LGBT rights by country or territory

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about current LGBT rights around the world. For historical and current movements to further LGBT rights, see LGBT social movements.

     No information

Homosexuality legal      Same-sex marriage1      Other type of partnership (or unregistered cohabitation)      Foreign same-sex marriages recognized      No recognition of same-sex couples

Homosexuality illegal      Minimal penalty      Large penalty      Life in prison      Death penalty

---

¹ New Hampshire (USA) effective 1 January 2010

Google Map

 v • d • e 

Part of a series on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights
Laws around the world Recognition of relationships Same-sex marriage LGBT adoption Military service Immigration issues Violence against LGBT people Legal aspects of transsexualism LGBT rights organizations Opposing views
LGBT portal
This box: view • talk • edit

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) related laws vary greatly by country or territory – everything from legal recognition of same-sex marriage or other types of partnerships, to the death penalty as punishment for same-sex sexual activity or identity.

LGBT-related laws include but are not limited to: government recognition of same-sex relationships, LGBT adoption, sexual orientation and military service, immigration equality, anti-discrimination laws, hate crime laws regarding violence against LGBT people, sodomy laws, anti-lesbianism laws, and higher ages of consent for same-sex activity.

[edit] History of LGBT-related laws

The examples and perspective in this section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (October 2009)

Throughout history and across cultures, the regulation of sexuality reflects broader cultural norms. Norms change in response to economic, social or political changes, including interactions with other societies.

Most of the history of sexuality is unrecorded. Even recorded norms do not always shed full light on actual practices, as it is sometimes the case that historical accounts are written by foreigners with cryptic political agendas.

In ancient Rome, prior to its Christianization, men of status were free to have sexual intercourse, heterosexual or homosexual, with anyone of a lower social status, provided that they remained dominant during such interaction. During the reign of Caligula, prostitution was legalized and taxed, and homosexual prostitution was seen openly in conjunction with heterosexual prostitution. The Warren Cup is a rare example of a Roman artifact that depicts homosexuality that was not destroyed by Christian authorities, although it was suppressed. A fresco from the public baths of the once buried city of Pompeii depicts a homosexual and bisexual sex act involving two adult men and one adult woman. The Etruscan civilization left behind the Tomb of the Diver, which depicts homosexual men in the afterlife. It is thought that the diver is the man who died, for whom the tomb was constructed.

Roman historical accounts describe the ancient Gauls of what is now France as being fierce in battle due to their encouragement of homosexual relationships. The historian said three men would share a bed, and not just for warmth. Homosexuality was likewise part of numerous militaries throughout the ancient and pre-modern world, to a significant degree.^[1]

In feudal Japan, homosexuality was recognized, between equals (bi-do), in terms of pederasty (wakashudo), and in terms of prostitution. The Samurai period was one in which homosexuality was seen as particularly positive. In Japan, the younger partner in a pederastic relationship was expected to make the first move; the opposite was true in ancient Greece. Homosexuality was later briefly criminalized due to Westernization.^[2] In contemporary Japan, although this is changing, homosexuality is usually conflated with transgenderism and there is an emphasis on remaining in the closet and not seeing homosexuality as an orientation instead of simply as behavior.

The berdache two-spirit class in some Native American tribes are examples of ways in which some cultures integrated homosexuals into their society by viewing them, not with the homosexual and heterosexual dichotomy of most of the modern world, but as twin beings, possessing aspects of both sexes. In some other animist cultures of the past, the belief that homosexuals possess duality was seen as giving them a special connection to the spiritual realm and they often became shamans or medicine men.

