age certificates

U – Potentially dangerous or anti-social behaviour which young children may copy must be clearly disapproved of.
Discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of
References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be infrequent and innocuous, or have a clear educational purpose or anti-drug message suitable for young children.
Infrequent use only of very mild bad language
Occasional nudity, with no sexual context.
Scary or potentially unsettling sequences should be mild, brief and unlikely to cause undue anxiety to young children. The outcome should be reassuring.
Violence will generally be very mild. Mild violence may be acceptable if it is justified by context

PG – No detail of potentially dangerous behaviour which young children are likely to copy, if that behaviour is presented as safe or fun. No glamorisation of realistic or easily accessible weapons such as knives. No focus on anti-social behaviour which young children are likely to copy.
Discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of, or in an educational or historical context, or in a particularly dated work with no likely appeal to children. Discrimination by a character with whom children can readily identify is unlikely to be acceptable.

References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be innocuous or carry a suitable anti-drug message.

Mild bad language only. Aggressive or very frequent use of mild bad language may result in a work being passed at a higher category.

There may be nudity with no sexual context.
Sexual activity may be implied, but should be discreet and infrequent. Mild sex references and innuendo only.
Frightening sequences or situations where characters are in danger should not be prolonged or intense. Fantasy settings and comedy may be mitigating factors.
Violence will usually be mild. However there may be moderate violence, without detail, if justified by its context (for example, history, comedy or fantasy).

12/12A – No promotion of potentially dangerous behaviour which children are likely to copy. No glamorisation of realistic or easily accessible weapons such as knives. No endorsement of anti-social behaviour.
Aggressive discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly condemned.
Misuse of drugs must be infrequent and should not be glamorised or give detailed instruction.

There may be moderate bad language. Strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language, its frequency within the work as a whole and any special contextual justification.

There may be nudity, but in a sexual context it must be brief and discreet.
Sexual activity may be briefly and discreetly portrayed. Moderate sex references are permitted
There may be moderate physical and psychological threat and horror sequences. Although some scenes may be disturbing, the overall tone should not be. Horror sequences should not be frequent or sustained.
There may be moderate violence but it should not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if justified by the context.

15 – Dangerous behaviour (for example, suicide, self-harming and asphyxiation) should not dwell on detail which could be copied. Whether the depiction of easily accessible weapons is acceptable will depend on factors such as realism, context and setting.

The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour, although there may be racist, homophobic or other discriminatory themes and language.

Drug taking may be shown but the work as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse (for example, through detailed instruction). The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances (for example, aerosols or solvents) is unlikely to be acceptable.
There may be strong language. Very strong language may be permitted, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language, its frequency
There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context. Sexual nudity may be permitted but strong detail is likely to be brief or presented in a comic context.
Sexual activity may be portrayed, but usually without strong detail. There may be strong verbal references to sexual behaviour. Repeated very strong references, particularly those using pornographic language, are unlikely to be acceptable. Works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal are unacceptable.
There may be strong verbal references to sexual violence but any depiction of the stronger forms of sexual violence, including rape, must not be detailed or prolonged. A strong and sustained focus on sexual threat is unacceptable.

There may be strong threat and horror. A sustained focus on sadistic threat is unlikely to be acceptable.

Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic violence is also unlikely to be acceptable.

18 – No one younger than 18 may see an 18 film in a cinema. No one younger than 18 may rent or buy an 18 rated video work. Adults should be free to choose their own entertainment.
Exceptions:
where the material is in breach of the criminal law, or has been created through the commission of a criminal offence
where material or treatment appears to us to risk harm to individuals or, through their behaviour, to society. - This may include portrayals of sadistic violence, rape or other non-consensual sexually violent behaviour which make this violence look appealing
where there are more explicit images of sexual activity in the context of a sex work (see right) In the case of video works, which may be more accessible to younger viewers, intervention may be more frequent than for cinema films.
Sex works containing only material which may be simulated are generally passed 18. Sex works containing clear images of real sex, strong fetish material, sexually explicit animated images, or other very strong sexual images will be confined to the R18 category. Material which is unacceptable in a sex work at R18 is also unacceptable in a sex work at 18.

R18 – The R18 category is a special and legally-restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops. R18 video works may not be supplied by mail order.


E -In British film classifications, the E certificate is an unofficial rating sometimes applied to video titles released in the United Kingdom which are exempt from being classified by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) as any of the other certificate categories.

The classifications usually applies to films which are primarily to inform, educate or instruct as opposed to entertain. It can also apply for such films which are primarily concerned with sport, religion, politics or music, provided that they do not contain material which would require classification. Such material would include:

Human sexual activity or acts of force or restraint associated with such activity.

Mutilation or torture of, or other acts of gross violence towards, humans or animals.

Human genital organs or human urinary or excretory functions.

Techniques likely to be useful in the commission of offences; or are likely to any significant extent to stimulate or encourage such sexual activities.

Likely to any extent to encourage mutilation, torture or gross violence.

Likely to any significant extent to stimulate or encourage the commission of offences.

If the work does include any of the above elements or is likely to stimulate or encourage them, then the right to an exemption is lost and that work must be submitted to the Board for classification. If a film is treated as exempt when it should have been classified, local trading standard officers can investigate and the distributors and/or vendors can be prosecuted.