Prostitution laws in the PhilippinesPilipinas
The Philippines criminalises the person who sells sex, defined in gendered terms. Article 202 of the Revised Penal Code, rewritten by Republic Act 10158 (2012) when vagrancy was decriminalised, deems women who for money or profit habitually indulge in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct to be "prostitutes" and punishes them with arresto menor or a fine of up to ₱20,000, more for repeat offences (fines raised by RA 10951 in 2017). Buying sex from an adult is not an offence as such, but buying or engaging the services of a trafficked person for prostitution carries six to twelve years under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act. Engaging in the business of or profiting from prostitution is the "white slave trade" offence (Article 341), and maintaining or hiring a person to engage in prostitution is an act of trafficking when the means listed in the 2022 amendment are used.
Legal model
Selling and buying prohibited. Selling sex is an offence (criminal or administrative), whether or not buying is.
Article 202 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended in 2012, punishes women who for money habitually engage in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct. Buying sex from an adult is not an offence unless the person is a trafficking victim. Profiting from prostitution is a crime (Article 341), and maintaining a person in prostitution can be trafficking.[1][2][3][4]
At a glance
| Question | Status | In short |
|---|---|---|
| Selling sexual services | Illegal Criminal offence | Women who, for money or profit, habitually indulge in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct commit an offence punishable by arresto menor (one to thirty days) or a fine of up to ₱20,000; for recidivists, arresto mayor in its medium period to prisión correccional in its minimum period or a fine of ₱20,000–200,000, or both.[1][2] |
| Buying sexual services | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | Paying an adult for sex is not itself an offence. Any person who buys or engages the services of a trafficked person for prostitution faces six to twelve years and a fine of ₱50,000–100,000, with far heavier penalties where the victim is a child; probation is excluded.[4][5] |
| Brothels and managed venues | Illegal Criminal offence | Anyone who in any manner engages in the business of prostitution, profits by it or enlists women for it commits the white slave trade offence (prisión correccional in its medium and maximum periods). Knowingly leasing or allowing premises, vehicles or digital platforms to be used to promote trafficking is a separate offence.[3][5] |
| Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping) | Illegal Criminal offence | Profiting from prostitution is punished under Article 341. Recruiting, maintaining or hiring a person for prostitution is trafficking (twenty years and a fine of ₱1–2 million) when done by threat, force, coercion, fraud, abuse of power, taking advantage of vulnerability or payment to a person in control; for children, no such means are required.[3][4][5] |
| Advertising sexual services | Restricted Breach: criminal offence | No offence aimed at advertising adult sexual services as such was found. Advertising, publishing or distributing material that promotes trafficking is a crime, and since 2022 internet intermediaries that knowingly or through gross negligence allow their infrastructure to be used to promote trafficking are liable.[5][6] |
The law in detail
Selling sexual services
Women who, for money or profit, habitually indulge in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct commit an offence punishable by arresto menor (one to thirty days) or a fine of up to ₱20,000; for recidivists, arresto mayor in its medium period to prisión correccional in its minimum period or a fine of ₱20,000–200,000, or both.[1][2]
The definition covers only women and requires habituality. RA 10158 (2012) removed the vagrancy offences from Article 202 but kept the prostitution paragraph; RA 10951 (2017) raised the fines from ₱200 and ₱2,000 to the current amounts.
Note. Statutes read on the LawPhil Project (Arellano Law Foundation); the Official Gazette site blocked automated access.
Checked 30 October 2026
Buying sexual services
Paying an adult for sex is not itself an offence. Any person who buys or engages the services of a trafficked person for prostitution faces six to twelve years and a fine of ₱50,000–100,000, with far heavier penalties where the victim is a child; probation is excluded.[4][5]
Note. Whether a person is "trafficked" depends on the means listed in Section 4 of RA 9208 as amended in 2022 (which include taking advantage of vulnerability); for children no means are required.
Checked 30 October 2026
Brothels and managed venues
Anyone who in any manner engages in the business of prostitution, profits by it or enlists women for it commits the white slave trade offence (prisión correccional in its medium and maximum periods). Knowingly leasing or allowing premises, vehicles or digital platforms to be used to promote trafficking is a separate offence.[3][5]
Checked 30 October 2026
Third parties profiting (procuring / pimping)
Profiting from prostitution is punished under Article 341. Recruiting, maintaining or hiring a person for prostitution is trafficking (twenty years and a fine of ₱1–2 million) when done by threat, force, coercion, fraud, abuse of power, taking advantage of vulnerability or payment to a person in control; for children, no such means are required.[3][4][5]
Checked 30 October 2026
Advertising sexual services
No offence aimed at advertising adult sexual services as such was found. Advertising, publishing or distributing material that promotes trafficking is a crime, and since 2022 internet intermediaries that knowingly or through gross negligence allow their infrastructure to be used to promote trafficking are liable.[5][6]
RA 11862 also obliges internet intermediaries to ban child trafficking and child sexual abuse material in their terms of service and to cooperate with law enforcement. An advertisement by or for an adult sex worker could be evidence of the Article 202 or Article 341 offences.
Confidence: medium. The cybercrime law and local ordinances were not reviewed; the application of the trafficking provisions to ads for consenting adults is untested in the sources reviewed.
Checked 30 October 2026
Key legislation
| Law | What it does here | In force |
|---|---|---|
| Act No. 3815, An Act Revising the Penal Code and Other Penal Laws (Revised Penal Code) Revised Penal Code (Act No. 3815, 1930) Art. 202 · Art. 341 | Article 202 (prostitution, as amended) and Article 341 (white slave trade).[3] | |
| Republic Act No. 10158, An Act Decriminalizing Vagrancy, Amending for this Purpose Article 202 of the Revised Penal Code Republic Act 10158 (2012) decriminalising vagrancy Sec. 1 | Rewrote Article 202 so that it covers only prostitution.[1] | |
| Republic Act No. 9208, Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 (RA 9208), as amended by RA 10364 (2013) and RA 11862 (2022) Sec. 4 · Sec. 5 · Sec. 9 · Sec. 11 | Trafficking for prostitution, promotion of trafficking, buying the services of trafficked persons, duties of internet intermediaries.[6] | 2003 |
Timeline
- 26 May 2003The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act (RA 9208) is approved.[6]
- 27 March 2012RA 10158 decriminalises vagrancy, leaving Article 202 as an offence of prostitution by women only.[1]
- 6 February 2013The Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act (RA 10364) is approved, including the offence of using trafficked persons for prostitution.[4]
- 29 August 2017RA 10951 raises the Article 202 fines to up to ₱20,000, and ₱20,000–200,000 for repeat offenders.[2]
- 23 June 2022RA 11862 amends the trafficking law, adding duties and liability for internet intermediaries and platforms.[5]
Sources
- Republic Act No. 10158, An Act Decriminalizing Vagrancy, Amending for this Purpose Article 202 of the Revised Penal Code. The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 27 March 2012. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Republic Act No. 10951, An Act Adjusting the Amount or the Value of Property and Damage on Which a Penalty is Based and the Fines Imposed Under the Revised Penal Code. The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 29 August 2017. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Act No. 3815, An Act Revising the Penal Code and Other Penal Laws (Revised Penal Code). The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 8 December 1930. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Republic Act No. 10364, Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2012. The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 6 February 2013. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Republic Act No. 11862, An Act Strengthening the Policies on Anti-Trafficking in Persons (Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2022). The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 23 June 2022. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026
- Republic Act No. 9208, Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003. The LawPhil Project, Arellano Law Foundation, 26 May 2003. legislation · accessed 30 October 2026