Sex Work in Zurich: The PGVO Explained

In the City of Zurich, the Prostitutionsgewerbeverordnung, PGVO for short, regulates the sex industry. It is a municipal ordinance, not cantonal law. Many portals get this wrong. If you work in Winterthur, Uster or Dietikon, it simply does not apply to you. Here you will read what the PGVO requires, who needs a permit and what that means for you as an escort. One note up front: this article provides information, it does not replace legal advice.

What is the PGVO?

The PGVO is the prostitution industry ordinance of the City of Zurich, listed in the official compilation under number 551.140. The city parliament passed it in 2012. The permit procedures have applied since January 2013, and a major revision followed in 2017.

The ordinance serves four purposes: protecting the public from negative impacts, protecting sex workers from exploitation and violence, protecting public order, and protecting health. It covers street and window prostitution as well as salon prostitution. Enforcement lies with the Zurich city police and its unit for vice and sexual offences. You can find the official text in the official compilation of the City of Zurich (in German).

Who needs a permit?

A permit is required for anyone soliciting on public ground or at a window, and for anyone running a salon. The street permit is personal and is applied for at the city police. The salon permit is issued to the person managing the business. It is tied to specific premises.

The exception matters: small salons are exempt from the permit requirement. Since the 2017 revision, a small salon is defined as making no more than two rooms available for sex work, with at most one other person working there besides the operator. The definition is based on rooms and people, not just headcount. Many portals get that wrong too.

Exempt from the permit does not mean exempt from rules. Building law still applies. Anyone using premises commercially for sex work needs a building permit for that use. In residential zones with a residential share of 50 percent or more, it will not be granted. So check the zone first, then the lease.

The city describes the process on its overview page on prostitution (in German).

What applies to escorts?

Pure outcall work does not require a PGVO permit. The permit requirement is tied to two things: premises made available for sex work, and soliciting on public ground. If you visit clients at their hotel or at home as an escort, you are doing neither.

Things change as soon as you offer your own premises, for example for incall appointments. Then the salon rules apply. If you stay within the limits of a small salon, you are exempt from the permit but still need the appropriate building permit. If the business grows beyond that, you need the salon permit from the city police.

And of course: even without a PGVO permit, the general obligations of self-employment apply. Registration procedures, taxes and social insurance run independently of the municipal ordinance. You can read how this is regulated across Switzerland in the guide on legality as an escort.

→ Independent or in a salon: comparing the work models

What does the permit cost?

The city charges a fee for issuing the permit. Salon businesses also pay an annual inspection fee, graded by business size. That is what the ordinance says. The text itself does not state amounts. According to reports from the introduction period, the permit fee was 300 francs, and the inspection fee was 300, 600 or 900 francs per year depending on salon size. Do not rely blindly on these figures. You can get the current rates directly from the city police.

One point is officially clear, and it surprises many: no fee is charged any more for the use of public ground. The five franc day ticket that street sex workers had to buy from machines until 2017 has been abolished. Quite a few portals still claim the opposite. The street permit itself remains mandatory, but day to day it no longer costs anything.

What rules apply to street sex work?

Street sex work is only allowed in the zones and at the times designated by the city council, and only with a personal permit. To get the permit, you must have legal capacity, a residence permit with the right to work, and proof of health insurance. You apply in person at the city police.

Here is a detail few people know: the fines do not only hit sex workers. Clients who seek or use paid sexual services outside the designated zones are fined as well. The city police have made ample use of this.

Where can you get support?

At Flora Dora. It is the City of Zurich's counselling service for sex workers, free of charge and confidential. It is explicitly aimed at people in the escort sector too, not just street sex work. The team advises on legal, social and medical questions, supports you through the permit process and will come directly to your place of work on request. You can find Flora Dora at Langstrasse 14 or via the City of Zurich website (in German).

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a permit as an escort in Zurich?

Not for pure outcall work. The PGVO permit requirement only applies once you offer your own premises for sex work or solicit on public ground.

Does the PGVO apply to the whole canton of Zurich?

No, only to the City of Zurich. It is municipal law. Other municipalities regulate the sex industry separately or not at all.

What is a small salon?

A business with no more than two rooms for sex work, where at most one other person works besides the operator. Small salons do not need a PGVO permit, but they do need a building permit for commercial sex work use.

What happens if I work without a permit?

You risk a fine. Salons without the required permit can be closed after a warning. In minor cases it stays at a formal reprimand.

In summary

• The PGVO applies only in the City of Zurich, not the canton.
• Street and window prostitution and salons require a permit.
• Small salons with at most two rooms and two people are exempt.
• Pure outcall work does not fall under the permit requirement.
• The day ticket for street sex work was abolished in 2017.

The PGVO structures the sex industry in the City of Zurich, and its reputation is stricter than its text. If you know the rules, you work without nasty surprises. For an overview of the legal situation across Switzerland, read the article Escort in Switzerland: what is legal and what is not. You can find escorts in the city on the page Escorts in Zurich.

Do you work in Zurich yourself? Then advertise on Gingr.