Is prostitution legal in the Vatican City?
Illegal
Prostitution is illegal in Vatican City and not commonplace.
The Vatican City is one of 105 countries classified “Illegal” for sex work — 48% of the 219 with data. (Also searched as prostitution.)
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Prostitution in Europe
- Last checked
- 7 July 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Italy
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal in Italy, but organized prostitution and brothel operations are prohibited, with individual sex workers tolerated.
- San Marino
- Illegal Prostitution is illegal in San Marino and not commonplace.
- Monaco
- Decriminalized / unregulated Prostitution is legal but organized forms and solicitation are prohibited, with penalties for forcing someone into prostitution.
- Croatia
- Illegal Prostitution is illegal in Croatia, with penalties for brothel operations and procuring, though voluntary prostitution is treated as a public order infraction.
- Slovenia
- Decriminalized / unregulated Prostitution was decriminalized in Slovenia in June 2003.
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Legal & regulated Prostitution is legal in Bosnia and Herzegovina but related activities like solicitation and brothel keeping are illegal.
Other laws in Vatican City
- Same-Sex Activity
- Legal
- Divorce
- Not possible
Every law in the Vatican City → · 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.