New Hampshire
New Hampshire Pornography Laws (2026): Obscenity, AV Bill, CSAM
Pornography itself is legal for adults to possess privately in New Hampshire. State law criminalizes obscene material mainly through its commercial conduct, sale, delivery, exhibition, or possession for commercial purposes, not simple private possession, and New Hampshire does not currently have an age-verification law for adult websites, though a 2026 bill came closer to passing than in almost any other state. Separate statutes cover child sexual abuse material and the nonconsensual distribution of intimate images, including deepfakes, both carrying felony penalties.
Is Pornography Legal in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire's obscenity statute, RSA 650:2, makes it a misdemeanor under paragraph I to knowingly sell, deliver, provide, present, publish, exhibit, possess for commercial purposes, or advertise obscene material, or to offer or agree to do any of those things. A second or subsequent violation of paragraph I becomes a class B felony. Paragraph II sets enhanced penalties, a class B felony for a first offense and a class A felony with a prior conviction, when the obscene material involves a child.
Because paragraph I is keyed to commercial conduct, including a possession offense that requires a commercial purpose, simple private possession of obscene material for personal use falls outside the statute. A related provision, RSA 650:4, makes it an affirmative defense to obscenity charges when dissemination was restricted to institutions or persons with a scientific, educational, or governmental justification, or was non-commercial dissemination to personal associates who are 18 or older.
New Hampshire does not have a separate adult-content production or distribution statute beyond RSA 650:2's commercial-distribution prong. The federal recordkeeping requirement for producers of sexually explicit content, 18 U.S.C. §2257, is a federal rule and is not part of New Hampshire's state code.
New Hampshire's Near-Miss Age-Verification Law
New Hampshire does not currently have an enacted age-verification law for adult websites, but it came closer than almost any other state in the country during the 2026 session. Senate Bill 648 would have required commercial entities that knowingly and intentionally publish or distribute a substantial portion of pornographic material to implement age verification, bar retention of visitors' identifying information, and post a landing-page warning. The bill gave enforcement authority to the Attorney General, with civil penalties of up to $25,000 per violation.
SB 648 passed the full Senate in an amended form on March 26, 2026. It then stalled in the House: the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee voted it "Inexpedient to Legislate" 15-0 on April 29, 2026 (reported May 1, 2026), and the full House adopted that recommendation by voice vote on May 14, 2026, effectively killing the bill for the session. A companion bill, HB 1658, styled after App Store Accountability Act proposals in other states and not specific to adult content, died separately by voice-vote "Inexpedient to Legislate" on March 11, 2026; the two bills should not be conflated. Because SB 648 advanced further than most comparable 2026 bills nationally, a similar proposal returning in a future session is plausible, and this section should be checked for updates.
Minors: Child Sexual Abuse Material and Harmful-to-Minors Rules
Possession. RSA 649-A:3 makes it a class A felony to knowingly buy, procure, possess, or control a visual representation of a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct, or to bring such a representation into the state. A subsequent offense, including one following a reasonably equivalent prior conviction in another jurisdiction, allows a sentence of up to 20 years, with a minimum of up to half the maximum.
Distribution. RSA 649-A:3-a prohibits knowingly selling, exchanging, or otherwise transferring child sexual abuse material, possessing it with intent to do so, or publishing, exhibiting, or otherwise making it available. A first offense with no prior convictions carries up to 20 years, with a minimum of up to 10 years, except that a first offense involving fewer than three images is charged as a class B felony instead. A subsequent offense, following a prior conviction in New Hampshire or another state, carries up to 30 years, with a minimum of up to 15 years. The statute includes an exception allowing law enforcement to possess and display such material as necessary to a valid law enforcement function.
Sexting. New Hampshire does not have a standalone teen sexting statute separate from the child sexual abuse material framework above. See RecordingLaw's New Hampshire sexting laws page for how these provisions apply specifically to minors exchanging images with each other.
Harmful-to-minors dissemination. RSA 571-B:2, part of a separate consumer-protection-style chapter titled "Exposing Minors to Harmful Materials," makes it unlawful to knowingly give, sell, loan, or otherwise provide a minor with a visual representation or written or recorded material that is harmful to minors, using a three-part prurient-interest, patently-offensive, lacks-serious-value test defined in RSA 571-B:1. It is also unlawful to knowingly exhibit such material where a minor could view it, or to sell admission to a presentation containing it to a minor. Violating this chapter is a misdemeanor under RSA 571-B:3. Schools, museums, public libraries, and government agencies are entitled to an adversary hearing under RSA 571-B:4, with the sole issue being whether the material qualifies as harmful to minors, before being prosecuted.
Nonconsensual Intimate Images (Revenge Porn)
RSA 644:9-a makes it a class B felony to purposely disseminate a private sexual image of another person, with intent to harass, intimidate, threaten, or coerce them, knowing or having reason to know the person intended the image to remain private. The statute has been amended to also cover synthetic or deepfake images that create a realistic but false depiction of a real person's intimate parts or sexual activity, when disseminated with the same intent. Exemptions apply to lawful criminal investigations, reporting unlawful conduct, voluntary public exposure, and compliance with subpoenas or court orders.
This statute is separate from New Hampshire's obscenity and child sexual abuse material laws and applies regardless of whether the underlying image would otherwise be legal to possess. RecordingLaw's Take It Down Act and revenge porn laws by state page covers the federal overlay and how other states handle this conduct.
