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Criminal Code

s. 173 Indecent Acts and Exposure

Indecent acts

  • Sexual Offences
  • Sexual Offences
Maximum sentence
2 years (indictable, both offences) / 2 years less a day (summary, subsec. 173(1)) / 6 months (summary, subsec. 173(2))
Classification
Hybrid

Last verified: June 2026 · Source: laws-lois.justice.gc.ca

The law says

Criminal Code s. 173
Verify on justice.gc.ca(opens in a new tab)
  • (1)Everyone who wilfully does an indecent act in a public place in the presence of one or more persons, or in any place with intent to insult or offend any person, (a) is guilty of an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years; or
  • (b)is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.
  • (2)Every person who, in any place, for a sexual purpose, exposes his or her genital organs to a person who is under the age of 16 years (a) is guilty of an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of 90 days; or
  • (b)is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of 30 days.
Amendment History (6)
  • R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 173
  • R.S., 1985, c. 19 (3rd Supp.), s. 7
  • 2008, c. 6, s. 54
  • 2010, c. 17, s. 2
  • 2012, c. 1, s. 23
  • 2019, c. 25, s. 58

Justice Laws is the authoritative version. If this copy and it ever differ, Justice Laws wins.

Immigration

Where this offence sits under IRPA

Both offences in this section are hybrid. IRPA s.36(3)(a) treats them as indictable, so either one is criminality under s.36(2). The top sentence on indictment is 2 years, well below the 10-year line. So neither is serious criminality on the maximum alone. Subsection 173(2) covers exposure to a person under 16. It has minimum jail terms of 90 days on indictment and 30 days on the summary track. Those fall short of the more-than-six-months test in s.36(1)(a). But the subject matter weighs heavily in any later rehabilitation or discretionary review.

This is how the law sorts the offence, not a reading of any one record. An officer decides each case.

IRPA sections involved

Related sections

Criminal Code s. 162VoyeurismHybridCriminal Code s. 151Sexual InterferenceHybridCriminal Code s. 152Invitation to Sexual TouchingHybrid