Prostitution Prostitution laws in AustriaÖsterreich
Selling and buying sex between adults are legal in Austria, but the rules are set by nine separate Land laws. Sex work is generally allowed only in approved brothels or other permitted places; Vienna also allows street-based work outside residential areas and fines clients who make contact where it is banned. Sex workers must undergo a health check every six weeks. Profiting from someone else's prostitution is a crime when it amounts to exploitation (§ 216 StGB). There is no federal rule on advertising; several Länder restrict it, in Vienna and Upper Austria in particular for unsafe-sex practices.
Legal model
Regulation (legal & licensed). Selling sex and running venues are legal under a licensing or registration regime.
Prostitution is legal but there is no federal prostitution act: each of the nine Länder has its own law on where and how it may take place, and most allow it only in approved brothels (some also allow house visits). Federal law adds criminal offences against exploitation (§§ 215-217 StGB), compulsory health checks, income tax and social insurance. Vorarlberg is the exception in practice: brothels need a permit and none has ever been granted.[1][2][3]
Regional differences
- Vienna (Wien) Regulation (legal & licensed): Wiener Prostitutionsgesetz 2011 (WPG 2011): sex workers register in person with the police (§ 5); prostitution is allowed only in notified and acknowledged premises (§§ 4, 7) and, for street-based work, outside residential areas, cemeteries, public transport stops and restricted zones (§ 9). Clients who make contact in a banned place face a fine of up to EUR 500 (§§ 16, 17(3)); contact by phone or e-mail is excluded. Advertising unsafe sex is banned since 1 June 2023 (§ 10(2)).[1][2]
- Vorarlberg Regulation (legal & licensed): Under the Sittenpolizeigesetz, offering and practising prostitution are banned except in a brothel holding a permit (§§ 4, 5); a permit may only be granted if the brothel appears suitable to reduce disturbances caused by prostitution. No brothel has ever been approved, so there were no registered sex workers in the Land (BKA 2024). Signs and advertising installations for brothels are banned (§ 11(1)). Since LGBl. Nr. 18/2024, sexual assistance for people with severe disabilities in their own homes is exempt (§ 4(5)).[1][3]
- Upper Austria (Oberösterreich) Regulation (legal & licensed): Oö. Sexualdienstleistungsgesetz: soliciting and providing sexual services are allowed only in approved brothels and, for the service itself, during house visits (§ 3(3) Z 1-2, § 13). Advertising unsafe-sex practices, in particular in brothels, print and electronic media, and advertising services by people under 18 are banned (§ 3(3) Z 4-5).[1][4]
- Tyrol (Tirol) Regulation (legal & licensed): The Tiroler Landes-Polizeigesetz (§ 14) also penalises clients who know that they are at an illegal place, according to the federal working group. In 2010 the Constitutional Court held the Land's general ban on advertising brothels to be incompatible with freedom of expression under Article 10 ECHR (VfSlg. 19159/2010). The Land has only around eight to ten approved brothels.[1]
At a glance
| Question | Status | In short |
|---|---|---|
| Selling sexual services | Licensed Breach: administrative offence | Legal for adults in all Länder, but only in the places and forms the Land law allows, usually approved brothels; some Länder also allow house visits or street-based work in permitted zones. Sex workers must have a health check before starting and every six weeks (a blood test every twelve weeks), are liable to income tax and are insured as self-employed. Working outside the permitted places is an administrative offence.[1][2][3][4][5] |
| Buying sexual services | Restricted Breach: administrative offence | Paying an adult for sex is not a crime. Vienna and Tyrol fine clients who seek services in places where prostitution is banned, such as outside the permitted street zones. Under federal criminal law, a client who exploits a person's coercion commits § 205a StGB, and paying for sex with a person under 18 is a crime.[1][2] |
| Brothels and managed venues | Licensed Breach: administrative offence | Brothels are legal if approved under the Land law; the conditions (location away from residential areas and protected sites, operator reliability, a separate entrance) differ by Land. Running unapproved premises is an administrative offence. Escort agencies that openly arrange sexual services are not permitted under any Land law; an approved brothel may arrange services delivered on its premises or, where allowed, at the client's home. Vorarlberg has never approved a brothel.[1][2][3] |
| Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping) | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | Profiting from another person's prostitution is a crime when it exploits that person with the aim of a regular income (Zuhälterei, § 216 StGB: up to two years; up to three years for intimidation, dictating the terms of work or exploiting several people). Bringing a person into prostitution (§ 215) and cross-border recruitment (§ 217) are separate offences. Operating an approved brothel is not in itself procuring.[1][6][7][8] |
| Advertising sexual services | Varies | No federal law bans advertising sexual services. The Land laws differ, using vague terms such as advertising that is intrusive or offends moral sensibilities, bans near schools, rules on brothel signs, and in Vorarlberg a ban on brothel advertising installations. Vienna and Upper Austria ban advertising unsafe-sex practices. The Land laws do not expressly regulate internet advertising, and no rule on ad-site liability was found.[1][2][3][4] |
The law in detail
Selling sexual services
Legal for adults in all Länder, but only in the places and forms the Land law allows, usually approved brothels; some Länder also allow house visits or street-based work in permitted zones. Sex workers must have a health check before starting and every six weeks (a blood test every twelve weeks), are liable to income tax and are insured as self-employed. Working outside the permitted places is an administrative offence.[1][2][3][4][5]
- Federal level: the Länder regulate prostitution as a matter of public morals; federal law covers the mandatory health checks (recorded on the so-called Gesundheitskarte), income tax (since 1984) and social insurance as Neue Selbständige. Roughly 90-95 % of registered sex workers are migrants (BKA 2024).
