In Eislingen in Göppingen district, police conducted a raid on a private apartment on Wednesday together with the local authority office, after receiving reports from neighbors. A woman is said to have offered sexual services there; shortly after the raid, a client was found who admitted to using the services, according to police. There is no mention of coercion or human trafficking in the report — the woman nonetheless receives a fine for violating local regulations.
The reason is a rule that few people outside Germany are aware of: In Baden-Württemberg, according to police, sex work is only permitted in cities with more than 35,000 inhabitants. Eislingen falls below that threshold — which means a blanket ban applies there, regardless of whether the work is self-determined and consensual. This restricted zone logic is a matter for the individual federal states and differs significantly from Switzerland, where sex work is legal and regulated by cantonal and municipal rules.
In practice, this means: Anyone in Germany working from an apartment in a smaller municipality risks fines and proceedings — even with proper registration under the ProstSchG, because registration does not override a local ban. Reports from neighbors almost always trigger these investigations. Notably: the authorities also investigate possible intermediaries — the individual woman ends up at the end of the chain, not at the beginning.
Those working across borders or on tour should know the restricted zone and city size rules of the respective federal state beforehand. They often determine what is legal or a violation more than one’s own registration.
Reported by Police Headquarters Ulm on August 20, 2026.
How do you handle this when touring in Germany — do you check the city size and restricted zones beforehand, or is that hardly feasible in everyday practice?