Some people^[who?] believe that the origin of punitive laws targeting homosexual relations lies with Abrahamic religions. The first recorded Abrahamic laws against sexual intercourse between men are dated by scholars to circa 550 BC, during the Babylonian captivity of the Jewish people; they are recorded in Leviticus (though conservative scholars date Leviticus to be much older), and prescribe the death penalty. It is unclear how rigorously that prohibition was enforced, debated concerning the narrowness of the proscription, and it should not be assumed that patterns of enforcement remained constant.^{[citation needed]}

Similar prohibitions are found across Indo-European cultures in Lex Scantinia in Ancient Rome and nith in protohistoric Germanic culture, or the Middle Assyrian Law Codes dating 1075 BC.^[3] Punitive laws spread as military conquest, colonialism, and missionary work spread the influence of certain interpretations of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.^{[citation needed]}

Laws prohibiting homosexuality were also passed in communist China. (The People's Republic of China neither adopted an Abrahamic religion nor was colonized, except for Hong Kong and Macau which were colonized with Victorian era social mores and maintain separate legal system from the rest of the PRC.) Homosexuality was not decriminalized there until 1997.^[4]

In modern times seven countries have no official heterosexist discrimination. They are Belgium, Canada, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, South Africa, and Spain. This full non-discrimination includes the rights of marriage and adoption. LGBT people in the USA face different laws for certain medical procedures than other groups. For example, gay men have been prohibited from giving blood since 1983,^[5][6] and George W. Bush's FDA guidelines barred them from being sperm donors as of 2005, even though all donated sperm is screened for sexually-transmitted diseases and even the most promiscuous heterosexual men are not barred from donating.^[7]

[edit] LGBT-related laws by country or territory

Africa

[edit] Northern Africa

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Algeria	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - up to 2 years prison)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Egypt	Not specifically outlawed, but public morals laws are used against LGBT people according to AmnestyUSA , Prison up to 3 years						Unknown
Libya	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - up to 5 years prison).	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	allowed	allowed
Morocco (incl. Western Sahara)	Illegal (Penalty: 6 months to 3 years)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Sudan	Illegal (Penalty: 5 years up to death penalty.)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Tunisia	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - 3 years)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Western Africa

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Benin	Legal[8]			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Burkina Faso	Not specifically outlawed, but other laws apply.[9]	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Cape Verde	Legal since 2004 + UN decl. sign.			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Côte d'Ivoire	Legal			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Gambia	Illegal (Penalty: up to 14 years[10])	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Ghana	Male illegal Female unclear	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Guinea	Illegal (Penalty: 6 months to 3 years prison)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Guinea-Bissau	Legal + UN decl. sign.			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Liberia	Illegal (Penalty: Fine)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Mali	Not specifically prohibited, but public morals laws have been used against LGBT persons	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Mauritania	Illegal (Penalty: Death penalty)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Niger	Not specifically prohibited, but public morals laws may be used	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Nigeria	Male illegal Female illegal in areas under Sharia (Penalties in Sharia areas: Up to death for men, and up to 50 lashes (caning) and six months for women.) Female legal in areas not under Sharia.	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Senegal	Illegal (Penalty: 1 month to 5 years prison)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Sierra Leone	Male illegal Female needs verification	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Togo	Illegal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Middle Africa

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Angola	Not specifically outlawed, other laws may apply[11] (Penalty: Labour camps for habitual offenders.[12])	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Cameroon	Illegal (Penalty: Fine to 5 years prison)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Central African Republic	Legal + UN decl. sign.			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Chad	Legal since 1967			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire)	Legal		Constitutional ban since 2005	Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Equatorial Guinea	Legal [13]	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Gabon	Legal + UN decl. sign.			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Republic of the Congo	Legal			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
São Tomé and Príncipe	Illegal + UN decl. sign.	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Eastern Africa

