England and Wales law on strangulation and suffocation content (Crime and Policing Act 2026)

From November 6, 2026, it is a criminal offence in England and Wales to possess or publish pornographic images that explicitly and realistically depict strangulation or suffocation. This is part of the Crime and Policing Act 2026.

To help protect our community from legal risk, Fansly must stay compliant. From November 6, 2026, users in England and Wales will no longer be able to purchase or access media covered by the new offence on Fansly. This includes content purchased before that date.

What the law covers

The offence applies to pornographic images that explicitly and realistically depict strangulation or suffocation. It only covers content showing people who appear, to a reasonable person, to be real.

The government's guidance describes the two terms like this:

Strangulation generally means one person applying pressure to another person's neck.
Suffocation generally means depriving a person of air in a way that affects their ability to breathe. It does not require pressure to the neck. Examples include covering someone's mouth and nose or compressing their chest.

The law does not formally define either term, so they take their ordinary meaning. Whether a specific image is covered will be decided by a court case by case. We know this leaves real uncertainty for creators, and we'll share more as clearer guidance becomes available.

Content you've already posted or saved

Content posted before November 6, 2026 is not exempt. The guidance treats both possession and publication as continuing acts:

Possession: if you have an image covered by the offence, you need to permanently delete it or otherwise get rid of it before November 6, 2026.
Publication: if you have uploaded, posted or otherwise made a covered image available, online or offline, you need to remove it and stop making it available before November 6, 2026.

Possession can include images stored on a device, in a personal account or cloud storage, or saved in files. This means checking beyond Fansly too.

What Fansly is doing

To help protect our community from legal risk under the new law, Fansly must stay compliant. From November 6, 2026, users in England and Wales will no longer be able to purchase or access media covered by the new offence on Fansly. This includes content purchased before that date.

We're a creator-first platform, and we know this change isn't easy, especially with so much left open to interpretation. Our goal is to make sure everyone in our community stays on the right side of the law, and that your account and income stay protected.

What you should do

If you are in England and Wales, we recommend you do the following before November 6, 2026:

Review your existing posts and messages for anything that may depict strangulation or suffocation.
Remove anything that may be covered, and permanently delete any copies you keep.
Check copies stored off Fansly, such as on your devices, in cloud storage and on other platforms.
Hold off on uploading or sharing new content that may be covered.

Use your best judgement. If you're unsure whether something is covered, the safest choice is not to upload or share it.

Frequently asked questions

Does this apply across the whole UK? No. The offence applies in England and Wales only, and Fansly's changes apply to users in England and Wales.

My content was posted before November 6, 2026. Is it affected? Yes. Possession and publication are continuing acts, so existing content needs to be removed and deleted before November 6, 2026.

Will content that fans have already purchased be affected? Yes. Users in England and Wales will no longer be able to access covered media on Fansly, including content they purchased before November 6, 2026.

Does it matter if the content is staged or consensual? The offence covers images that realistically depict strangulation or suffocation and show people who appear to be real. The law includes some limited defences, but they depend on specific circumstances. If you're unsure, seek independent legal advice.

Can Fansly tell me whether a specific post is covered? We can't give legal advice, and only a court can decide whether a specific image is covered. If you're unsure, the safest choice is not to upload or share it.

Will this guidance change? Possibly. This is a new law, and we expect more clarity as guidance develops and courts begin to interpret it. We'll update this article and keep the community informed.