Is prostitution legal in Palau?

Illegal

Selling and buying sex are criminalized under the Anti-Prostitution Act.

Palau is one of 101 countries classified “Illegal” for sex work — 46% of the 219 with data. (Also searched as prostitution.)

Source

Taken from
Wikipedia: Prostitution in Oceania
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

Guam
Illegal Selling and buying sex are criminal offenses under the Guam Crimes and Correctional Code.
Northern Mariana Islands
Illegal Selling and buying sex are criminalized under the Commonwealth Code.
Philippines
Illegal Prostitution is a criminal offense in the Philippines, though enforcement is rare.
Timor-Leste
Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is legal in Timor-Leste, but soliciting and third-party facilitation are forbidden.
Papua New Guinea
Illegal Prostitution is effectively illegal in Papua New Guinea due to court interpretations of existing laws.
Brunei
Illegal Prostitution is illegal in Brunei and punishable by imprisonment and fines.

Other laws in Palau

Same-Sex Marriage
Not recognized
Same-Sex Activity
Legal
Incest Laws
Criminal offense
Marriage Age
18+

Every law in Palau → · Where is sex work legal? →

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.