IBJJF illegal techniques by belt: what's legal at white, blue, purple, brown and black

If you compete under IBJJF rules, what you're allowed to do depends on three things: your belt, your age division and whether it's gi or no-gi. Getting it wrong isn't a small thing. Applying a hold that's banned for your division is a severe foul, and that means disqualification.

This guide summarises the illegal moves table in the official IBJJF Rule Book (version 6.1, 2024) for adult and master athletes. Rules change, so for anything that decides a match, check the current rule book on ibjjf.com before your event.

The short version

• White belt: straight ankle lock is the only leg lock. No wrist locks. No jumping to closed guard.
• Blue and purple belt: wrist locks become legal. Still only the straight ankle lock for legs.
• Brown and black belt: kneebars, toe holds, calf slicers and bicep slicers become legal, gi and no-gi.
• Adult brown and black belt, no-gi only: heel hooks and knee reaping are legal too.
• Everyone: no slams, no spinal locks without a choke, no scissor takedown (kani basami), no bending fingers back.

The table, belt by belt

✕ means illegal, ✓ means legal. "Adult" is the 18–29 age division; "Master" is 30 and over (Master 1 to Master 7). IBJJF age is the age you are or will be during the calendar year of the event.

Juvenile athletes (16 and 17) follow the white belt column whatever their belt. Kids divisions (4 to 15) ban much more, including the straight ankle lock, so check the full table in the rule book if you coach or compete in kids divisions.

White belt: the extra rule about jumping guard

In every white belt division (and for all belts under 15), jumping to closed guard on a standing opponent is a foul, and that includes attacks that start with a jump, like flying triangles and flying armbars. The referee stands both of you back up. If you jump guard while defending a takedown or sweep, your opponent is also given 2 points.

If you're a white belt, pull guard by sitting, or work a takedown. It's a simple thing to get wrong when the adrenaline hits, so drill your start the way you'll do it on the day.

Blue and purple belt: wrist locks open up

From blue belt, wrist locks are legal, and so is locking your closed guard around the kidneys or ribs. Leg locks are still limited to the straight ankle lock, and you can't turn towards the side of the free foot while you finish it (turning that way twists the knee).

That shapes your leg game. Entanglements like single-leg X and outside ashi are legal positions, and they're great for sweeps and straight ankle locks. Inside positions where your leg crosses over their knee line (the reaping positions) aren't. More on that below.

Brown and black belt: kneebars, toe holds and slicers

At brown and black belt, kneebars, toe holds, calf slicers and bicep slicers are all legal, in the gi and in no-gi. Heel hooks, knee-twisting locks and knee reaping are still illegal in the gi at every belt.

Heel hooks: adult brown and black belt no-gi only

Since 2021, IBJJF allows heel hooks and knee reaping for brown and black belts in the Adult no-gi division. The detail most people miss is the age division: the column in the rule book reads "Adult (brown & black belts) No Gi". Master brown and black belts (30 and over) still can't heel hook or reap the knee, gi or no-gi.

What counts as knee reaping?

The rule book defines knee reaping as placing your thigh behind your opponent's leg and passing your calf over their body above the knee, with your foot past the vertical midline of their body, putting pressure on their knee from the outside in, while their foot is trapped between your hip and armpit. You don't need to hold the foot for it to count as trapped, and if they're standing with their weight on that foot, it counts as trapped.

For belts where it's illegal, the rule book grades it:

• Serious foul (penalty): moving your foot across the vertical midline of their body in that position.
• Severe foul (disqualification): crossing your foot past the edge of their body, or doing it while either of you has a submission hold on.

There's also a 50/50 exception for purple belt and below: if you're both seated in a legal 50/50 and your opponent stands up, their foot becomes "trapped", which can put you in a reaping position you didn't create. The referee stops the match and restarts it with one of you seated and the other standing.

Banned for everyone

These are illegal at every belt and age under IBJJF rules:

• Slams
• Spinal locks without a choke (a neck crank on its own, for example)
• The scissor takedown (kani basami)
• Bending fingers backwards
• Grabbing the belt and driving an opponent onto their head while defending a single leg
• Suplexes that drive the opponent's head or neck into the mat

And in no-gi, grabbing your own or your opponent's clothing in any way is a foul. That catches gi players switching to no-gi more than you might expect: no grabbing the shorts or the rash guard.

Other rulesets

Other organisations use different rules. Under ADCC rules, heel hooks are legal; many sub-only events allow them for advanced divisions but ban them for beginners. Always read the rules for the event you've entered rather than assuming. Our guide to IBJJF points and penalties covers how matches are scored, and the first comp checklist covers the rest of your prep.