Abu Dhabi is governed by federal United Arab Emirates law. Learn more
- Homosexuality
- ⚢✖ Illegal (death penalty as punishment)
- Gay Marriage
- ⚭✖ Banned
- Censorship
- ✖ Imprisonment as punishment
- Changing Gender
- ✖ Illegal
- Gender-Affirming Care
- ✖ Banned
- Non-Binary Gender Recognition
- ✖ Not legally recognized
- Discrimination
- ✖ No protections
- Employment Discrimination
- ✖ No protections
- Housing Discrimination
- ✖ No protections
- Adoption
- ✖ Illegal
- Intersex Infant Surgery
- ✖ Not banned
- Military
- ✖ Illegal
- Donating Blood
- ✖ Banned (indefinite deferral)
- Conversion Therapy
- ✖ Not banned
- Age of Consent
- N/A
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Public Opinion
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Homosexual activity in Abu Dhabi is illegal (death penalty as punishment).
Current status
Since Jan 9, 1999
Illegal (death penalty as punishment)
LGBT activities are illegal in the UAE. Punishments (under sharia law) include death, life in prison, floggings, fines, deportation, chemical castration, forced psychological treatments, honor killings, beatings, forced anal examinations, forced hormone injections, and torture.
Male illegal, female uncertain
Article 354 of the Federal Penal Code could be Imprisonment,fines, floggings,and deportation for foreigners
In Abu Dhabi Article 80 of the Penal Code punishable by imprisonment of up to 14 years. In Dubai Article 177 of the Penal Code imposes imprisonment of up to 10 years . Not enforced .If you a travelers or foreigner you will be in jail followed by deportation or directed deportation
In Abu Dhabi Article 80 of the Penal Code punishable by imprisonment of up to 14 years. In Dubai Article 177 of the Penal Code imposes imprisonment of up to 10 years . Not enforced .If you a travelers or foreigner you will be in jail followed by deportation or directed deportation
Illegal (imprisonment as punishment)
There are no known instances of imposition of the death penalty, or sentences to life in prison, according to the US Department of State, Amnesty and the ILGA. Prison sentences, fines, floggings, and deportation for foreign nationals, are known to have been consequences of suspected or established same-sex sexual conduct.
Same-sex marriage in Abu Dhabi is banned.
Current status
Since Jan 1, 1987
Banned
Same-sex marriage in the United Arab Emirates is not legal.
Censorship of LGBT issues in Abu Dhabi is imprisonment as punishment.
Current status
Imprisonment as punishment
In United Arab Emirates access to many websites discussing LGBTQ+ topics is blocked by ISPs.
Right to change legal gender in Abu Dhabi is illegal.
Current status
Since Sep 6, 2019
Illegal
There is no longer a right to change one’s legal gender.
Legal, but requires surgery
In 2016, the UAE amended its federal medical liability law to permit sex reassignment surgery, but only in certain circumstances. The law specifies that these procedures should only be permitted for intersex individuals and not for purely psychiatric ones.
The law also states that surgeons who operate on people who don't fit the requirements set forth by the same statute would be held criminally liable.
The law also states that surgeons who operate on people who don't fit the requirements set forth by the same statute would be held criminally liable.
Gender-affirming care in Abu Dhabi is banned.
Current status
Banned
Gender-affirming care for transgender people in the UAE is explicitly banned. The law specifically states only intersex individuals may be approved for gender-affirming care.
Legal recognition of non-binary gender in Abu Dhabi is not legally recognized.
Current status
Not legally recognized
"Cross Dressing" is illegal in the UAE. Transgenderism is banned. Non-binary genders are not recognized.
Same-sex adoption in Abu Dhabi is illegal.
Current status
Illegal
Adoption for same-sex couples or single LGBT people is banned in the country due to anti-LGBT hate laws.
Intersex infant surgery in Abu Dhabi is not banned.
Current status
Not banned
The law specifically permits intersex infant surgery.
Serving openly in military in Abu Dhabi is illegal.
Current status
Illegal
If one says they are homosexual it is punishable by death penalty.
Blood donations by MSMs in Abu Dhabi is banned (indefinite deferral).
Current status
Banned (indefinite deferral)
It is illegal to be gay in the UAE
Conversion therapy in Abu Dhabi is not banned.
Current status
Not banned
Conversion therapy is not banned in the United Arab Emirates and is even sanctioned by the government.
Equal age of consent in Abu Dhabi is n/a.
Current status
N/A
Age of consent is not applicable because homosexuality is illegal in the United Arab Emirates.
Legal Rights
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Alternative names: Abu Zabi, Abu Zaby, Abū Z̨abī, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi