Is prostitution legal in Turkey?
Legal & regulated
Prostitution is legal and regulated in Turkey, requiring registration and health checks, though many workers are unregistered.
Turkey is one of 61 countries classified “Legal & regulated” for sex work — 28% 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
- Syria
- Illegal Prostitution is technically illegal in Syria, despite widespread practice among refugees and locals.
- Cyprus
- Decriminalized / unregulated Selling sex is not prohibited, but organizing and brothels are illegal.
- Lebanon
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legally regulated in Lebanon, although the government currently refuses to issue new licenses.
- Georgia
- Illegal Selling sex is illegal but widespread, particularly in Tbilisi and resort areas.
- Armenia
- Illegal Selling sex is an administrative offense, while related activities like pimping are criminal.
- Israel
- Buying illegal (Nordic model) Selling sex is legal in Israel, but buying sex and organized prostitution are criminalized.
Other laws in Turkey
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Not recognized
- Same-Sex Activity
- Legal
- Pornography
- Restricted
- Divorce
- Legal
- Same-Sex Adoption
- Limited (step-child / single)
- 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.