Prostitution is illegal in Iran, and incurs various punishments ranging from fines and jail terms to execution for repeat offenders.
A report in 2020 showed a high number of men donated a large portion of their income to Iranian girls wearing boots.
[8] In the 1920s, Reza Shah (r. 1925–1941) confined prostitution to separate neighborhoods, such as Shahr-e No in Tehran, a system which remained until the Iranian Revolution in 1979.
[17] According to Farahnaz Salimi, head of Aaftaab Society, an NGO for social damages controlling and prevention, there are about 10,000 female sex workers in Tehran.
[30] On 15 July 2016, Ali Akbar Sayyari, the healthcare affairs' Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of Iran, informed the public about improving and/or establishing (depending on the area and place in the country) 'drop-in centers' and 'voluntary counseling and testing' centers for the female sex workers.
[31] Iran is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking.
Organized groups reportedly subject Iranian women, boys, and girls to sex trafficking in Iran, Afghanistan, the Iraqi Kurdistan Region (IKR), Pakistan, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Europe.
From 2009 to 2015, the transport of girls from and through Iran en route to other Persian Gulf states for sexual exploitation reportedly increased.
In Tehran, Tabriz, and Astara, the number of teenage girls exploited in sex trafficking reportedly continues to increase.
[32] In 2010, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton downgraded Iran to "Tier 3", noting that the country makes no significant effort to solve trafficking problems, mainly in relation to prostitution and forced labor.
[33] Chinese, Thai, and other foreign women are forced to engage in prostitution under the acquiescence of religious leaders in Iran.