- Contracts: in its decision of 18 April 2012 (3 Ob 45/12g) the Supreme Court (OGH) held that a contract for sexual services between a sex worker and a client is no longer in principle contrary to public morals (sittenwidrig), departing from its 1989 case law.
- Vienna: penalties for working without registration or in a banned place go up to EUR 800 (EUR 1,600 for a repeat offence), § 17(4) WPG 2011; outside permitted street zones up to EUR 500, § 17(5).
- Vorarlberg: no permitted brothel exists, so lawful sex work is in practice impossible there (see subnational).
Checked 30 October 2026
Buying sexual services
Paying an adult for sex is not a crime. Vienna and Tyrol fine clients who seek services in places where prostitution is banned, such as outside the permitted street zones. Under federal criminal law, a client who exploits a person's coercion commits § 205a StGB, and paying for sex with a person under 18 is a crime.[1][2]
- Vienna: § 16 WPG 2011 bars clients from contacting sex workers to obtain services outside permitted street zones and in premises where prostitution is banned; fine up to EUR 500, § 17(3). Contact by phone, e-mail or other media is excluded.
- Tyrol: § 14 Tiroler Landes-Polizeigesetz, as reported by the federal working group (BKA 2024).
- Policy: the federal working group reported clear agreement among its members in rejecting a Swedish-style ban on buying sex (BKA 2024, p. 111).
Checked 30 October 2026
Brothels and managed venues
Brothels are legal if approved under the Land law; the conditions (location away from residential areas and protected sites, operator reliability, a separate entrance) differ by Land. Running unapproved premises is an administrative offence. Escort agencies that openly arrange sexual services are not permitted under any Land law; an approved brothel may arrange services delivered on its premises or, where allowed, at the client's home. Vorarlberg has never approved a brothel.[1][2][3]
- Vienna: premises must be notified before opening and may operate only once the notification has been finally acknowledged (§ 7(3) WPG 2011); operating without it carries a fine up to EUR 7,000 (EUR 10,000 for a repeat offence), § 17(2).
- Numbers: the federal working group counted 312 brothels in Vienna in 2022 (361 in 2017) and about eight to ten approved establishments in Tyrol (BKA 2024).
- Escort agencies: these are not criminal per se, as § 215 StGB has never on its own led to a conviction in Supreme Court case law; their problem is Land law (BKA 2024, p. 99).
Checked 30 October 2026
Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping)
Profiting from another person's prostitution is a crime when it exploits that person with the aim of a regular income (Zuhälterei, § 216 StGB: up to two years; up to three years for intimidation, dictating the terms of work or exploiting several people). Bringing a person into prostitution (§ 215) and cross-border recruitment (§ 217) are separate offences. Operating an approved brothel is not in itself procuring.[1][6][7][8]
- § 215 StGB (Zuführen zur Prostitution): up to two years.
- § 216 StGB (Zuhälterei): Abs. 1 up to two years; Abs. 2 up to three years; six months to five years for members of a criminal association (Abs. 3) and for using intimidation to stop a person leaving prostitution (Abs. 4).
- § 217 StGB (Grenzüberschreitender Prostitutionshandel): recruiting or bringing a non-national, non-resident person into prostitution in Austria, six months to five years, one to ten years if commercial; one to ten years where deception, coercion or force is used.
Checked 30 October 2026
Advertising sexual services
No federal law bans advertising sexual services. The Land laws differ, using vague terms such as advertising that is intrusive or offends moral sensibilities, bans near schools, rules on brothel signs, and in Vorarlberg a ban on brothel advertising installations. Vienna and Upper Austria ban advertising unsafe-sex practices. The Land laws do not expressly regulate internet advertising, and no rule on ad-site liability was found.[1][2][3][4]
- Vienna: § 10(2) WPG 2011 bans advertising sexual intercourse or equivalent acts without a condom in connection with prostitution; fine up to EUR 800 (EUR 1,600 for a repeat offence), § 17(4a). In force since 1 June 2023 (LGBl. Nr. 8/2023).
