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Homosexual Acts around the World

Homosexual Acts around the World

This map shows laws prohibiting same sex activity between consenting adults around the world.

  • Legal - male to male relationships: 118 countries
  • Legal - female to female relationships: 145 countries
  • Illegal - male to male relationships: 80 countries
  • Illegal - female to female relationships: 46 countries
  • Death penalty: 8 countries

Note:

  • The data only deals with legislation criminalising consensual sexual acts between persons of the same sex in private above the age of consent. Laws relating to such acts in public, with under aged persons, by force or by any other reason are not included. Nor does it include countries where such acts are legal.
  • Female/Female: legal - not criminalised or no law.
  • Legal - does not mean "same-sex marriage" or other types of partnerships allowed; it is only decriminalised.
14 years ago
Social
Countrt nameStatusLegal sinceNote
AfghanistanIllegal
AlbaniaLegal1995
AlgeriaIllegalPenalty: Fine - up to 2 years prison
AndorraLegal
AngolaIllegalPenalty: Labour camps for habitual offenders
Antigua and BarbudaIllegalPenalty: 15 year prison sentence
ArgentinaLegal1887
ArmeniaLegal2003
AustraliaLegal
AustriaLegal1971
AzerbaijanLegal2000
Bahamas, TheLegal1991
BahrainUnclear
BangladeshIllegal
BarbadosIllegalPenalty: life sentence
BelgiumLegal1795
BelizeMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: 10 year prison sentence
BeninLegal
BhutanIllegalPenalty: prison sentence up to 1 year
BoliviaLegal
Bosnia and HerzegovinaLegal1998
BotswanaIllegalPenalty: Fine - up to 5 - 7 years
BrazilLegal1831
BruneiIllegalPenalty: fine or prison sentence up to 10 years
BulgariaLegal1968
Burkina FasoLegal
BurmaIllegalPenalty: up to life sentence
BurundiIllegal
CambodiaLegal
CameroonIllegalPenalty: Fine to 5 years prison
CanadaLegal1969
Cape VerdeLegal2004
Central African RepublicLegal
ChadLegal
ChileLegal1999
ChinaLegal1997
ColombiaLegal1981
ComorosIllegal
Congo, Democratic Republic of theLegal
Congo, Republic of theLegal
Cook IslandsMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
Costa RicaLegal1971
Côte d'IvoireLegal
CroatiaLegal1977
CubaLegal1979
CyprusLegal1998
Czech RepublicLegal1962
DenmarkLegal1933
DjiboutiUnclear
DominicaIllegalPenalty: 10 year prison sentence
Dominican RepublicLegal
EcuadorLegal1997
EgyptIllegal
El SalvadorLegal
Equatorial GuineaLegal1931
EritreaIllegal
EstoniaLegal1992
EthiopiaIllegal
FijiLegal2010
FinlandLegal1971
FranceLegal1791
GabonLegal
Gambia, TheIllegalPenalty: up to 14 years
GeorgiaLegal2000
GermanyLegal1968-69
GhanaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
GreeceLegal1951
GrenadaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: 10 year prison sentence
GuatemalaLegal
GuineaIllegalPenalty: 6 months to 3 years prison
Guinea-BissauLegal1993
GuyanaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: life imprisonment
HaitiLegal
Holy See (Vatican City)Legal
HondurasLegal1899
HungaryLegal1962
IcelandLegal1940
IndiaLegal2009
IndonesiaLegal*Same-sex relations are not prohibited according to the national Penal Code. However, in 2002 the national parliament gave the Aceh province the right to adopt Islamic Sharia laws. Such laws do apply to Muslims only. Moreover, for example the city of Palembang in South Sumatra has introduced jail time and hefty fines for same-sex relations
IranPunishable with death penalty
IraqUnclear
IrelandLegal1993
IsraelLegal1988
ItalyLegal1890
JamaicaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: 10 years hard labor
JapanLegal1882
JordanLegal1951
KazakhstanLegal1998
KenyaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
KiribatiMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
Korea, NorthLegal
Korea, SouthLegal
KosovoLegal1994
KuwaitIllegalPenalty: 7 year prison sentence
KyrgyzstanLegal1998
LaosLegal
LatviaLegal1992
LebanonIllegalPenalty: up to one year of imprisonment
LesothoMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
LiberiaIllegalPenalty: Fine
LibyaIllegalPenalty: up to 5 years prison
LiechtensteinLegal1989
LithuaniaLegal1993
LuxembourgLegal1795
Macedonia [FYROM]Legal1996
MadagascarLegal
MalawiMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
MalaysiaIllegalPenalty: fines, prison sentence (2-20 years), or whippings
MaldivesIllegal
MaliLegal
MaltaLegal1973
Marshall IslandsLegal2005
MauritaniaPunishable with death penalty
MauritiusMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
MexicoLegal1872
