Last edited: November 24, 2007

 

Laws around the World

White = Legal        Red = Illegal

Countries with information gathered for this site:
| Algeria | Armenia | Australia | Azerbaijan | Bahamas | Bahrain | Bangladesh | Barbados | Belarus | Belize | Bermuda | Botswana |  Bosnia- Herzegovina | Burma/Myanmar | Burundi | Cameroon | Canada | Cayman Islands | Chile | China | Cuba | Cyprus | Egypt | Eritrea | Estonia | Ethiopia | Fiji | France | Gambia | Georgia | Germany | Greece | Grenada | Honduras | India | Indonesia | Iran | Iraq | Israel | Jamaica | Japan | Jordan | Kazakhstan | KenyaKuwait | Kyrgyzstan | Lebanon | Liberia | Lithuania | Macedonia | Malaysia | Maldives | Mexico | Morocco | Namibia | Nepal | Nicaragua | Nigeria | Pakistan | Palestine | Peru | Philippines | Poland | Qatar | Romania | Russia | Saudi Arabia | Senegal | Singapore | Slovakia | Solomon Islands | Somalia | South Africa | South Korea | Sri Lanka | St. Kitts and Nevis | St Lucia | Sudan | Sweden | Taiwan | Tajikistan | Tanzania | Thailand | Trinidad and Tobago | Turkey | Uganda | Ukraine | United Arab Emirates | United Kingdom | Uzbekistan | Zambia | Zimbabwe

Survey of Key Developments Worldwide

News

International Lesbian and Gay Association's State of the World in 1998 (with a few updates based on news reports)

International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission's summary of sodomy laws

Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East

Country
Africa Lesbian Gay Male Maximum Penalty
Algeria Illegal Illegal 3 years/fine
Angola Illegal Illegal Unknown
Benin Illegal Illegal Unknown
Botswana Legal Illegal 7 years
Burkina Faso Legal Legal 3 years
Burundi Legal Legal Punishable as an "immoral act"
Cameroon Illegal Illegal 5 years/fine
Cape Verde Illegal Illegal Bail
Central African Republic Legal Legal
Chad Legal Legal
Comoros Legal Legal
Congo Legal Legal
Djibouti Illegal Illegal Unknown
Egypt Illegal Illegal A variety of laws are applied
Equatorial Guinea Not available Not available No information
Eritrea Illegal Illegal 3 years
Ethiopia Illegal Illegal 3 years
Gabon Legal Legal
Gambia Not available Illegal 14 years
Ghana Legal Illegal Unknown
Guinea Illegal Illegal 3 years/fine
Guinea Bissau Legal Legal
Ivory Coast Legal Legal
Kenya Legal Illegal 14 years
Lesotho Legal Legal
Liberia Illegal Illegal Misdemeanor
Libya Illegal Illegal 5 years
Madagascar Legal Legal
Malawi Illegal Illegal Unknown
Mali Legal Legal 2 years/fine
Mauritania Illegal Illegal Death
Mauritius Illegal Illegal 5 years
Morocco Illegal Illegal 3 years/fine
Mozambique Legal Illegal 3 years/hard labor
Namibia Legal Illegal Unknown
Niger Legal Legal
Nigeria Legal Illegal Death
Reunion Legal Legal
Rwanda Legal Legal
Sao Tome and Principe Legal Legal
Senegal Illegal Illegal 5 years/fine
Seychelles Not available Illegal Unknown
Sierra Leone Not available Not available Unknown
Somalia Illegal Illegal 3 years
South Africa Legal Legal
Sudan Illegal Illegal Death
Swaziland Illegal Illegal Prison or fine
Tanzania Legal Illegal 14 years
Togo Illegal Illegal 3 years
Tunisia Illegal Illegal 3 years
Uganda Legal Illegal Life
Zaire Unclear Unclear Unknown
Zambia Legal Illegal 14 years
Zimbabwe Legal Illegal 3 years
Americas Lesbian Gay Male Maximum Penalty
Antigua & Barbuda Legal Legal
Netherlands Antilles Legal Legal
Argentina Legal Legal
Aruba Legal Legal
Bahamas Legal Legal
Barbados Illegal Illegal Unknown
Belize Legal Legal
Bermuda Legal Legal
Bolivia Legal Legal
Brazil Legal Legal
Canada Legal Legal
Cayman Islands Legal Legal
Chile Legal Legal
Colombia Legal Legal
Costa Rica Legal Legal
Cuba Legal Legal
Dominican Republic Legal Legal
Ecuador Legal Legal
El Salvador Legal Legal
Falkland Islands / Malvinas Legal Legal
French Guyana Legal Legal
Greenland Legal Legal
Grenada Legal Illegal Unknown
Guadeloupe Legal Legal
Guatemala Legal Legal
Guyana Legal Illegal Life
Haiti Legal Legal
Honduras Legal Legal
Jamaica Legal Illegal 10 years / hard labor
Martinique Legal Legal
Mexico Legal Legal
Nicaragua Illegal Illegal 3 years
Panama Legal Legal
Paraguay Legal Legal
Peru Legal Legal
Puerto Rico (USA) Legal Legal
Saint Kitts and Nevis Illegal Not available
Saint Lucia Illegal Illegal 25 years
Surinam Legal Legal
Trinidad and Tobago Illegal Illegal 10 years
Turks and Caicos Islands Legal Legal
United States of America Legal Legal
Uruguay Legal Legal
Venezuela Legal Legal
Asia-Pacific Lesbian Gay Male Maximum Penalty
Afghanistan Illegal Illegal Death
Australia Legal* Legal*
Bangladesh Illegal Illegal Life
Bhutan Illegal Illegal Life
Brunei Illegal Illegal 10 years
Burma/Myanmar Illegal Illegal 10 years/fine
Cambodia Legal Legal
China Legal Legal
Cook Islands (New Zealand Associated State) Legal Illegal 14 years
Fiji Islands Legal Legal
French Polynesia/Tahiti Legal Legal
Guam (USA) Legal Legal
Hong Kong Legal Legal
India Illegal Illegal Life
Indonesia Legal Legal
Japan Legal Legal
Kazakhstan Legal Legal
Kiribati Legal Illegal 14 years
Kyrgyzstan Legal Legal
Laos Not available Not available Unknown
Macao Legal Legal
Malaysia Illegal Illegal 20 years/caning and fine
Maldives Legal Illegal Life
Marshall Islands Legal Illegal 10 years
Micronesia Legal Legal
Mongolia Legal Legal
Nauru Not available Not available
Nepal Illegal Illegal Life
New Caledonia Legal Legal
New Zealand Legal Legal
Niue (New Zealand Associated State) Legal Illegal 10 years
North Korea Unknown Unknown Unknown
Pakistan Illegal Illegal Death
Papua New Guinea Legal Illegal 14 years
Philippines Legal Legal
Singapore Illegal Illegal Life
Solomon Islands Illegal Illegal 14 years
South Korea Legal Legal
Sri Lanka Legal Illegal 12 years
Taiwan Legal Legal
Tajikistan Legal Legal
Thailand Legal Legal
Tokelau (New Zealand Associated State) Legal Illegal 10 years
Tonga Legal Illegal 10 years
Turkmenistan Legal Illegal 2 years
Tuvalu Legal Illegal 14 years
Uzbekistan Legal Illegal 3 years
Vanuatu/New Hebrides Legal Legal
Vietnam Legal Legal
Western Samoa Illegal Illegal 7 years
Europe Lesbian Gay Male Maximum Penalty
Albania Legal Legal
Andorra Legal Legal
Armenia Legal Legal
Austria Legal Legal
Azerbaijan Legal Legal
Belgium Legal Legal
Belarus Legal Legal
Bosnia-Herzegovina Legal Legal
Bulgaria Legal Legal
Croatia Legal Legal
Cyprus Legal Legal
Czech Republic Legal Legal
Denmark Legal Legal
Estonia Legal Legal
Faroe Islands Legal Legal
Finland Legal Legal
France Legal Legal
Georgia Legal Legal
Germany Legal Legal
Greece Legal Legal
Hungary Legal Legal
Iceland Legal Legal
Ireland Legal Legal
Italy Legal Legal
Latvia Legal Legal
Liechtenstein Legal Legal
Lithuania Legal Legal
Luxembourg Legal Legal
Macedonia Legal Legal
Malta Legal Legal
Moldavia Legal Legal
Monaco Legal Legal
Montenegro Legal Legal
Netherlands Legal Legal
Norway Legal Legal
Poland Legal Legal
Portugal Legal Legal
Romania Legal Legal
Russia Legal Legal
San Marino Legal Legal
Serbia Legal Legal
Slovakia Legal Legal
Slovenia Legal Legal
Spain Legal Legal
Sweden Legal Legal
Switzerland Legal Legal
Turkey Legal Legal
Ukraine Legal Legal
United Kingdom Legal Legal
Vatican City Legal Legal
Middle East Lesbian Gay Male Maximum Penalty
Bahrain Illegal Illegal 10 years
Iran Illegal Illegal Death
Iraq Legal? Legal? Legal but taboo?
Israel Legal Legal
Jordan Legal Legal
Kuwait Illegal Illegal 7 years
Lebanon Illegal Illegal 1 year
Oman Illegal Illegal 3 years
Palestine Illegal Illegal 10 years
Qatar Illegal Illegal 5 years (some uncertainty)
Saudi Arabia Illegal Illegal Death
Syria Illegal Illegal 1 year
United Arab Emirates Illegal Illegal Death
Yemen Illegal Illegal Death

