Same-sex intercourse illegal. Penalties: | |
Prison; death not enforced | |
Death under militias | Prison, with arrests or detention |
Prison, not enforced1 | |
Same-sex intercourse legal. Recognition of unions: | |
Extraterritorial marriage2 | |
Limited foreign | Optional certification |
None | Restrictions of expression |
| Neither | States which did not support either declaration |
| Non-member states | States that are not voting members of the United Nations |
| Oppose | States which supported an opposing declaration in 2008 and continued their opposition in 2011 |
| Subsequent member | South Sudan, which was not a member of the United Nations in 2008 |
| Support | States which supported the LGBT rights declaration in the General Assembly or on the Human Rights Council in 2008 or 2011 |
Rights |
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Theoretical distinctions |
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Human rights |
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Rights by beneficiary |
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Other groups of rights |
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Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.
Notably, as of June 2023[update], 35 countries recognize same-sex marriage.[1] By contrast, not counting non-state actors and extrajudicial killings, only two countries are believed to impose the death penalty on consensual same-sex sexual acts: Iran and Afghanistan.[2] The death penalty is officially law, but generally not practiced, in Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Somalia (in the autonomous state of Jubaland) and the United Arab Emirates. As well as, LGBT people face extrajudicial killings in the Russian region of Chechnya. Sudan rescinded its unenforced death penalty for anal sex (hetero- or homosexual) in 2020. Fifteen countries have stoning on the books as a penalty for adultery, which (in light of the illegality of gay marriage in those countries) would by default include gay sex, but this is enforced by the legal authorities in Iran and Nigeria (in the northern third of the country).[3][4][5][6]
In 2011, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed its first resolution recognizing LGBT rights, following which the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a report documenting violations of the rights of LGBT people, including hate crimes, criminalization of homosexual activity, and discrimination. Following the issuance of the report, the United Nations urged all countries which had not yet done so to enact laws protecting basic LGBT rights.[7][8] A 2022 study found that LGBT rights (as measured by ILGA-Europe's Rainbow Index) were correlated with less HIV/AIDS incidence among gay and bisexual men independently of risky sexual behavior.[9]
The 2023 Equaldex Equality Index ranks the Nordics, Uruguay, Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States among the best for LGBT rights. The index ranks Yemen, Brunei, Afghanistan, Somalia, Mauritania, Palestine, and Iran among the worst.[10]
Laws that affect LGBT people include, but are not limited to, the following:
Laws regarding same-sex sexuality by country or territory | ||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Worldwide laws regarding same-sex intercourse, unions and expression
Rings indicate local or case-by-case application. 1No imprisonment in the past three years or moratorium on law. 2Marriage not available locally. Some jurisdictions may perform other types of partnerships. |
LGBT rights at the United Nations |
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![]() Support Countries which have signed a General Assembly declaration of LGBT rights or sponsored the Human Rights Council's 2011 resolution on LGBT rights (96 members) Oppose Countries which signed a 2008 statement opposing LGBT rights (initially 57 members, now 54 members after withdrawal of Fiji, Rwanda and Sierra Leone) Neither Countries which, as regards the UN, have expressed neither official support nor opposition to LGBT rights (44 members) |
Homosexual "propaganda" and "morality" laws by country or territory |
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![]() Countries or territories that do not have homosexual "propaganda" or "morality" laws Fine[50] Unknown punishment Imprisonment |
Decriminalization of same-sex sexual intercourse by country or territory |
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Equalization of age of consent laws for same-sex couples by country or territory |
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![]() 1790–1829 1830–1839 1840–1859 1860–1869 1870–1879 1880–1889 1890–1929 1930–1939 1940–19491 1950–1959 1960–1969 1970–1979 1980–1989 1990–1999 2000–2009 2010–2019 2020–present Unknown date for equal age of consent laws for opposite and same-sex couples No consent laws/equal age of consent laws always equal for opposite and same-sex couples Unequal age of consent laws for same-sex couples Same-sex sexual intercourse illegal 1During World War II, Nazi Germany annexed or occupied territory, extending Germany's laws against same-sex sexual intercourse. Age of consent was previously equalized for same-sex couples in the following countries or territories before the war: Belluno (legal in 1890), Friuli-Venezia Giulia (legal in 1890), Poland (decriminalized in 1932), and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol (legal in 1890).[citation needed] During World War II Germany did not consistently enforce anti-homosexual laws in all occupied countries.[51] All countries and territories listed that were annexed or established into reichskommissariats by Nazi Germany during World War II were restored as independent countries or reincorporated into their previous countries during or after the war and thus re-legalized equal age of consent laws for same-sex couples in those areas.[citation needed] |
Legal status of same-sex marriage |
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![]() Marriage open to same-sex couples (rings: individual cases) Mixed jurisdiction: marriage recognized by the state but not by tribal government for residents who are members of the tribe Legislation or binding domestic court ruling establishing same-sex marriage, but marriage is not yet provided for Same-sex marriage recognized with full rights when performed in certain other jurisdictions Civil unions or domestic partnerships Limited legal recognition Local certification without legal force Limited recognition of marriage performed in certain other jurisdictions (residency rights for spouses) Country subject to an international court ruling that recognizes same-sex marriage Other countries where same-sex unions are not legally recognized |
Legal status of adoption by same-sex couples by country or territory |
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LGBT service in national militaries by country or territory[citation needed] |
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Employment discrimination laws by sexual orientation or gender identity by country or territory |
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![]() Sexual orientation and gender identity: all employment Sexual orientation with anti–employment discrimination ordinance and gender identity solely in public employment Sexual orientation: all employment Gender identity: all employment Sexual orientation and gender identity: federal public employment and federal contractors Sexual orientation and gender identity: public employment Sexual orientation: public employment No national-level employment laws covering sexual orientation or gender identity |
Anti-discrimination laws covering goods and services by sexual orientation and/or gender identity by country or territory |
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![]() Sexual orientation and gender identity covered Sexual orientation covered Gender identity covered No national or local level anti-discrimination laws covering sexual orientation and/or gender identity in goods and services |
Constitutional discrimination laws by sexual orientation and/or gender identity by country or territory |
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LGBT hate crime laws by country or territory |
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Incitement to hatred based on sexual orientation and gender identity prohibited by country or territory |
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Ban on conversion therapy for minors on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity by country or territory |
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![]() Ban on conversion therapy on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity De facto ban on conversion therapy Case-by-case bans Proposed ban on conversion therapy No ban on conversion therapy |
Immigration equality by country or territory[citation needed] |
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Bans on same-sex unions by country or territory |
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Blood donation policies for men who have sex with men by country or territory |
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![]() Men who have sex with men may donate blood; No deferral Men who have sex with men may donate blood; Temporary deferral Men who have sex with men may not donate blood; Permanent deferral No Data |
Blood donation policies for female sex partners of men who have sex with men by country or territory |
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![]() Female sex partners of men who have sex with men may donate blood; No deferral Female sex partners of men who have sex with men may donate blood; Temporary deferral Female sex partners of men who have sex with men may not donate blood; Permanent deferral No Data |
Laws concerning gender identity-expression by country or territory |
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Legal recognition of non-binary genders and third gender |
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