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Burundi	Illegal since 2009 (Penalty: 3 months to 2 years imprisonment and fine of 50,000 to 100,000 Burundian francs[14])	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Comoros	Acts "against nature" outlawed	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Djibouti	Illegal (Penalty: 10-12 years)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Eritrea	Illegal (Penalty: 3-10 years)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Ethiopia	Illegal (Penalty: up to 5 years[15])	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Kenya	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 14 years) Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Madagascar	Legal			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Malawi	Illegal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Mauritius	Illegal (Penalty: 5 years) + UN decl. sign. (national debate over repeal of the law)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[16]	Unknown
Mozambique	Not specifically outlawed, other laws may apply (no record of enforcement)[17][18]			Unknown	Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[19]	Unknown
Réunion (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Rwanda	Legal [20][21]			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Seychelles	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Somalia	Illegal (Penalty: Death)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Uganda	All homosexual acts illegal (Penalty: Fine up to life sentence, Death penalty under consideration)		Constitutional ban since 2005
Tanzania	Male illegal (Penalty: Life Imprisonment)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Zambia	Male illegal (Penalty: fine to 15 years) Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Zimbabwe	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 10 years[22]) Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Southern Africa

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Botswana	Illegal (Penalty: Fine - years)	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Lesotho	Illegal [23]	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Namibia	Illegal (not enforced)[24]	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Anti-gay discrimination clause ineffective after adoption of new Labor Act	Unknown
South Africa	Legal since 1994	Legal since 1996	Legal since 2006	Legal since 2002		Bans all anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Swaziland	Male illegal (Penalty: US$90 fine - prison.) Female legal[25]	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

The Americas

North America

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Bermuda	Legal since 1994 (Age of consent discrepancy, see article)			Unknown	(due to policy of conscription)
Canada	Legal since 1969 (Disputed age of consent discrepancy, see article) + UN decl. sign.		Legal since 2003, nationwide since 2005	[26][27]	Since 1992[23]	Bans all anti-gay discrimination, including hate speech	Sex changes legally recognised; Explicit anti-discrimination protections only in NWT, implicit elsewhere;[28]
Mexico	Legal since 1871 + UN decl. sign.	/ Legal since 2007 in Mexico City and Coahuila	/ Legal since 2009 in Mexico City.[29]	/ Legal since 2009 in Mexico City. Nationwide, single gay persons may adopt.[29]		Since 1999, nationwide since 2003.[30]	/ In Mexico City only.[31]
Saint Pierre et Miquelon (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
United States	Legal since 1962, nationwide since 2003 + UN decl. sign.	/ Varies by state	/ Legal since 2004, marriage in 5 states	/ Single gay persons may adopt, laws on couples vary by state	"Don't ask, don't tell" policy	20 states, [32] sexual orientation included in federal hate crime definition[33]	13 states ban discrimination by gender identity,[34] included in federal hate crime definition[35]

Central America

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Belize	Male: Illegal since 2003 (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence) Female: Legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Costa Rica	Legal since 1971			Unknown (Has happened in some cases)	Doesn't apply. There are no military forces in Costa Rica, nonetheless they may serve in the police	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
El Salvador	Legal			Unknown	Yes	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Guatemala	Legal			Unknown	Unknown	Anti-discrimination in Youth and Childhood Act since 1997.
Honduras	Legal		Constitutional ban	Constitutional ban
Nicaragua	Legal since 2008 + UN decl. sign.			-	-	Bans some anti-gay discrimination[36]
Panama	Legal since 2008			Unknown

Caribbean islands

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex unions	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Anguilla (Overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Unknown	Unknown
Antigua and Barbuda	Illegal (Penalty: 15 year prison sentence)	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Aruba (Autonomous country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands)	Legal	Only unions made in The Netherlands recognised	Only same-sex marriages made in The Netherlands recognised	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown
Bahamas	Legal since 1991 (Age of consent discrepancy)			Unknown
Barbados	Illegal (Penalty: life sentence)	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
British Virgin Islands	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Cayman Islands	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Unknown
Cuba	Legal since 1979 + UN decl. sign.			Unknown		Unknown
Dominica	Illegal (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence)	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Dominican Republic
Grenada	Male illegal (Penalty: 10 year prison sentence) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Guadeloupe (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Haiti	Legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Jamaica	Illegal (Penalty: 10 years hard labor) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Martinique (Overseas department of France)	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Montserrat	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Unknown
Netherlands Antilles	Legal	Only unions made in The Netherlands recognised	Only same-sex marriages made in The Netherlands recognised	Unknown		Unknown
Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of the United States)	Legal since 2005			Single gay persons may adopt	US military has a "don't ask, don't tell" policy
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Male illegal (Penalty: 10 years) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Saint Lucia	Male illegal (Penalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Illegal (Penalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence)	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Trinidad and Tobago	Illegal (Penalty: 25 year prison sentence)	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Turks and Caicos Islands	Legal since 2000			Unknown		Unknown
United States Virgin Islands (Insular area of the United States)	Legal	Unknown		Unknown	US military has a "don't ask, don't tell" policy	-	-