Public Indecency
RSA 645:1, Indecent Exposure and Lewdness, makes it a misdemeanor to fornicate, expose one's genitals, or perform an act of gross lewdness under circumstances a person should know are likely to cause affront or alarm. The offense becomes a class B felony if performed in the presence of, or transmitted as an image to, a child under 16, and a class A felony with two or more prior class B convictions under this section.
Practical Considerations
No state age-verification law currently gates access to adult sites in New Hampshire, but SB 648's momentum in 2026 makes a similar bill in a future session plausible, and this page should be checked for updates. Workplace and school device policies commonly restrict access to adult content regardless of what state law permits. Federal law also layers on top of New Hampshire's statutes: 18 U.S.C. §2257 imposes recordkeeping duties on producers, federal child sexual abuse material law applies independently of state charges, and the federal Take It Down Act creates its own nonconsensual-image removal process. For advice about a specific situation, consult an attorney licensed in New Hampshire.
For general background on the cluster, see RecordingLaw's pornography laws by state hub and its age-verification laws coverage.
Penalties at a Glance
| Offense | Statute | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Obscenity, commercial conduct, first offense | RSA 650:2(I) | Misdemeanor |
| Obscenity, commercial conduct, second or subsequent offense | RSA 650:2(I) | Class B felony |
| Obscenity involving a child, first offense | RSA 650:2(II) | Class B felony |
| Obscenity involving a child, with prior conviction | RSA 650:2(II) | Class A felony |
| CSAM possession | RSA 649-A:3 | Class A felony (up to 20 years if subsequent) |
| CSAM distribution, first offense (3+ images) | RSA 649-A:3-a | Up to 20 years |
| CSAM distribution, first offense (fewer than 3 images) | RSA 649-A:3-a | Class B felony |
| CSAM distribution, subsequent offense | RSA 649-A:3-a | Up to 30 years |
| Harmful material to minors | RSA 571-B:3 | Misdemeanor |
| Nonconsensual dissemination of private sexual image (incl. deepfakes) | RSA 644:9-a | Class B felony |
| Indecent exposure or lewdness, first offense | RSA 645:1 | Misdemeanor |
| Indecent exposure, victim under 16 | RSA 645:1 | Class B felony |
| Indecent exposure, 2+ prior convictions | RSA 645:1 | Class A felony |
More New Hampshire Laws
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it legal to possess pornography in New Hampshire?
Yes, for private, non-commercial adult possession. RSA 650:2's obscenity offenses target selling, delivering, providing, publishing, exhibiting, possessing for commercial purposes, or advertising obscene material, not simple private possession for personal use. A related provision, RSA 650:4, further protects non-commercial dissemination to personal associates who are 18 or older.
Does New Hampshire require age verification for pornography websites?
No, not currently. As of this writing, no New Hampshire law requires adult websites to verify a visitor's age before showing pornographic content.
Did New Hampshire almost pass an age-verification law in 2026?
Yes. Senate Bill 648 would have required commercial entities that knowingly publish a substantial portion of pornographic material to implement age verification, avoid retaining users' identifying information, and post a landing-page warning, with Attorney General enforcement and civil penalties up to $25,000 per violation. It passed the Senate in an amended form on March 26, 2026, but the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee voted it 'Inexpedient to Legislate' 15-0 on April 29, 2026 (reported May 1, 2026), and the full House adopted that recommendation by voice vote on May 14, 2026, killing the bill for the session.
What is the penalty for obscenity in New Hampshire?
Under RSA 650:2, a first obscenity offense, such as knowingly selling, delivering, publishing, or possessing obscene material for commercial purposes, is a misdemeanor. A second or subsequent violation becomes a class B felony. If the obscene material involves a child, the offense is a class B felony for a first offense and a class A felony if the defendant has a prior conviction.
What is the penalty for possessing child sexual abuse material in New Hampshire?
RSA 649-A:3 makes it a class A felony to knowingly buy, procure, possess, or control a visual representation of a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct, or to bring such material into the state. A subsequent conviction, or one following a reasonably equivalent conviction in another jurisdiction, allows a sentence of up to 20 years.
Is revenge porn illegal in New Hampshire, and does it cover deepfakes?
Yes. RSA 644:9-a makes it a class B felony to purposely disseminate a private sexual image of another person without consent, with intent to harass, intimidate, threaten, or coerce them. The statute has been amended to also cover synthetic or deepfake images created to falsely depict a real person, when done with the same intent. RecordingLaw's Take It Down Act and revenge porn laws by state page covers the federal overlay.
What does New Hampshire's harmful-to-minors law cover?
RSA chapter 571-B makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly give, sell, loan, or otherwise provide a minor with material that is harmful to minors under the statute's three-part definition, or to exhibit or sell admission to a presentation containing such material to a minor. Schools, museums, public libraries, and government agencies are entitled to an adversary hearing on whether specific material qualifies before being prosecuted.
Updates
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources
Sources and References
- RSA 650:2 (Obscene Matter Prohibited)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 650:4 (Justifiable and Non-Commercial Private Dissemination)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 649-A:3 (Possession of Child Sexual Abuse Images Prohibited)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 649-A:3-a (Distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Images)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 644:9-a (Nonconsensual Dissemination of Private Sexual Images)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 571-B:2-3 (Exposing Minors to Harmful Materials; Penalty)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- RSA 645:1 (Indecent Exposure and Lewdness)(gc.nh.gov).gov
- Citizens Count, SB 648 (2026) bill tracking(citizenscount.org)
- 18 U.S.C. §2257, Record keeping requirements(govinfo.gov).gov
- FastDemocracy, NH SB 648 (2026) bill tracking and committee action history(fastdemocracy.com)