- Upper Austria: § 3(3) Z 4 Oö. SDLG bans advertising unsafe-sex practices, "insbesondere in Bordellen, Printmedien und elektronischen Medien"; Z 5 bans advertising services by people under 18.
- Vorarlberg: § 11(1) Sittenpolizeigesetz bans "Ankündigungen und Werbeanlagen jeder Art" indicating that a building is used for prostitution.
- Constitutional limits: in 2010 the Constitutional Court held Tyrol's general ban on brothel advertising to breach Article 10 ECHR (VfSlg. 19159/2010, as reported in BKA 2024).
- Online: the federal working group notes that internet advertising is not expressly regulated in the Land laws and recommended allowing explicit advertising for brothels (BKA 2024, pp. 108-110). Platform liability would fall under general law, including the EU Digital Services Act; no Austria-specific rule was found.
Checked 30 October 2026
Key legislation
| Law | What it does here | In force |
|---|---|---|
| Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 216 – Zuhälterei Criminal Code (StGB) § 215 · § 216 · § 217 | Federal offences of bringing a person into prostitution, exploitative pimping and cross-border prostitution trafficking.[7] | |
| Wiener Prostitutionsgesetz 2011 (WPG 2011), LGBl. Nr. 24/2011 idF LGBl. Nr. 8/2023 Vienna Prostitution Act 2011 §§ 2-17 | Registration, premises, street zones, client fines and the unsafe-sex advertising ban in Vienna.[2] | |
| Gesetz über Angelegenheiten der Sittenpolizei (Sittenpolizeigesetz), LGBl. Nr. 6/1976 idF LGBl. Nr. 18/2024 Vorarlberg Public Morals Police Act §§ 4-11 · § 18 | Allows prostitution only in permitted brothels, of which none exists; bans brothel advertising installations.[3] | |
| Oö. Sexualdienstleistungsgesetz (Oö. SDLG) § 3 Upper Austria Sexual Services Act § 3 Abs. 3 | Restricts soliciting and services to approved brothels and house visits; bans unsafe-sex and under-18 advertising.[4] |
In numbers
Administrative registrations, not cleaned for people who left or moved between Länder, so double counting is possible. Mandatory health-check data suggest that 4,000-5,000 individuals worked legally in 2022. Not an estimate of the total population.
Timeline
- 2011Vienna adopts the Wiener Prostitutionsgesetz 2011 (LGBl. Nr. 24/2011), replacing its 1983 act.[2]
- 18 April 2012The Supreme Court (OGH, 3 Ob 45/12g) holds that contracts between sex workers and clients are no longer in principle contrary to public morals.[1][5]
- 1 June 2023Vienna's amendment (LGBl. Nr. 8/2023) bans advertising unsafe-sex practices and raises penalties.[1][2]
- 2024Vorarlberg exempts sexual assistance for people with severe disabilities in their homes from its prostitution ban (LGBl. Nr. 18/2024).[3]
- January 2024The federal working group on sexual services publishes its report with recommendations, including allowing house visits and explicit brothel advertising.[1]
Sources
- Regelungen sexueller Dienstleistungen in Österreich. Empfehlungen der Arbeitsgruppe „Sexuelle Dienstleistungen – Verbesserung der Rahmenbedingungen zur Prävention von Ausbeutung“ (Regulation of sexual services in Austria: recommendations of the Task Force on Human Trafficking working group on sexual services). Bundeskanzleramt, Sektion III Frauenangelegenheiten und Gleichstellung, January 2024. government · accessed 30 October 2026
- Wiener Prostitutionsgesetz 2011 (WPG 2011), LGBl. Nr. 24/2011 idF LGBl. Nr. 8/2023 (Vienna Prostitution Act 2011 (consolidated)). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS), 2011. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Gesetz über Angelegenheiten der Sittenpolizei (Sittenpolizeigesetz), LGBl. Nr. 6/1976 idF LGBl. Nr. 18/2024 (Vorarlberg Public Morals Police Act (consolidated)). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS), 1976. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Oö. Sexualdienstleistungsgesetz (Oö. SDLG) § 3 (Upper Austria Sexual Services Act, § 3). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- OGH 18.04.2012, 3 Ob 45/12g (Supreme Court of Justice, decision of 18 April 2012, 3 Ob 45/12g). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS), Judikatur Justiz, 18 April 2012. case law · accessed 30 October 2026
- Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 215 – Zuführen zur Prostitution (Criminal Code, § 215 – Bringing a person into prostitution). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 216 – Zuhälterei (Criminal Code, § 216 – Pimping). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 217 – Grenzüberschreitender Prostitutionshandel (Criminal Code, § 217 – Cross-border prostitution trafficking). Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS). legislation · accessed 30 October 2026