South America

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Argentina	Legal + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation in all country, Civil unions in Buenos Aires, Villa Carlos Paz, and Rio Negro province	Under consideration		Since 2009	No national protections, but cities of Buenos Aires and Rosario have had laws since 1996.	Unknown
Bolivia	Legal since + UN decl. sign.		Constitutionally banned in 2007		Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Bans all discrimination based on gender identity[37]
Brazil	Legal since 1830 + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation throughout the country See also Recognition of same-sex unions in Brazil	Decision pending in the Supreme Court[38]	[39]	[40][41]	/Legal protection for sexual orientation in some states	/Despite a lack of specific legislation, recent jurisprudence has been in favor of gender-motivated identity change.[42][43]
Chile	Legal since 1998 (Age of consent discrepancy) + UN decl. sign.				Unknown		Unknown
Colombia	Legal since 1981 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2007		single gay person may adopt	since 1999. Since 2009: the military special social security system can be used by same sex couples in the army		[44] Since 1993. The name's gender can be changed easily in the National ID Card, to change the sex field a surgery is required.
Ecuador	Legal since 1997 + UN decl. sign.	[45] Civil unions recognized since 2009	Constitutional ban		Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
French Guiana	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Guyana	Male illegal (Penalty: life imprisonment) Female legal.	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Added to constitution in 2004, but withdrawn afterwards by the government.	Unknown
Paraguay	Legal (Age of consent discrepancy) + UN decl. sign.	Constitutional ban since 1992[46]	Constitutional ban since 1992[47]	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Peru	Legal			Unknown	since 2009 [48]	Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown
Suriname	Legal (Age of consent discrepancy)			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Uruguay	Legal since 1934 + UN decl. sign.	Civil unions since 2008[49],[50]	(but proposed)	Since 2009	Since 2009	Bans some anti-gay discrimination since 2004	Since December 2008, transgender people can change their legal gender, from the age of 12 onwards.[51]
Venezuela	Legal + UN decl. sign.	Civil union bill passed first reading, becomes law if passes second				Ban revoked from 1999 constitution at last minute; under consideration (passed first reading)	Under consideration (passed first reading)

Disputed territories

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Falkland Islands (overseas territory of the U.K., claimed by Argentina)	Legal	Legal since 2005				Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Unknown

Asia

[edit] Central Asia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Kazakhstan	Legal			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Kyrgyzstan	Legal			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Tajikistan	Legal			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Turkmenistan	Male illegal (Penalties: fine, up to 2 year prison sentence) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Uzbekistan	Male illegal (anal sex only) (Penalties: fine, up to 3 year prison sentence) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Western Asia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Bahrain	Illegal
Cyprus	Legal since 1998 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Iraq	Legal since 2003	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Israel	Legal since 1963 de facto (judicial decision against the enforcement of the relevant section in the old British-mandate law from 1936 [which in fact was never enforced]) 1988 de jure ("buggery law" formally repealed by Knesset)[52] + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabition Legal	Foreign same-sex marriages recognised	[53][54]		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Jordan	Legal since 1951	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Kuwait	Illegal (Penalty: fines, men under 21 face prison sentences up to 10 years, men over 21 face prison sentences up to 7 years)
Lebanon	Illegal (Penalty: fines, up to 1 year in prison). There's a growing public campaign to legalise homosexual relations.[55] A small public growing campaign exists to legalize homosexual relations between consenting adults in private, though it is often viewed unfavorably. -->	Not by the government, however there are some LGBT support groups that offer great favours and acceptance.
Oman	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence up to 3 years; however, only enforced when dealing with "public scandal")
Palestinian territories (Gaza)	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 10 year prison sentence) Female legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Palestinian territories (West Bank)	Legal since 1951[8]
Qatar	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence up to 5 years)
Saudi Arabia	Illegal (Penalty: death or prison/fines/whipping)
Syria	Illegal (Penalty: prison sentence up to 3 years; law de facto suspended)
United Arab Emirates	Illegal (Penalty: deportation, fines, prison time or death sentence)
Yemen	Illegal (Penalty: flogging or death)