Editorials

World News

Afghanistan

Algeria

Armenia

Austria

Australia

Azerbaijan

Bahamas

Bahrain

Bangladesh

Barbados

Belarus

Belize

Bermuda

Botswana

Bosnia- Herzegovina

Burma/Myanmar

Burundi

Cameroon

Canada

Cayman Islands

Chile

  • Chilean Lawmakers Mull Gay Protections - Associated Press in The Advocate, July 11, 2006
    Chile's Congress is debating striking down regulations against "offenses to morals and good customs" that police have used to harass gays, even for behavior such as holding hands in public.

China

Cuba

Cyprus

Egypt

Eritrea

Estonia

Ethiopia

Fiji

France

Ghana

Gambia

Georgia

Germany

Greece

Grenada

Honduras

India

Indonesia

Iran

Iraq

Ireland

Israel

Jamaica

Japan

Jordan

Kazakhstan

Kenya

Kuwait

  • Good Conduct Pledge Frees Kuwaiti in 'Rape' of Transvestite - Arab Times, November 21, 2006

Kyrgyzstan

Lebanon

Liberia

Lithuania

Macedonia

Malaysia

Maldives

Mexico

Morocco

Namibia

Nepal

Netherlands

New Zealand

Nicaragua

Nigeria

Pakistan

Palestine

Peru

Philippines

Poland

Qatar

Romania

Russia

Saudi Arabia

Senegal

Singapore

Slovakia

Solomon Islands

Somalia

South Africa

South Korea

Spain

Sri Lanka

St. Kitts and Nevis

St. Lucia

Sudan

Sweden

Tanzania (Including Zanzibar)

Taiwan

Thailand

Trinidad and Tobago

Turkey

Uganda

Ukraine

United Arab Emirates

Dubai

United Kingdom

Uzbekistan

Zambia

Zimbabwe

 

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