Amsterdam Β» Red Light District Β» Prostitution. Every evening tourists are flocking to the Red Light District. Nightlife of Amsterdam is one of its biggest attractions. If interested in this topic don't forget to check our Amsterdam escorts page.
Prostitution is legal in the Netherlands since Until there was a law dating from , forbidding taking profit from prostitution. This was the law against people exploiting working girls. In practice the law has been rarely applied and prostitutes were actually not protected. In , prostitution has been recognized as a legal profession. The new law introduced in October clearly makes prostitution legal, subjecting it to the municipal regulations about the organization and the practice of business.
The authorities try to regulate prostitution, aiming at protecting minors, eliminating forced prostitution and combating the new phenomena of human trafficking. Any sex business must obtain from a municipality a license, certifying that it has fulfilled the legal requirements to operate. Dutch authorities treat prostitutes as independent entrepreneurs. Working girls or boys for that matter have to submit the income tax declaration and pay taxes. The police, urban district council and municipal health authorities are the main bodies responsible for enforcing the existing laws.
Police controls sex establishments, to verify that minors or illegal aliens are not working as prostitutes. Also creating nuisance to the surrounding area is seen as a reason to the eventual refusal of the license to lead a sex business. Infringements such as the presence of illegal prostitutes or employment of the minors may be the reason for the business closure.
In the municipality of Amsterdam withdrew the licenses to as many as 30 different sex businesses, accusing them of breaking the existing laws. A charitable foundation, which has been established by a former prostitute Mariska Majoor, to inform the society about the prostitution and influence the way we perceive the sex workers has a small shop in the Red Light District De Wallenwinkel. The PIC shop sells books about the prostitution, organizes lectures and guides tours around the area.
