Israel permanently bans prostitution as part of effort against human trafficking

Justice Minister Yariv Levin on Sunday published a draft bill making the prohibition on the consumption of prostitution in Israel, instituted in July 2020 as a temporary measure, a permanent offense. 

At this stage, acting on the recommendations of professional authorities, the law will primarily be enforced through fines on consumers of prostitution. 

Levin’s decision was made following a series of meetings held with all relevant parties, with input from government ministries, civil society organizations, academics, and women from the prostitution cycle. 

Levin decided that for the next five years, administrative enforcement will continue with the imposition of a NIS 2,000 fine for consumers of prostitution, which will be doubled to NIS 4,000 for repeat offenses. In cases of prostitution rings, criminal indictments may be filed against those running the organizations.

The draft also proposes that alternative measures to fines, such as psycho-social workshops for consumers of prostitution, continue to be used. 

A study examining the implementation and impact of the law in Israeli society, conducted by the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute and submitted to the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, found that support for the law has risen since it was first proposed.

In 2016, four years before the law came into effect, 39% of survey respondents supported criminalizing the consumption of prostitution. In 2024, four years later, that rose to 72% of respondents. The study also found a 20% drop in searches for prostitution services on the Internet in Israel after the law came into effect. 

However, the survey also found that enforcement of the law declined under the tenure of former National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who had oversight of the Israel Police.

In 2021, the year after the law came into force, 1,384 fines were issued, and in 2022, 2,841 fines were handed out. In 2023, however, the year Ben Gvir managed the police, only 866 fines were distributed, and in 2024, only 173 fines were issued. 

When the decline in enforcement was first noticed in 2023, Ben Gvir tried to blame retired Superintendent Ami Eshed, who he claimed instructed the Tel Aviv District Police not to enforce prostitution offenses in that district. However, even after Ben Gvir appointed a replacement, the situation continued to deteriorate. 

Researchers also found that enforcing the law was not a police priority, as the position of head of the human trafficking squad was inconsistently filled and experienced high staff turnover.

“The findings of the study point to a loss of organizational knowledge and a slow implementation of enforcement due to the interruption of the functional continuity in the body that coordinates its implementation in the police," the researchers said. 

The law was originally enacted as part of a combined process of rehabilitation, advocacy, and education, intended to help fight against forced prostitution and human trafficking. Alongside the passing of the temporary law in 2020, the government also budgeted for frameworks and solutions to help people in the prostitution cycle break out of it. 

Levin stated, "Turning the prohibition on the consumption of prostitution into a permanent law is a significant step in the fight against this harmful phenomenon. The move expresses our commitment to protecting the victims of the prostitution cycle, and it is a social step of the highest importance. I thank the professionals in counseling and legislation and the social division of the Ministry of Justice who helped a lot in formulating the memorandum of law."