| Updated: January 16, 2025
We may earn affiliate commissions for the recommended products. Learn more.
Many people use VPNs to access restricted content or protect their privacy online, but questions about VPN legality remain. The legality of VPNs largely depends on the country and the purpose of use.
VPNs are fully legal in the United States, the UK, Canada, and most of Europe, allowing individuals to secure their online activities. However, in countries like China, Russia, Iran, and Belarus, VPNs are banned, and users risk penalties if caught using them.
Countries with strict control over information, such as China and Russia, view VPNs as a threat because they enable citizens to bypass censorship. These governments limit access to social media, international news, and other online content that challenges state narratives, banning VPNs to maintain control over information.
In short, using VPNs is legal in most countries but heavily regulated in others. This article discusses the legal and illegal status of VPNs from country to country.
Many of you use VPN to access restricted content or hide your online activities. However, not many of us are not sure of the legality of the usage of a VPN, and we wonder if VPNs are legal for us. Well, it depends on where you live and what purpose you fulfill with the VPN application.
VPNs are completely legal in the United States, the UK, Canada, and most all European countries. Countries like China, Russia, Iran, and Belarus have imposed a ban on using VPNs, and you can see jail time if you get caught.
This article will discuss the legality of VPNs, how you can stay anonymous, why countries have banned them, and what the best alternatives are.
That depends on where you live. VPNs are totally legal in the United States, Canada, the UK, and most Western countries, or you can say countries with real democracy. However, the use of VPNs also depends on their legality.
You can use a VPN to stay secure online, hide your IP address, or maintain a secure connection between you and your office network. Although using a VPN for cyberstalking and hacking is still illegal in most countries, you can get into serious trouble if found guilty.
Accessing geo-restricted content on websites and applications does not fall into this category. For example, accessing the Japanese or Korean Netflix library to watch a K-drama or an anime series might affect your Netflix subscription, resulting in cancellation or suspension. Still, this usage does not make VPN illegal.
VPNs are illegal in countries with dictatorships or fake democracies. Countries like China, Russia, North Korea and Iran imposed a ban on the use of VPNs and passed laws against them. In Russia, you can not use a VPN or a VoIP service because the Russian government believes free information on the internet is not good for their people. Apple has removed 123 VPNs from the Russian App Store at their request.
Teenagers in China can’t play video games for more than three hours per week, which is one reason the demand for VPNs in China has seen significant growth. On the other hand, the Iranian government has banned the use of VPNs.
As per my analysis, countries with dictatorial regimes restrict free information access by blocking social media apps and international news websites. They ban VPNs in the second step because people use them to access blocked websites and apps.
I firmly believe that information should be accessible to everyone, allowing individuals in any country the freedom to critique their government and shape their perspectives. This open discourse can only thrive if people have unrestricted access to diverse information sources and websites, enabling them to stay informed about global events.
We have already named a few countries that have banned VPNs. Here is a list of countries where it is illegal to use a VPN. The punishment for using a VPN is still unclear, but it is still risky to use VPNs in the following countries.
| Country | Legal Status | Consequences of Unauthorized VPN Use |
| Belarus | Illegal | Users of VPNs may be fined an unspecified amount. |
| China | Heavily Regulated | Individuals using VPNs that are not sanctioned by the government could be fined over 15,000 yuan or $2,200. |
| Egypt | Heavily Regulated | No clear law has been made against VPN users |
| Iran | Heavily Regulated | Using unapproved VPNs can result in a prison sentence of up to one year. |
| Iraq | Illegal | Enforcement details and punishments are unclear. |
| North Korea | Illegal | Penalties are unknown. |
| Oman | Heavily Regulated | Using a VPN to circumvent censorship may result in a fine of 500 Omani Rials (approximately $1,300). |
| Russia | Heavily Regulated | Unauthorized VPN users may face fines of up to 300,000 RUB (over $3,078); service providers face up to 700,000 RUB ($7183). |
| Syria | Partially Legal | VPN use is not explicitly penalized, though access may be blocked. |
| Turkey | Heavily Regulated | The Turkish government bans VPNs to fight terrorism. Penalties for VPN users are unclear but may lead to jail time. |
| Turkmenistan | Illegal | Unspecified fines. |
| Uganda | Heavily Regulated | Though not technically banned, VPN users can get arrested. |
| United Arab Emirates | Heavily Regulated | Regular VPN use is allowed. Users engaging in Illegal activities with VPNs are fined between $41000-136000. |
You must be wondering why these countries have banned or heavily regulated VPN usage. Before talking about the countries with VPN bans, let me tell you how to bypass them. Use Obfscuted VPN servers to bypass VPN blocks and firewalls.