[edit] South Asia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Afghanistan	Illegal
Bangladesh	Illegal
Bhutan	Illegal (Penalty: prison sentence up to 1 year; no cases of penalty actually enforced)
India	Ban on homosexual sex ruled unconstitutional by Delhi High Court on 2 July 2009 and the law read down. Government to decide on future course of action, if any.[56]		Not specifically banned	Unknown	[57]	Not in law Delhi HC has ruled "We hold that sexual orientation is a ground analogous to sex and that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is not permitted by Article 15." [58] Pg85 point 104	Unknown
Iran	Illegal (Penalty: Death)
Maldives	Illegal
Nepal	Legal since 2007[59] + UN decl. sign.		Ordered by Supreme Court; government expected to include gender-neutral marriage laws in the drafting of the upcoming constitution. [24]	Under consideration		Supreme Court ruled discrimination laws apply to homosexuals	"Third gender" cards have been issued since September 2007, legally protected class[60]
Pakistan	Illegal (Penalty: 2 years to life sentence)
Sri Lanka	Sodomy may be illegal - British-enacted law, never implemented

[edit] East Asia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
China	Legal since 1997			Unknown	Unknown; the military hasn't specialized the male-male sex acts from homosexuality
Japan	Legal + UN decl. sign.			Unknown	[61]	/ No federal protections, but some cities ban all anti-gay discrimination[62]	Transexuals allowed to change legal gender
Mongolia	Legal since 2002	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
North Korea	Not considered to be in accordance with the dictator's ideals. Prison camps for dissidents						Heavily obeyed gender roles for both male and female. See Let's trim our hair in accordance with the socialist lifestyle
South Korea	Legal						Unknown
Taiwan	Legal		Pending law allows civil unions or same-sex marriage.	Unknown	Due to military draft	Bans some anti-gay discrimination (in work and education)	Unknown

[edit] Southeast Asia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (Sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Brunei	Illegal (Penalty: fine or prison sentence up to 10 years)
Cambodia	Legal		Techinically prohibited, though there has been at least one recorded case of a legally registered and recognized same-sex marriage		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
East Timor	Legal + UN decl. sign.	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Indonesia	Legal[63] except for Muslims in Aceh Province[64]			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Laos	Legal			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Malaysia	Illegal (Penalty: fines, prison sentence (2-20 years), or whippings)
Myanmar	Illegal (Penalties: 10 years to life sentence)
Philippines	Legal.[65][66]	[66]	[66]	[67]	Since 2009. Was previously banned.	Bill pending but still not made into law	Unknown
Singapore	Male illegal (Penalty: up to 2 years prison sentence; no plan to repeal 377A and not enforced since 1999) Female legal					Unknown
Thailand	Legal since 1956			Unknown	Since 2005	Unknown	Unknown
Vietnam	Legal (no laws against homosexuality have ever existed)			Unknown	Unknown		Unknown

