Is pornography legal in China?
Illegal
Producing, selling, and distributing pornography is a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment.
China is one of 49 countries classified “Illegal” for pornography — 71% of the 69 with data.
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Pornography laws by region
- Last checked
- 17 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Mongolia
- Illegal Preparation, dissemination, and sale of pornography are punishable by fines or incarceration.
- Bhutan
- Illegal Selling, manufacturing, or distributing obscene material, including computer pornography, is a criminal offence.
- North Korea
- Illegal Producing, distributing, and possessing pornography is a criminal offense punishable by labor camps.
- South Korea
- Illegal Producing and distributing pornography is a crime, and circulating it online is prohibited; viewing it privately is not prosecuted.
- Bangladesh
- Illegal Pornography is banned under the 2012 law and possession or distribution is punishable by jail.
- Nepal
- Illegal Production and distribution of sexually obscene contents are prohibited by the Criminal Code.
Other laws in China
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Not recognized
- Same-Sex Activity
- Legal
- Age of Consent
- 14–15
- Sex Work
- Illegal
- Divorce
- Legal
- Same-Sex Adoption
- Not permitted
- Incest Laws
- Legal between adults
- Marriage Age
- 18+
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.