Most premium VPNs provide obfuscation server technology, allowing VPN traffic to appear as regular internet activity. This ensures smooth usage and helps bypass firewalls and restrictions with ease.
Here are the countries and their reasons for VPN bans:
In 2015, the Belarusian official announced a ban on VPNs and similar functioning software. Next year, they blocked the Tor browser and restricted its residents from accessing foreign websites and channels, independent media outlets, and apps. Social media platforms like Facebook and Telegram have faced partial bans, especially during protests.
Their official narrative — national security, public order, and social stability.
The Iranians Ayatollah Khomeini’s dictatorship are living a great life, or are they? We don’t know the truth because the media in Iran is highly censored and managed. Iran has placed a double block on information within its boundaries.
Several news websites and social media are banned in Iran. Those who dare to challenge the regime by using a VPN to access blocked content can see prison time for more than one year.
Iran blocks Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Telegram, WhatsApp, and other social media apps. It also bans popular streaming services like Netflix.
Iran’s supreme leader said, “Some do not understand or do not want to understand, but I have already said before that virtual space needs to be regulated in order to be turned into an opportunity and not a threat”.
Therefore, I recommend purchasing a VPN anonymously while you are in Iran.
You have probably already heard about the great firewall of China which is the biggest machine of censorship. The machine is so effective and powerful that it does not allow a VPN to function properly. I went to China in 2018 and couldn’t upload a Bejieng selfie on Instagram, even with a VPN.
China is the biggest country at blocking foreign news websites like The New York Times, The Financial Times, The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Google News, and Wikipedia Other websites: BBC, Gmail, Google, YouTube, Yahoo, etc.
All internet service providers in China are required to collect real-name information from users and share it with the government for legal enforcement. Similarly, VPN use is not illegal but is highly regulated by the Chinese government. Only government-approved VPNs are allowed, and users who do not comply may face fines of $2,200 or more.
The Egyptian government has not banned VPNs but has blocked specific VPN protocols that establish secure file transfer. You won’t be able to use PPTP, OpenVPN, or L2TP VPN protocols in Egypt, and the government uses Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) to monitor its citizens.
For your information, with DPI technology, governments can monitor everything you do on the Internet and block websites in real-time. Your browsing history is shared with Egyptian officials, and they can see every message you send via Skype or WhatsApp.
VPNs have been completely banned in Iraq since 2014. The official justification for this ban is to prevent terrorist organizations from using encrypted networks to evade government monitoring and to maintain national security.
Avoid cracked VPNs at all costs. While they may offer unbelievable discounts, they often fail to protect your online identity. If you’re in a country with heavy internet restrictions, always test your VPN connection to ensure it’s functioning properly.
North Korea is on my list of top countries which have been blocked from the world. We don’t know how the North Koreans are surviving because the country is under the supreme surveillance and blockade of Kim Jong Un.
People can not access regular internet, and VPNs are blocked. We don’t know the actual regulations and punishments for breaking these laws. I haven’t traveled to North Korea, but those who did said that most commercial VPNs don’t work there. On top of that, most Smart DNS and proxies failed to bypass the North Korean firewall. Here is a detailed guide on the difference between Smart DNS, VPN, and proxies.
The Russian Federation, under Putin’s administration, has blocked several VPNs and only allowed VPNs that share data with the government. In 2021, the Russian national media control force (Roskomnadzor) officially banned NordVPN, Speedify VPN, ExpressVPN, KeepSolid VPN Unlimited, IPVanish VPN, and Hola VPN. The Russian authorities banned more VPNs in 2023, including VPN protocols like OpenVPN and WireGuard.
Anyone found using an unapproved VPN in Russia will be fined $3,078 or more. Therefore, stay safe and don’t try that.