Europe

[edit] Northern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Åland Islands (self-governing part of Finland)	Legal since 1971	Legal since 2002			Demilitarised	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Denmark	Legal since 1933 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1989				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Estonia	Legal since 1992 + UN decl. sign.			Unregulated, it is possible for any single individual to adopt if they can prove to be suitable to bring up a child.		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Faroe Islands (self-governing part of Denmark)	Legal since 1933				(Denmark responsible for defence)	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Finland	Legal since 1971 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2002		/ Step-child adoption only		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Greenland (member country of the Kingdom of Denmark)	Legal since 1933 +UN decl. sign via Denmark.	Civil unions since 1996		Only in registered partnerships and only with partner's children	(Denmark responsible for defence)	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Iceland	Legal since 1940 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1996	(proposed)	Only in registered partnerships	Has no army	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Ireland	Legal since 1993 + UN decl. sign.	The Civil Partnerships Bill 2009 is currently before the Irish lower house (Dáil Éireann)		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Isle of Man	Legal since 1994	Legal since 2005				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Latvia	Legal since 1992 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 2006	Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Lithuania	Legal since 1993 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 1992	Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination, and publication of pro-homosexual "propaganda" banned as of 2009
Norway	Legal since 1972 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1993	Legal since 2009			Bans all anti-gay discrimination
Sweden	Legal since 1944 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1995	Legal since 2009			Bans all anti-gay discrimination and publication, including hate speech against homosexuals and transgenders	Sex change can only be done after recomendations by the National Board of Health and Welfare, due health and safety reasons
United Kingdom	Legal since 1967 in England and Wales, 1980 in Scotland and 1982 in Northern Ireland + UN decl. sign.	Civil partnerships since 2005				Bans some anti-gay discrimination, as well as religion-based hate speech against homosexuals [69]	Gender Recognition Act 2004

[edit] Western Europe

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Belgium	Legal since 1843 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2000	Legal since 2003			Bans all anti-gay discrimination
France	Legal since 1791 + UN decl. sign.	Pacte civil de solidarité since 1999	No	Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Guernsey (incl. Alderney, Herm and Sark)	legal since 1983 (Age of consent discrepancy)				UK responsible for defence
Jersey	legal since 1990	(Civil Partnerships are proposed)				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Luxembourg	Legal since 1795 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2004	(proposed)	(proposed)		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Monaco	Legal since 1793				France responsible for defence
Netherlands	Legal since 1811 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1998	Legal since 2001. First country to legalize same-sex marriage.			Bans all anti-gay discrimination

[edit] Central Europe

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Austria	Legal since 1971 + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation since 2003, Registered partnership will become legal on 1 January 2010.				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Croatia	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered co-habitation since 2003; Registered partnership refused in 2005		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Act on the elimination of discrimination
Czech Republic	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2006.				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Germany	Legal since 1968 in East Germany and 1969 in West Germany + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2001		Single gay persons may adopt or a partner can adopt the other partner's child (full joint adoption is proposed)[70]		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Hungary	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation since 1996 and Registered partnership since 2009				Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Liechtenstein	Legal since 1989 + UN decl. sign.				Has no army
Poland	Never punished. Legal since 1932 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban since 1997	Single gay persons may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Slovakia	Legal since 1962 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Slovenia	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.	Registered partnership since 2006	(proposed)	(proposed)		Bans some anti-gay discrimination	Sex change can be recorded in a central register, and new documents can be issued based on person's new gender identity.[71]
Switzerland	Legal since 1942 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2007		Single gay persons may adopt. Non-biological partner must provide educational and financial tutorship for his/her partner's child		Bans some anti-gay discrimination

[edit] Eastern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Albania	Legal since 1995 + UN decl. sign.		(but proposed) [25]
Armenia (terminology "European" varies on border defintions)	Legal since 2002 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown
Azerbaijan (terminology "European" varies on border defintions)	Legal since 2000				Banned from military service
Belarus	Legal since 1994				Banned from military service
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Legal since 1996 in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1998 in Republika Srpska + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Bulgaria	Legal since 1968 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban	Single gay person may adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Georgia (terminology "European" varies on border defintions)	Legal since 2000 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Macedonia	Legal since 1996 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Moldova	Legal since 1995		Constitutional ban
Montenegro	Legal since 1977 + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban			Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Romania	Legal since 1996 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Russia (incl. all constituent regions)	Legal since 1993 (was illegal in Russian Empire in 1832-1917, was legal in the RSFSR/Soviet Union in 1917-1934)
Serbia	Legal since 1994 (1981 in Vojvodina) + UN decl. sign.		Constitutional ban			Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Turkey	Legal since 1858 (decriminalized by the Ottoman Empire)			No particular legal ban.	They are exempt from the military service and marked as mentally ill.	Added to constitution in 2004, but withdrawn afterwards by the government
Ukraine	Legal since 1992		Constitutional ban

