Bundestag President Julia Klöckner of the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU) recently said that Germany has become “the brothel of Europe” – reigniting the national debate about sex work.
In a speech read at an awards ceremony on Tuesday, Klöckner criticized Germany’s current law, saying that sex workers are not adequately protected. Klockner, a conservative, said, “I am firmly convinced that we should ultimately ban prostitution and the purchase of sex in this country.”
Klöckner immediately received support from Health Minister Nina Warken of the CDU. “Like other countries, Germany also needs to impose criminal restrictions on customers buying sex,” Warken told the Rhenish Post newspaper. “Prostitutes should be exempt from punishment and receive comprehensive assistance to leave the industry.”
sex work in germany
Sex work is no longer officially considered “immoral” since the Prostitution Act came into force in 2002: it is now formally a legal service – meaning sex workers have the right to be paid their agreed fee.
In 2017, the Prostitution Protection Act was passed with the stated intention of further improving the legal and social status of sex workers – who must now register their activity with the authorities. Brothels must obtain a license to operate. Approval is given only if minimum requirements of safety, hygiene and equipment are met.
According to the Federal Statistics Office, there were approximately 32,300 registered sex workers in Germany at the end of 2024. Only 5,600 of them were German citizens. About 11,500 sex workers come from Romania; 3,400 of them are from Bulgaria.
Researchers believe the number of unregistered sex workers to be as high as 200,000 to 400,000 and as high as 1 million at the low end.
It is estimated that this group includes a large number of foreign women with poor German language skills. Because they know little about their rights, they have almost no access to existing health and support services. Most of these women are forced into prostitution – either because of poverty or because they are forced by pimps.
Critics of the current law say that the legalization of sex work in Germany has led to an explosion of the market: prices have fallen significantly due to increased competition. According to the annual “Federal Situation Report on Human Trafficking” published by the Federal Criminal Police Office, human trafficking and forced prostitution have increased. This has also attracted more customers who are sexually exploitative.
‘Nordic Model’
Klöckner and Warken have spoken in favor of introducing what has become known as the “Nordic Model” – rekindling a years-long debate in Germany.
Introduced in Sweden in 1999 and then in Norway in 2009, the Nordic model was later adopted by other governments, including Iceland, Canada, France, Ireland, and Israel. This model prohibits the purchase of sexual services and their organized purchase – but not their direct sale. This means that it criminalizes clients and pimps, and exempts sex workers from punishment.
This approach also provides comprehensive support and exit programs to sex workers. Customers have to pay fines and in Sweden can even be sentenced to up to a year in jail. Norway also prosecutes citizens for purchasing sexual services abroad.
Pros and cons
Many critics of the model say that sex work is a job and want to strengthen the rights of sex workers so that they can do their work independently. They believe in combating forced prostitution by strengthening the rights of those affected and work to destigmatize sex work
Such advocates for sex workers fear that criminalizing the purchase of sex will push sex workers into illegal and less-protected areas – such as the digital space.
Proponents of the model argue that most sexual acts already occur in secret and therefore outside the law. He says that people should not be punished by law if they are forced into sex work.
Decriminalization would make sex workers more likely to report clients to the police or courts because they would then have an established right to protection and support. If people who pay for sex were made criminally liable, it would lead to an overall decline in sex work.
The number of known sex workers and clients has declined significantly in countries that have implemented the Nordic model. A recent study from the University of Tübingen concludes that the model “also contributes to an objectively measurable reduction in the number of victims of human trafficking in the long run.”
Advocacy group Federal Association for the Nordic Model says introducing such a law is not enough to improve conditions of forced prostitution.
According to the group, comprehensive support for people wishing to stop working in the sex trade should be financed and victims’ rights should be significantly strengthened.
The group also wants funding for comprehensive social support that would enable those affected to have their own apartments, psychological care and access to education. It is also important to fund prevention, as well as consistently prosecute pimps and human traffickers to reduce the forced prostitution market overall.
This article was originally published in German.