Nepal

Is selling sex criminalised?
Selling sex itself is not criminalised in Nepal. Solicting for 'prostitution' is, however, criminalised under Article 119 of the National Penal (Code) Act 2017. Sex workers are also criminalised through the use of public order offences in the Public Offences and Penalties Act 1970.
Is buying sex criminalised?
Yes - buying sex itself is criminalised under the Trafficking and Transportation (Control) Act 2007
Is organising/managing criminalised?
It is a criminal offence under Article 120 of the National Penal (Code) Act 2017 for a person to provide their house, land or means of transport for the purpose of prostitution. Unclear if this could be used against brothels in commercial premises. There are no specific laws against brothel-keeping but police do raid and arrest sex workers working in brothels using public order or public morals laws
What other laws are used disproportionately against sex workers?
Public nuisance and public order offences under Public Offences and Penalties Act 1970.
Is there mandatory HIV/STI testing?
No
Is there mandatory registration?
No
Is sex work conflated with trafficking and/or people smuggling?
Yes buying sex (without any force or coercion) has been criminalised under human trafficking legislation and is considered an act of human trafficking.
Is sex work recognised as work?
No
Is sex work decriminalised with limited regulation?
No
Sources/further reading
UNDP et al (2012) Sex Work and the Law in Asia and the Pacific: Laws, HIV and human rights in the context of sex work, available at http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/hivaids/English/HIV-2012-S… UNODC (2011) Responses to Human Trafficking in Bangladesh, Nepal, India and Sri Lanka, available at https://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/2011/Responses_to_Hum… Nepal's Human Trafficking and Transportation Control Act, copy available here - http://www.asianlii.org/np/legis/laws/htatca2064458/ The National Penal (Code) Act 2017, available at http://www.moljpa.gov.np/en/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Penal-Code-Engli… NSWP, The Impact of ‘End Demand’ Legislation on Women Sex Workers Raut, B. P. (2015). Legislative Approaches to Prostitution: Legalizing or Decriminalizing for Nepal. NJA LJ, 9, 187.
Contact
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