[edit] Southern Europe

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Andorra	Legal since 1790 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2005	(but proposed)	Legal since 2005	Has no army	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Cyprus	Legal since 1998 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Gibraltar (overseas territory of the U.K.)	Legal since 1993 (Age of consent discrepancy)					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Greece	Legal since 1951 (Age of consent discrepancy) + UN decl. sign.				Banned from military service	Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Italy	Legal since 1890 + UN decl. sign.			Only married couples can adopt		Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Malta	Legal since 1973 + UN decl. sign.					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Portugal	Legal since 1983 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 2001	(but proposed)			Bans some anti-gay discrimination
San Marino	Legal since 1864, recriminalised in 1974 and again legalised in 2001 + UN decl. sign.				Unknown
Spain	Legal since 1979 + UN decl. sign.	Legal since 1998 (12 of 17 communities legalised Civil unions)	Legal since 2005			Bans all anti-gay discrimination	La Ley de Identidad de Género (Gender Identity Law), enacted in 2007.

[edit] Disputed territories

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Kosovo (only partially recognised, claimed by Serbia)	Legal since 1994 (as part of Serbia), 2008 (as partially recognised sovereign territory)					Bans some anti-gay discrimination
Turkish Republic Northern Cyprus (only recognised by Republic of Turkey)	Legal since 2009			No particular legal ban.	Banned from military service. (with the same code in Turkey)

Oceania

[edit] Australasia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Australia (incl.  Christmas Island,  Cocos (Keeling) Islands,  Norfolk Island)	Legal since 1994 in all Australian states and territories + UN decl. sign.	Unregistered cohabitation in all states; registered partnerships in ACT, Tasmania and Victoria		ACT, Western Australia. In Tasmania same-sex couples are permitted to adopt a child who is related to a member of the couple only. other states and territories	Yes, since 1992	Bans most anti-gay discrimination	Yes, Covered by all state and territory laws only
New Zealand	Legal since 1986 + UN decl. sign.	Yes, since 2004		Single gay persons may adopt		Bans all anti-gay discrimination	Covered under the 'sex discrimination' provision of the Human Rights Act 1993 since 2006.

[edit] Melanesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
East Timor (terminology "Oceania" varies on border defintions)	Legal + UN decl. sign	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Fiji	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	1997 constitution that banned all anti-gay discrimination has been suspended	Unknown
New Caledonia (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal	Civil union	No	Unknown	Yes since?	Unknown
Papua New Guinea	Illegal	Unknown			Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Solomon Islands	Illegal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Vanuatu	Legal	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Micronesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
Guam (unincorporated territory of the United States)	Legal since 1979	Currently debated			Unknown	Bans all anti-gay discrimination
Federated States of Micronesia	Yes, according to most reports			Unknown	Defense responsibility of the US, which has "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Kiribati	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Marshall Islands	Legal since?				Unknown
Nauru	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Northern Mariana Islands	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Palau	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown

