OPA & CJIA Overview

Reproduced with the kind permission of Danni at Pandemos

This page provides information on the laws regarding pornography in the United Kingdom, with particular reference to the Obscene Publications Act (OPA) and the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act (CJIA), which criminalises the possession of 'extreme' pornography. Guidance is drawn from CPS guidelines, BBFC guidelines and official guidance notes published along with the CJIA bill as it passed through Parliament.
IMPORTANT: This page does not constitute proper legal advice and in no way should be regarded as legal advice, nor should it be considered exhaustive and complete. It's merely an interpretation of the law.  It is also the standard we apply to images uploaded/sold or displayed on the site.

Notes:

1. For quick reference, we're using a traffic light system to indicate the legality of particular activities. Red indicates illegality, yellow requires caution and green is considered legal. However in all cases it's important to read the accompanying notes for additional clarification.

2. It would appear that the laws in this area are informed by two guiding principles, namely that consent is given by the participants in any image and that an assault cannot take place. Many activities relating to the physical activities that form part of BDSM are technically classed as assault in the UK and anything that leaves more than a 'transient and trifling' mark is legally regarded as assault. What constitutes 'transient and trifling' is open to debate, but judging by what gets passed by the BBFC for R18 DVDs it seems that reddening of the skin is OK, but purpling (which indicates restricted blood-flow) or breaking of the skin and drawing blood is not.

Under UK law, a person cannot consent to their own assault and images derived from those activities are liable to be held as obscene. The law also frowns upon images where a person cannot clearly withdraw their consent, the reasoning being that if, say, a person is bound and gagged, how can they signal that they are in distress?

3. The information provided relates to both still and moving images, i.e. photos and videos. We'll just use the term 'images' as a catch-all. Note that the ban on possession of extreme pornography DOES NOT apply to drawings, illustrations, paintings, computer-generated imagery etc, only to photographs, film/video and stills from same.

4. In respect of the OPA, it's where you are based that's important, not where your website is hosted. If your site is uploaded from anywhere in the UK, then you're subject to the OPA. Don't forget this also includes videos and pictures posted to other sites, such as Clips4sale, YouTube etc. If you knowlingly pass your images to someone outside the UK for publishing, you are still considered to have published the images yourself.

5. The possession offence relates to possession in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but NOT Scotland.. Overseas visitors to these countries are advised that if they bring a laptop with them they should consider the images they have on that laptop and make sure that any images that might contravene the possession law are removed prior to arrival.

6. OPA breaches relate to specific images or videos without reference to context. However, context is an issue with the CJIA. Breaches can be inferred by reference to a series of images, even if none of the images themselves show a clear cut breach.

7. This information only relates to pornography, i.e. material primarily created or presented for the purposes of causing sexual arousal.

8. We recommend visiting a local sex shop and picking up a selection of R18 certificate BDSM DVDs as these will give you a clearer idea of the kind of material that's allowed to be published (and by extension, possessed). Putting aside the information on this page, the restrictions are less onerous than you might imagine.

This page provides information on the laws regarding pornography in the United Kingdom, with particular reference to the Obscene Publications Act (OPA) and the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act (CJIA), which criminalises the possession of 'extreme' pornography. Guidance is drawn from CPS guidelines, BBFC guidelines and official guidance notes published along with the CJIA bill as it passed through Parliament.

IMPORTANT: This page does not constitute proper legal advice and in no way should be regarded as legal advice, nor should it be considered exhaustive and complete. It's merely an interpretation of the law.  It is also the standard we apply to images uploaded/sold or displayed on the site.

Notes:

1. For quick reference, we're using a traffic light system to indicate the legality of particular activities. Red indicates illegality, yellow requires caution and green is considered legal. However in all cases it's important to read the accompanying notes for additional clarification.

2. It would appear that the laws in this area are informed by two guiding principles, namely that consent is given by the participants in any image and that an assault cannot take place. Many activities relating to the physical activities that form part of BDSM are technically classed as assault in the UK and anything that leaves more than a 'transient and trifling' mark is legally regarded as assault. What constitutes 'transient and trifling' is open to debate, but judging by what gets passed by the BBFC for R18 DVDs it seems that reddening of the skin is OK, but purpling (which indicates restricted blood-flow) or breaking of the skin and drawing blood is not.

Under UK law, a person cannot consent to their own assault and images derived from those activities are liable to be held as obscene. The law also frowns upon images where a person cannot clearly withdraw their consent, the reasoning being that if, say, a person is bound and gagged, how can they signal that they are in distress?

3. The information provided relates to both still and moving images, i.e. photos and videos. We'll just use the term 'images' as a catch-all. Note that the ban on possession of extreme pornography DOES NOT apply to drawings, illustrations, paintings, computer-generated imagery etc, only to photographs, film/video and stills from same.

4. In respect of the OPA, it's where you are based that's important, not where your website is hosted. If your site is uploaded from anywhere in the UK, then you're subject to the OPA. Don't forget this also includes videos and pictures posted to other sites, such as Clips4sale, YouTube etc. If you knowlingly pass your images to someone outside the UK for publishing, you are still considered to have published the images yourself.

5. The possession offence relates to possession in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but NOT Scotland.. Overseas visitors to these countries are advised that if they bring a laptop with them they should consider the images they have on that laptop and make sure that any images that might contravene the possession law are removed prior to arrival.

6. OPA breaches relate to specific images or videos without reference to context. However, context is an issue with the CJIA. Breaches can be infered by reference to a series of images, even if none of the images themselves show a clear cut breach.

7. This information only relates to pornography, i.e. material primarily created or presented for the purposes of causing sexual arousal.