Micronesia, Federated States ofLegal
MoldovaLegal1995
MonacoLegal1793
MongoliaLegal1987
MontenegroLegal1977
MoroccoIllegalPenalty: up to 3 years
MozambiqueIllegal
NamibiaIllegal
NauruMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
NepalLegal2007
NetherlandsLegal1811
Netherlands AntillesLegal
New ZealandLegal1986
NicaraguaLegal2008
NigerLegal
NigeriaMale/Male: Illegal
Female/Female: Legal
Punishable with death penalty*		Several Northern Nigerian states have adopted Islamic Sharia laws, criminalising sexual activities between persons of the same sex. The maximum penalty for such acts between men is death penalty, while the maximum penalty for such acts between women is a whipping and/or imprisonment
NorwayLegal1972
OmanIllegalPenalty: fines, prison sentence up to 3 years; however
PakistanIllegalPenalty: 2 years to life sentence
PalauMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
Palestinian territoriesLegal1951
Palestinian territoriesGaza Strip in the Palestinian Authority
Male/Male: illegal ; Female/Female: legal
West Bank in the Palestinian Authority: Legal
PanamaLegal2008
Papua New GuineaIllegalPenalty: imprisonment for a term not exceeding 7 years
ParaguayLegal1880
PeruLegal1836-37
PhilippinesLegal
PolandLegal1932
PortugalLegal1983
QatarIllegalPenalty: fines, prison sentence up to 5 years
RomaniaLegal1996
RussiaLegal1993
RwandaLegal
Saint Kitts and NevisMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: 10 years
Saint LuciaIllegalPenalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesIllegalPenalty: fine and/or 10 year prison sentence
SamoaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
San MarinoLegal1865
Sao Tome and PrincipeIllegal
Saudi ArabiaPunishable with death penalty
SenegalIllegalPenalty: 1 month to 5 years prison
SerbiaLegal1994
SeychellesMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
Sierra LeoneMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
SingaporeMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
SlovakiaLegal1962
SloveniaLegal1977
Solomon IslandsIllegal
SomaliaIllegal
SomaliaIllegal/punishable with death penaltySomalia has not had a functioning central government since the fall in 1991. In the southern parts Islamic courts rule, having imposed Islamic Sharia law punishing homosexual acts with death penalty. However, Somaliland in the north has declared itself independent, and it still applies the Penal Code (where the act does not constitute a more serious crime. Punishment: imprisonment from three months to three years).
South AfricaLegal1998
SpainLegal1979
Sri LankaIllegalPenalty: Fine - up to 2 years prison
SudanPunishable with death penaltyPenalty: 5 years up to death penalty
SurinameLegal1869
SwazilandMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		The Government has plans to include prohibitions of all male homosexual acts and lesbian acts in its revision of the Sexual Offences laws.
SwedenLegal1944
SwitzerlandLegal1942
SyriaIllegalPenalty: prison sentence up to 3 years
TaiwanLegal1896
TajikistanLegal1998
TanzaniaIllegalPenalty: up to life imprisonment
ThailandLegal1957
Timor-LesteLegal1975
TogoIllegal
TokelauLegal2007
TongaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
Trinidad and TobagoIllegalPenalty: 25 year prison sentence
TunisiaIllegalPenalty: Fine - 3 years
TurkeyLegal1858
Turkish Republic of Northern CyprusMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: up to 5 years imprisonment
TurkmenistanMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: up to 2 year prison sentence
TuvaluMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
UgandaIllegal
UkraineLegal1991
United Arab EmiratesPunishable with death penaltyPenalty: deportation, fines, prison time or death sentence
United KingdomLegal
United StatesLegal2003
UruguayLegal1934
UzbekistanMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal		Penalty: up to 3 year prison sentence
VanuatuLegal2007
VenezuelaLegal
VietnamLegal
YemenPunishable with death penalty
ZambiaMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
ZimbabweMale/Male: illegal
Female/Female: legal
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Source

  • ILGA 2010, Worldwide survey of homosexuality laws, May 2010, The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, Brussels, Belgium, viewed 7th September, 2010, <http://ilga.org/ilga/en/article/1161>.

Citation

ChartsBin statistics collector team 2010, Homosexual Acts around the World, ChartsBin.com, viewed 18th April, 2024, <http://chartsbin.com/view/66v>.
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