[edit] Polynesia

LGBT rights in:	Homosexual acts legal?	Recognition of same-sex relationships	Same-sex marriage	Same-sex adoption	Allows gays to serve openly in military?	Anti-discrimination (sexual orientation)	Laws concerning gender identity/expression
American Samoa (unincorporated territory of the United States) [72]	Legal since 1899				US military has "Don't ask, don't tell" policy	Unknown
Chile ( Rapa Nui only)	Legal since 1998				Unknown
Cook Islands (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Has no military forces	Unknown	Unknown
French Polynesia (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal since ?	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown		Unknown
Niue (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Legal since 2007	Unknown			Has no military forces	Unknown
Pitcairn Islands (overseas territory of the United Kingdom)	Legal since 1967	Civil partnerships since 2005				Bans most anti-gay discrimination
Samoa		Unknown		Unknown	Has no military forces	Unknown	Unknown
Tokelau (part of the realm of New Zealand)	Legal since 2007	Unknown			Has no military forces	Unknown
Tonga	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown
Tuvalu	Male illegal Female legal	Unknown		Unknown	Has no military forces	Unknown	Unknown
Wallis and Futuna (overseas collectivity of France)	Legal since ?	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown		Unknown

[edit] See also

Buggery Civil rights movement Civil union Heterosexism Homophobia

List of LGBT rights articles by region Religion and homosexuality Same-sex marriage Sexual Revolution Socialism and LGBT rights Status of same-sex marriage

LGBT portal Human rights portal

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• International Lesbian and Gay Association
  • Map on LGBTI rights around the world — 2008 version
  • State-sponsored Homophobia — 2008 edition of worldwide survey of homosexuality laws
  • State-sponsored Homophobia — 2009 edition of worldwide survey of homosexuality laws
• Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual: Law at the Open Directory Project
• Amnesty International USA: LGBT legal status around the world — interactive map
• GayLawNet: Laws — information by country
• International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission
  • Regional Information — press releases, etc. on updates of various countries
  • Resource links — for researching legal information

v • d • e Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) topics   Academic fields · Discourse Gender studies · Lavender linguistics · Lesbian feminism · LGBT literature · LGBT/Queer studies · Queer theory · Transfeminism   Community · Culture Coming out · Drag king · Drag queen · Gay bar · Gay village · Gay icon · Lesbian utopia · LGBT-affirming religious groups · LGBT-affirming churches · Pride · Pride parade · Gay rodeo · Literature  · List of LGBT-related organizations · Periodicals · Same-sex relationship · Slang · Slogans · Symbols · Tourism · Category:LGBT culture   Gender identities · Sexual identities Sexual identity Bisexual · Gay · Lesbian Gender identity Transgender · Transsexual Non-heterosexual Intersex · Queer · Third sex / third gender · Two-Spirit   History LGBT history History of lesbianism · LGBT History Timeline · Social movements · History of Christianity and homosexuality · History of same-sex unions · Pederasty · Category:LGBT history Pre-modern era Adelphopoiesis · Homosexuality in ancient Greece · Homosexuality in ancient Rome · Homosexuality in ancient Egypt · Homosexuality in ancient Peru 16th to 19th century Mollies · Urnings 20th century Gay Liberation · Homosexuals in Nazi Germany and the Holocaust · Sea queens · Stonewall riots · Festival of Light action · White Night riots 21st century   Rights · Legal issues LGBT rights by country or territory Africa  · Americas  · Asia  · Europe  · Oceania  · List of LGBT rights articles by region LGBT rights topics Adoption · Civil unions and partnerships · Hate crime laws · Legal aspects of transsexualism · Military service · Parenting · Same-sex marriage (Status · Timeline) · Sodomy laws LGBT rights movements Gay Liberation · LGBT rights groups · LGBT rights activists   Sexual orientation Sexual orientations Homosexuality · Bisexuality · Inversion Medicine, science and sexology Biology and sexual orientation · Demographics · Environment and sexual orientation · Homosexuality and psychology · Neuroscience and sexual orientation · Timeline of sexual orientation and medicine · Heterosexual-homosexual continuum · Kinsey scale · Klein Grid   Social attitudes · Prejudice · Violence Social attitudes Heteronormativity · LGBT rights opposition · LGBT stereotypes · Religion and homosexuality · Transgenderism and religion Prejudice · Violence Corrective rape · Biphobia · Gay bashing · Heterosexism · Homophobia · Lesbophobia · Transphobia · Racism in the LGBT community · Violence against LGBT people Category:LGBT · LGBT portal