impermissibility

Impermissibility denotes the status of an action, state, or policy that is forbidden by a given normative framework. In everyday usage, something impermissible is not allowed by the rules governing conduct—whether legal statutes, professional codes, moral theories, or religious laws. The term is often contrasted with permissible (allowed) and obligatory or mandatory (required).

In ethical theory, impermissibility is a negative moral judgment. A common distinction is between acts that are morally obligatory (you must do X), permissible (you may do X), and impermissible (you ought not do X). Some theories treat certain actions as absolutely impermissible in all circumstances—for example, harming innocents. Others view impermissibility as prima facie or conditional: an act may be impermissible unless outweighed by countervailing reasons, such as saving a life.

In law, impermissibility expresses that conduct violates binding rules or norms. A legally impermissible act may be illegal or unlawful, but not every illegal act is morally impermissible, and vice versa. Norms from professional or organizational codes can also render actions impermissible within particular contexts.

In religious contexts, impermissible acts are those forbidden by divine law. For example, in Islam some acts are haram (forbidden); in Catholic ethics, certain acts are considered intrinsically evil and impermissible in all circumstances.

Debates about impermissibility often revolve around the extent to which moral judgments are absolute or defeasible, and how different normative systems—moral philosophy, law, and religion—interact when they prescribe or proscribe conduct.