Under Asad’s dictatorship, the Syrian government blocked some VPN protocols, making it difficult to communicate over a secured tunnel. However, now that Asad is gone, we can expect a few changes in the internet regulations.
The Turkish government has blocked VPNs under national security. Additionally, they are using the DPI technology to monitor citizens and mitigate security risks. In 2016, they blocked over 10 premium VPNs to restrict people from accessing foreign websites.
The Turkish government may expand its VPN restrictions and implement harsher penalties for their use, citing national security concerns and the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. Although, they failed to understand the benefits of VPN and the legitimate intentions of its users.
The Omani government only allows corporate VPNs under strict surveillance. VPNs for the general public are banned, and anyone breaking the law will be fined $1300aw.
Germany has one of the best internet policies, which allows users to use a VPN, Smart DNS, proxies, or whatever they want to use on their devices. To answer the question, yes, VPNs are completely legal in Germany and most European countries.
A VPN is fully legal in Germany, although it may cause a slight decrease in your internet speed. Below is a guide on increasing your connection speed while using a VPN on your devices.
Enforcing a VPN ban is pretty easy for a government. Here are three tools the government uses to keep things in check.
Internet service providers (ISPs) play a critical role in regulating VPNs. Controlling ISPs is generally straightforward in most countries, as these providers have significant infrastructure investments they are unwilling to jeopardize.
Every country has laws that we should respect, especially when they are made in the name of national security. Governments can impose heavy fines, take you to jail, or permanently ban your internet connection with the help of ISPs.
Many governments take VPN usage very seriously, focusing more on what users are doing with the VPN rather than simply its use.
You can defeat the VPN ban if you are using a modern VPN like NordVPN or ExpressVPN. They have features like kill switches, obfuscated servers, multi-hop, etc, to combat sophisticated surveillance used by governments.
Here are these features and how they can be helpful.
Many countries allow the use of VPNs to hide one’s IP address and online data. In fact, several governments consider VPNs an effective tool and encourage their usage.
Here are the lawful ways to use a VPN.
| Usage | Description |
| Protection of Individual Privacy | Privacy-conscious users turn to VPNs to keep their online activity private, allowing them to browse the web anonymously and protect their personal data. |
| Secure Public Browsing | VPNs are popular for safe browsing on public Wi-Fi, as they encrypt user traffic to protect against potential threats in unsecured networks. |
| Transfer of Sensitive Information | Governments and organizations use VPNs to secure confidential communications and transactions, safeguarding information relevant to their operations. |
| Unblocking Content | VPNs allow users to bypass geo-restrictions, making it easier to access region-locked content for streaming or other purposes. |
Well, it depends on what you are doing and which country you are residing in. If you are using a VPN for illegal activities like cyberstacking, scams, etc, then you can go to jail anywhere in the world. Secondly, if you use a VPN where they are banned, you can receive heavy fines or, worse, go to jail.
Therefore, I advise tourists on vacation to countries like Russia or China not to use VPNs and, if they do, to get the best VPN with all the features I have mentioned above. While using a VPN can be overlooked, what you do with it will not.
VPNs are legal in most parts of the world. However, countries with dictatorial regimes have banned or regulated VPNs and imposed fines on those using them to access blocked websites and apps.
Using a VPN is legal in China, but most providers must adhere to Chinese regulations on internet usage. Additionally, the Great Firewall of China presents a significant challenge, as many premium VPNs struggle to bypass it.
VPNs, Smart DNS, and proxies are entirely legal in the United States. By using a VPN or Smart DNS, you can change your IP address, access geo-restricted content, and browse the internet anonymously without concern.
There are no legal concerns regarding watching a foreign TV or channel with a VPN. However, the act is still considered immoral, but you won’t go to jail for watching BBC from the United States with a VPN.
Due to copyrights and content distribution laws, Netflix libraries vary from country to country. For example, movies Streaming in Australia will not be available for American Netflix subscribers.
However, American can employ a VPN to change their IP address and access the Australian Netflix library. Using a VPN to change your Netflix regions or library is not illegal and most people do it all the time to get the most out of their Netflix account.
Mustafa is a cybersecurity analyst and a co-founder of VPN for What. Since 2017, Mustafa has gained international experience, working with governments, NGOs, and the private sector as a cybersecurity and VPN expert and advisor.
