbidden in Pakistan and there are severe punishments for possessing or viewing child pornography which include a minimum of 14 years to 20 years in prison and a fine of 1 million Rupees. Pakistan also has cyber unit to curb child pornography within the country. The unit has a team of 40 members and one director-level official, who independently investigate the issue. The unit is integrated with the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
The Philippine penal code prohibits the production and distribution of obscene publications. Despite this, enforcement is lax. Some local productions of pornography are known to exist in the country.
As of January 14, 2017, several pornography sites, mostly mainstream ones such as Pornhub and XVideos, have been blocked in the Philippines as part of a government crackdown on child pornography. The Philippine government cites Republic Act 9775 or the Anti-Child Pornography Law as legal justification for the blocks. The list of sites blocked vary depending on the internet service provider enforcing them.
Items considered pornographic by Saudi Arabian standards are forbidden in the country. Customs authorities enforce strict regulations concerning the importation of pornographic items into Saudi Arabia. Such items may be confiscated on arrival and the owner may be subject to a fine.
There is no penalty for viewing or possessing pornography on the Internet in South Korea with the exception of child pornography, for which possession carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison, while distributing, selling or displaying it for commercial purposes carries a maximum sentence of ten years.
Many foreign pornographic websites are blocked, and those found to be operating from within the country are shut down. The Korea Internet Safety Commission is responsible for instructing Internet service providers to block access to "pornography and nudity". Google Search in South Korea filters search results for around 700 terms considered by the government to be adult in nature unless the user demonstrates that they are aged over 19.
In Sri Lanka, it is illegal to distribute pictorial or video pornography to persons under the age of 14.
Pornography is banned in the country. The government has blocked access to around 160 websites.
Possession, production and distribution of pornography for the purposes of trade is illegal in Thailand under section 287 of the Thai Penal Code. The same section also criminalizes participating or assisting in the trade of pornography. A person guilty under this section can be punished with imprisonment not exceeding three years or fined not exceeding THB6,000 or both.
Despite this, pornography is widely available in Thailand and the law remains usually unenforced with the exception of some high-profile cases. On November 3, 2020, The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society announced that it has banned Pornhub, along with 190 other pornographic websites. The ministry stated that the ban was part of the efforts to restrict access to pornography and gambling websites, which remains illegal in Thailand.
A law passed on 1 January 2015 bans access to internet pornography in Turkmenistan.
Production, distribution, broadcasting, transport, import and advertisement of pornography, is strictly illegal in Vietnam. In 1996 officials became concerned about pornographic films in the country and launched a campaign, with courts awarding fines and prison sentences. Pornography in Vietnam is classed as a "social evil".
Production, dissemination and assembly of pornography is illegal under article 343 of the Criminal Code, being punishable with up to four years in prison.
In France, pornography is overall permitted, but with distinctions:
The ratings system has caused controversy. For example, in 2000 the sexually explicit and violent film Baise-moi was initially rated only as "restricted" by the French government. This classification was overturned by a Conseil d'État ruling in a lawsuit brought by associations supporting Christian and family values.
Some movies are forbidden to persons under the age of 18, without the requirement for an X rating, such as Baise-moi, Ken Park or Saw 3, so that these movies can be viewed in theaters and not attract VAT.
The constitution and law are very strict about hardcore pornography, especially when compared to very liberal laws about softcore pornography, prostitution and sex shops. Supplying hardcore pornography to people who are less than 18 years old is an offence, and shops selling it must keep people under the age of 18 from entering their premises. If only a part of the shop is dedicated to pornography, it must be completely closed off from the rest of the premises. Alternatively, shops may choose not to display their goods or advertise that they sell them, in which case minors may be admitted. Websites hosting pornographic material within Germany must comply with rules about verifying that viewers are over 18.
Softcore pornography is less restricted, and may even be broadcast on TV at night. The age threshold is usually FSK-16. In contrast many uncut action films or video games easily reach the FSK-18 rating.
Pornography is generally legal in Hungary
In 2021 Hungary's parliament passed a law that bans providing pornography that promotes gender reassignment or homosexuality to anyone under 18 years old.
The production or sale of pornography is prohibited in Iceland. Heavy fines were applied in 2001 and ten years earlier a fine was applied to the first manager of the first private TV station (and the only case to present) in Iceland for showing the Danish "mainstream" Zodiac-films, I Tvillingernes tegn and I Tyrens tegn. In early 2013 there was a draft proposal by Ögmundur Jónasson, the Minister of the Interior, to extend the ban to online pornography to protect children from violent sexual imagery. The plan has been stalled since the change in government during the parliamentary election on 27 April 2013. Since then, there have been no changes to the relevant legislation, and no changes have been formally proposed.
In Italy, it is illegal to distribute pictorial or video pornography to persons under the age of 18. However, persons over 18 years of age are permitted to view pornographic material.
Pornography is legal in the Netherlands.
Pornography is legal in Romania since 2003. However, all pornographic sites hosted in the country must be locked with a password, and a tax per minute must be paid by the website owners.
