This article assesses the legality of Female Genital Piercing (FGP), which refers to the piercing of female genitalia to adorn it with jewellery, for decoration or sexual enhancement. The position in the UK is uncertain because the World Health Organisation regards piercing as a form of FGM, which is a criminal offence in all parts of the UK. After analysing the stance adopted by the international community, the paper examines the legislation that criminalises FGM and considers whether FGP could fall within its scope. The paper concludes that female genital piercings could constitute FGM in limited circumstances, but even then, it may not be in the public interest to initiate a criminal prosecution. This lack of certainty is problematic for professional piercers who would welcome legislation providing an express exemption for genital piercings performed on consenting adult women.

本文评估女性生殖器穿刺 (FGP) 的合法性，它是指对女性生殖器进行穿刺以用珠宝装饰它，用于装饰或增强性功能。在英国的立场是不确定的，因为世界卫生组织将刺穿视为女性生殖器切割的一种形式，在英国所有地区都属于刑事犯罪。在分析了国际社会所采取的立场后，本文研究了将女性外阴残割定为犯罪的立法，并考虑女性外阴残割是否属于其范围。该论文的结论是，女性生殖器穿孔可以在有限的情况下构成女性生殖器切割，但即便如此，提起刑事诉讼也可能不符合公共利益。这种缺乏确定性对于专业穿孔者来说是个问题，他们欢迎立法明确豁免对同意的成年女性进行的生殖器穿孔。