Section 5: Rules of Play
Duration (Law 7, Section 1). A match lasts three equal periods of 12 minutes of playing time, separated by breaks not exceeding three minutes (Law 7, Section 4), which may be reduced only if permitted by competition rules. The chronometer stops for goals, fouls and injuries, and the timekeeper signals the end of each period with a distinct acoustic signal.
No Offside (Law 11). There is no offside law in beach soccer.
Goalkeeper Handling (Law 12, Section 2a). A goalkeeper who controls the ball with the hands, arms or feet in their own half of the pitch for more than four seconds concedes a free kick to be taken from the centre of the pitch (or a penalty kick if committed inside the goalkeeper's own penalty area), with no disciplinary sanction. The same four-second restriction applies to a goalkeeper who has released the ball and, without an intervening touch by an opponent or restart, handles it again.
Handball (Law 12, Section 1). The upper boundary of the arm, for handball purposes, is in line with the bottom of the armpit. It is an offence for a player to deliberately touch the ball with the hand/arm, or to touch it with a hand/arm that has made the body unnaturally bigger. A goal cannot be scored directly from a player's hand or arm, or immediately after the ball has touched a player's hand or arm, even if accidental.
Scissors and Overhead Kicks (Law 12, Section 1). Scissors kicks and overhead kicks are treated as an inherent part of the game and the players performing them must be protected; an opponent who unlawfully prevents a player in possession from executing such a kick concedes a free kick or penalty kick.
Dangerous Play, Impeding, and Blocking (Law 12, Section 2a). Playing in a dangerous manner is any action that, while trying to play the ball, threatens injury to anyone, including the player themselves. Impeding without contact means moving into an opponent's path to obstruct, block, slow or force a change of direction when the ball is not within playing distance of either player; a stationary block that does not initiate contact is a legitimate tactic.