According to Russian law, consumption of pornography is allowed though the production of it is not. The illegal production, distribution, and "public demonstration" of pornography is punishable by a 2- to 6-year prison term. Roskomnadzor, the Russian government's media overseer, has the power to order the blocking of pornographic websites. In 2015 the agency required the blocking of the Russian-language version of Pornhub and 10 other pornographic sites on the basis of a court ruling.
There is nevertheless some uncertainty concerning the legal status of pornography in Russia. The law criminalizes only the 'illegal' production and selling of pornography (which implies that it sometimes can be legal), but two issues make enforcement of the law difficult: there is no legal definition of pornography, and there is no law defining when production or selling is permitted.
Pornographic production, distribution, broadcasting (both audio and video), transportation, import and advertisement is forbidden by law in Ukraine.
The main legislation on pornographic materials is the Obscene Publications Act 1959, the Obscene Publications Act 1964, the Indecent Displays (Control) Act 1981, and the Video Recordings Act 1984. Video-oriented depictions of hardcore pornographic material (with certain exceptions for works considered primarily "artistic" rather than pornographic) were banned until 1999, when the removal of trade barriers with other European Union member states allowed for the relatively free movement of such goods for personal use.
Under terms set out in the Video Recordings Act 1984, all forms of pornographic material released on either DVD or video formats, within the United Kingdom must, as with all works released on such formats, first be classified by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
In addition to this, under criminal law, the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (in England and Wales), the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 (in Scotland), and the Sexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 2008 (in Northern Ireland) each make it a criminal offence for an adult to display pornographic material to a minor (defined under all three acts as a person under the age of 16).
The British Board of Film Classification can, as with all works, issue compulsory cuts to pornographic material (generally when such material is in breach of either the Video Recordings Act 1984, the Obscene Publications Act 1959, and the Obscene Publications Act 1964, with current interpretation of such acts being incorporated into the guidelines which the BBFC as a whole, operate under). Without such cuts issued works can be refused classification (therefore barring the sale of such a work on DVD or video formats within the United Kingdom).
In 2008, the Crown Prosecution Service unsuccessfully prosecuted a man under the Obscene Publications Act (the R v Walker trial) for a textual story on a pornography website involving Girls Aloud. Also that year, the Home Office introduced legislation to criminalize possession of what it has labelled extreme pornography; these laws are now contained in sections 63 to 68 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008.
Pornography is illegal in American Samoa and is punishable by a fine of up to $USD5,000.
In Australia, it is legal to possess pornographic material, with some extreme exceptions. However, it is illegal to sell, exhibit or rent X-rated pornographic material in all states (Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, New South Wales, Tasmania, and Queensland) but it is legal to do so in the two territories (the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory). As the Australian constitution prohibits states from regulating interstate commerce, it is permitted to purchase pornography in either territory and then bring it interstate. As a result, the majority of Australian mail-order operations for adult material operate from the ACT.
In 2007, the Northern Territory National Emergency Response introduced by the Howard government made the possession of RC and X18+ pornography an offence in some Aboriginal communities.
Some types of pornography (both real and fictitious) are technically illegal in Australia and if classified would be rated RC and therefore banned in Australia. This includes any pornography depicting violent BDSM, incest, paedophilia, bestiality, certain extreme fetishes (such as golden showers) and/or indicators of youth (such as wearing a school uniform).
There is no law prohibiting the accessing of online adult pornography in Fiji.
Pornography, including online pornography, is illegal in Nauru and pornographic websites are blocked.
In New Zealand, pornography is generally treated in a liberal manner and very little is banned by the Office of Film and Literature Classification. However, the most extreme forms of pornography (such as child pornography, rape, necrophilia, bestiality, urophilia and coprophilia) are classified as objectionable material by the Office of Film and Literature Classification, effectively banning them. Indecency laws still criminalise some acts under the Crimes Act 1961. Pornographic DVDs and magazines that arrive in New Zealand need to be examined by either New Zealand Customs, Department of Internal Affairs, New Zealand Police or the Office of Film and Literature Classification before being given an R18 classification. Internet pornography is also regulated but only if websites are based in New Zealand, in which case they will need consent from Department of Internal Affairs. Possession of any material that has objectionable content (which is illegal in New Zealand) is punishable by up to 10 years in jail and a $50,000 fine, or 14 years in jail for distribution of same.
In Papua New Guinea, the possession, import, export, and sale of pornography are all offenses. Control is strict. According to the government, all websites containing pornography, nudity or depictions of sex are blocked and the government has been blocking such sites since early 2009. Under the law, persons who possess, own, import, export, sell or exhibit pornography to the public are subject to arrest and trial and can face up to six months' imprisonment and/or a fine up to 50,000 to 100,000 Papua New Guinean kina. In PNG, pornography is subject to legal restraints to publication on grounds of obscenity. Laws relating to pornography in Papua New Guinea are vague. The main legislation used in dealing with cases relating to pornographic nature refer back to the Chapter 262 Criminal Code of Papua New Guinea, Lukautim Pikinini Act 2009, Classification of Publication Censorship Act 1989 and the National ICT Act, 2009. Improper Use of ICT Services.
In 2021, a court ruled that online pornography should be blocked by Samoa's two major service providers, Digicel and Vodafone.
Under the Pornography Control Act 2002, pornography is illegal and punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, three years in prison or both.
Production of pornography is illegal in Vanuatu.