Is prostitution legal in France?
Buying illegal (Nordic model)
France criminalizes the purchase of sex under the Nordic model, while selling remains legal.
France is one of 10 countries classified “Buying illegal (Nordic model)” for sex work — 5% of the 219 with data. (Also searched as prostitution.)
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Prostitution in Europe
- 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
- Luxembourg
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal and regulated in specific zones, while organized prostitution and pimping remain illegal.
- Switzerland
- Legal & regulated Sex work is legal and regulated, including licensed brothels, while trafficking and pimping are illegal.
- Belgium
- Decriminalized / unregulated Prostitution is decriminalized in Belgium as of June 2022, while pimping remains prohibited.
- Jersey
- Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is legal, but keeping a brothel is outlawed.
- Liechtenstein
- Illegal Prostitution is illegal in Liechtenstein, though police tolerate it if it is not street prostitution.
- Monaco
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal, but organized prostitution, pimping, and solicitation are prohibited.
Other laws in France
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Marriage legal
- Same-Sex Activity
- Legal
- Age of Consent
- 14–15
- Divorce
- Legal
- Same-Sex Adoption
- Joint adoption legal
- 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.